Rental cars in Mallorca

Where is your hotel located and how many people are you? And are you only needing the car in order to get to get from the airport to your hotel and back or do you plan on using it to get around the Island?
I just got back from a week in Mallorca last week and we had the same dilemma as you. We where 5 persons (incl. one baby) staying in the Ses Illetes area just south west of Palma. We opted to just get two separate taxis (only 4 people can fit in one) from the airport, which was around 35 Euros per taxi. I don't know how exactly it compares to a rental car, but it was considerably less hassle free.
If you do opt for a rental car, be sure to research the company you choose. Companies like Goldcar have a terrible reputation.
And if you book online, make sure it's Palma de Mallorca and not Las Palmas in Gran Canaria (I know someone who made that mistake).

Rent a car, you'll want one for exploring the island. I've been renting cars in Mallorca for a number of years and always pick up a car at the airport. I've found rentalcars.com to be the best option, they're a consolidator and most often the rental is fulfilled by Hertz. Avoid the likes of Goldcar, OK, Centauro etc. if the price looks too good to be true then invariably there are extra fees, damaged cars and so on. Go for the trusted names and you'll have no problem. I've also had a good experience with ryanair cars, again they're a consolidator and if you filter out the results from the more dubious companies then you can often find a good deal.

Be aware that Hertz routinely remove the SD card containing the maps for the sat nav on vehicles that don't have the maps built in and will try and charge you the daily sat nav rental to replace it, a practice I take great exception to. I've not experienced this with any other company however we've managed fine on the last couple of occasions with Google maps on our phones.

For insurance I always take out a separate policy from a UK insurer that covers me for car rentals abroad. An annual multi trip policy is roughly £30 and is cheaper than purchasing the cover from the rental company.

With the exception of Palma, driving in Mallorca is a pleasure, the roads are relatively quiet and the pace is more laid back than the frenetic mainland and there are some fantastic routes among the Tramuntana mountains.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/spain/majorca/articles/majorca-scenic-drives/

Thanks for your reply and advice.
We are just two people and the hotel is in Canyamel. I understand this is about an hour from Palma de Mallorca.

Mike

Yes, you're about an hour's drive but it's an easy one, pretty much all one road, the MA15. There's a nice beach there, (for some reason some people have this perception that there are few sandy beaches in Europe despite this being very far from accurate) and you're close to the town of Arta and the nearby caves, both are great places to visit. I recommend visiting the caves in the morning then visit Arta, climb up to the fortress for some impressive views then explore the narrow cobblestone streets before settling on somewhere for lunch