Sendai Station Car Rental: 17 Branches Compared

Seventeen rental branches at Sendai Station: how to choose

Sendai Station has seventeen rental branches from seven companies. Nico Nico has five, Toyota four, Nippon three and Orix two. Nine are on the east side and eight on the west side, and you walk to all of them.

This page compares each branch's address, hours, walking route and rules on one-way returns, with reference prices and the closing times to check.

Early pickup or late return: Nissan East Exit opens first, at 07:00. Nissan and Eki Rent-a-Car close last, at 21:00, and Nico Nico Teppomachi-Naka stays open until 21:00 on weekends and holidays.
A short walk: Eki Rent-a-Car is on the first floor of S-PAL Sendai East Building. Toyota East Exit is one minute from the east exit.
Staying on the west side: Nippon West Exit and Toyota West Exit are five minutes from the west exit. Nippon West Exit closes at 19:00 on weekdays and 18:00 on weekends and holidays. Toyota West Exit is open until 20:00 every day.
Returning at another branch: all four Toyota branches, both Orix branches, Eki Rent-a-Car, and Nippon Ekimae Terminal and Honcho No. 1 handle returns to other branches. Nippon West Exit does not accept cars rented elsewhere.
A lower base rate: on the Japanese-licence standard rates before discounts, Eki Rent-a-Car is lowest among the large companies at ¥8,470 for a compact car for 24 hours. Nico Nico is ¥5,610, but its CDW does not waive the vehicle excess after a single-car accident.

Compare the seventeen Sendai branches

Branch names link to each branch's own page, where you can see the map and book. The numbers only identify branches and are not a ranking.

No. and branch	Address in Sendai	Hours	Access	One-way returns and limits
1. Nippon Sendai Ekimae Terminal	1-3-5 Shinteramachi, Wakabayashi Ward	Daily 07:30–20:00	3 min south of the east exit	Cars from other branches accepted: kei and passenger cars, wagons, vans and kei trucks; no full-size wagons
2. Nippon Sendai Station West Exit	4-9-8 Chuo, Aoba Ward	Weekdays 08:00–19:00; weekends and holidays 08:00–18:00; 21–23 November 2026 08:00–19:00; 31 December 2026 and 2–3 January 2027 08:00–18:00; closed 1 January 2027	5 min from the west exit	Cars rented elsewhere not accepted
3. Toyota Sendai Station East Exit	1F, Takeuchi Building, 1-5-15 Tsutsujigaoka, Miyagino Ward	07:30–20:00; no closed days	180 m, 1 min from the east exit; 3 min from Miyagino-dori subway	One-way departures and returns allowed, except registration classifications 1 and 2
4. Toyota Sendai Station West Exit	3-8-29 Chuo, Aoba Ward	08:00–20:00; no closed days	5 min from the west exit	One-way departures and returns allowed, except classifications 1 and 2
5. Nippon Sendai Honcho No. 1	2-10-30 Honcho, Aoba Ward	Daily 07:30–19:00; 31 December 2026 and 2–3 January 2027 08:00–17:00; closed 1 January 2027	10 min from the west exit; 5 min from Hirosedori subway east exit 2	Cars from other branches accepted, up to 2 t trucks
6. Toyota Sendai Shinkansen Exit	2-4-8 Tsutsujigaoka, Miyagino Ward	07:30–20:00; 31 December–3 January 08:00–20:00	3 min from the east exit deck	One-way departures and returns allowed, except classifications 1 and 2 and trucks
7. Toyota Honcho	Inside Miyagi Toyota, 2-11-33 Honcho, Aoba Ward	08:30–19:00; 31 December 08:30–17:00; closed 1–3 January	10 min from the west exit	One-way departures and returns allowed, except classifications 1 and 2
8. Orix Sendai Ekimae	2-11-10 Chuo, Aoba Ward	Daily 08:00–20:00; 31 December 2026 08:00–19:00; 1–3 January 2027 09:00–19:00	8 min (600 m) from the west exit; 2 min from Hirosedori subway east exit 1	One-way departures and returns allowed, except Hokkaido, Okinawa and outlying islands. Excludes vehicles 484 cm long, 188 cm wide or 210 cm tall and above, and WD class and above
9. Orix Sendai Station East Exit	1F, Comfort Miyagino, 206-19 Nakakecho, Miyagino Ward	Daily 08:00–20:00; 31 December 2026 08:00–19:00; 1–3 January 2027 09:00–18:00	7 min (550 m) from the east exit	One-way departures and returns allowed, except Hokkaido, Okinawa and outlying islands
10. Nissan Sendai Station East Exit	1F, Shoei East Exit No. 3 Building, 2-5-10 Tsutsujigaoka, Miyagino Ward	Daily 07:00–21:00; 26 December 2026–3 January 2027 08:00–20:00	3 min to the left of the east exit, near the police box	Check that the return branch can be selected when you book
11. Times Sendai Station West Exit	1-3 Itsutsubashi, Aoba Ward	09:00–18:00; open all year	About 9 min from the west exit; about 5 min from Itsutsubashi subway north exit 4	Cars from other branches accepted, but no tall or long vehicles. Pay by credit card
12. Eki Rent-a-Car Sendai Station	1-1-1 Chuo, Aoba Ward	07:30–21:00	From the east–west passage, lift on the east-exit side to the first floor of S-PAL Sendai East Building	One-way returns available
13. Nico Nico Sendai Station East Exit	2-4-21 Tsutsujigaoka, Miyagino Ward	Weekdays 08:00–20:00; weekends and holidays 09:00–19:00	About 6 min from the east exit, at an ENEOS petrol station	Check that the return branch can be selected when you book
14. Nico Nico Sendai Shinteramachi 2-chome	2-1-14 Shinteramachi, Wakabayashi Ward	Daily 08:00–20:00	5 min from the east exit, at a Cosmo petrol station	Check that the return branch can be selected when you book
15. Nico Nico Sendai Kakyoin	1-6-17 Honcho, Aoba Ward	Weekdays 08:00–20:00; weekends and holidays 09:00–18:00	About 8 min; about 550 m north along Ekimae-dori from the west exit, at an ENEOS petrol station	Check that the return branch can be selected when you book
16. Nico Nico Miyagi Teppomachi-Naka	5-13-102 Teppomachi-Naka, Miyagino Ward	Weekdays 09:00–20:00; weekends and holidays 09:00–21:00	About 10 min from the east exit	Check that the return branch can be selected when you book
17. Nico Nico Sendai Honcho	3-1-1 Honcho, Aoba Ward	Daily 08:00–20:00	About 10 min from the west exit; about 5 min from Kotodai-Koen subway exit Koen 1, at an ENEOS petrol station	Check that the return branch can be selected when you book

