Zipcar is a for-profit, membership-based carsharing company providing automobile rental to its members, billable by the hour or day. Zipcar was founded in 1999 by Cambridge, Massachusetts residents Robin Chase and Antje Danielson. On October 31, 2007 Zipcar merged with rival Flexcar.

By 2009 Zipcar has become the world's largest car-sharing service, sharing 6,000 vehicles between 275,000 drivers in 49 U.S. cities, Vancouver, Toronto, and London, representing almost half of all car-sharers worldwide. Members, called "zipsters", are able to view vehicle availability and reserve a self-service car via the internet, iPhone app, or by telephone, in increments as short as one hour and pay only for time they reserve. Zipcar vehicles report their positions to a control center using in-car technology.

In the U.S. each reservation entitles the members up to 180 miles for each 24 hour period, while Canadian members receive up to 200 kilometers with each reservation for the first 24 hours, and 15 kilometers per each additional hour beyond the initial 24. Each vehicle has a home location: a reserved parking space located on a street, driveway, or neighborhood parking lot in the member's area. Individual members can sign up for one of two different plans, the "Occasional Driving Plan" and the "Extra Value Plan".

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