Which car rental company is recommended?

I use AutoEurope a lot, which is a broker for car rental companies. They give you a quote and you choose which company you want. Last year I used them for Germany and got a car through Avis at a decent price. I've been using AutoEurope for decades and have never had any problems with them.

ETA: I would suggest that if you are picking up in Munich, you look for a pick up location that is outside the city or at the airport. It is very difficult to drive in Munich (and I can attest to that personally). I always try and avoid driving in a European city (and some US ones) because it can be so stressful.

One-way cross-border rentals can be expensive.
Sixt, Avis, Europcar, and Hertz are the car rental companies with largest revenue in Germany.

I agree that renting a car in central Munich does not sound like a great idea. Also, what is your plan? Renting a car in Germany and returning it in Switzerland will be expensive, you can probably save a bit by renting one car in Germany and one in Switzerland.

To avoid the high cost of returning the car in Switzerland, you should return it in Lörrach, just outside of Basel. All the above mentioned rental companies have a station in Lörrach. From Lörrach you can easily take the S-Bahn into Basel.

Plus you will need to buy a 40 CHF vignette for your German rental vehicle when you enter Switzerland.

We booked ours through Costco’s website with Avis, used the $10 or whatever low price insurance that you can get through Amex. Make sure you book with the same Amex you got the insurance with and decline all rental car company insurance for this to work as your primary insurance. We picked up in Regensburg and returned to Frankfurt airport. Had no problems at all. Highly recommend

I have had great results using US rental companies like Budget in Europe, but not so good results with AutoEurope.

AutoEurope got me a great price with Europeacar, that didn't have the model that I booked available and with not nav system. Their price for a GPS was outrageous.

I had to upgrade to an expensive model that doubled my cost. No more.

Is it still possible to rent a car at one location in Germany and return to another without paying a fee?

I'm not sure whether that was ever possible. As long as I can remember, there was always a surcharge for returning to another location.

Hi,

We’ve used www.gemut.com for car rentals a number of times. They will help you figure your rental needs out. Extremely helpful people at gemut.

I agree with others, return the “Munich” car in Germany before heading into Switzerland. Once in Switzerland, depending on your plans, you may not even need or want a car. If you do, rent another in Switzerland.

I don’t know if things have changed, but we never incurred an extra charge for picking up a car at Frankfurt airport and returning it at Munich airport.

I never rent a car in one country and return it in another as the return surcharge is exorbitant. With that said, our recent experience with Auto Europe was positive from start to finish. Numerous friends have reported that Hertz is attempting to charge them for "damages" to the vehicle that did not occur. (think scratches, dents etc.) They are not spending time protesting those charges.

At least a US$600 drop-fee Munich to Zurich. Without having more detail of your itinerary, you can rent in Munich and drop off in Konstanz (fee about $60). Direct train from Konstanz to Zurich. I don't know if Zurich is an intended base or not, or just a departure point for you: there are much better places to visit.

We were fortunate renting one-way back to Germany. The rental agency had a car that needed to be returned to Germany. There's a small chance you could get lucky in that way.

Gemüt.com - I agree with Paul’s comment to check with Gemüt.com. Renting a car in Switzerland is about 3 times as expensive as it is in Germany. I just flew into Zurich (ZRH) and took a train to Lindau - Reutin and picked up my Hertz car less than a block from the station. The flight to / from Zurich is cheaper than Munich (MUC), plus, take a train to Konstanz for $45-$48 to pick up your car, or $75-$80 to Lindau Reutin to pick it up. The train is great and the rates are for 1st Class. Zurich is a nice airport too. I am staying at the Radisson Blu at the airport, not really that expensive, and it’s great to be right there at the airport for a morning flight.