Toyota, Orix and Nissan lend ETC cards for expressway tolls. Times does not, and some of its cars have no ETC reader. The other company pages do not cover ETC cards, so ask when you book. At Nico Nico, an International Driving Permit (IDP) holder must handle the contract in Japanese without an interpreter or translation app, and acceptance varies by branch.

Reference rates at seven companies

These are compact-car standard rates: regular season, tax included, before discounts, on a Japanese driving licence. The 48-hour total is the first 24 hours, one further day and two days of basic collision damage waiver (CDW).

Company and class	First 24 hours	Each further 24 hours	Basic CDW per day	48 hours with basic CDW	Minivan (7–8 seats), 24 hours
Nico Nico S (Aqua, Yaris, Roomy)	¥5,610	¥5,610	¥1,100	¥13,420	¥15,180
Eki Rent-a-Car S (Fit, Yaris)	¥8,470	¥7,150	¥1,100	¥17,820	¥22,550
Toyota C1 (Yaris, Passo)	¥8,580	¥7,260	¥1,100	¥18,040	¥20,900
Times C-1 (Mazda2, Note e-POWER)	¥8,855	¥7,920	¥1,100	¥18,975	¥22,770
Nippon N-B (Fit, Corolla)	¥8,910	¥7,150	¥1,100	¥18,260	¥22,550
Nissan P2 (March, Note)	¥9,790	¥7,700	¥1,650	¥20,790	¥24,090
Orix SA (Fit, Note 1.2)	¥9,900	¥7,920	¥1,100	¥20,020	¥22,660

With a foreign licence, Toyota has a separate list: C1 is ¥10,340 for the first 24 hours and ¥8,690 for each further 24 hours, before optional cover. Get a quote for your own licence and dates at the other companies, because these figures are not a visitor quote.

Read the driving licence guide before you book, and the CDW and NOC guide to see what basic cover leaves you paying.

Choose the branch near your station exit

The nearest branch depends on whether you leave by the east or west exit. A branch on the same side as your hotel or your next destination saves crossing the station.

Inside the station: Eki Rent-a-Car is on the first floor of S-PAL Sendai East Building. From the east–west passage, take the lift on the east-exit side down to the first floor.
Close to the east exit: Toyota East Exit (one minute; head south from the junction ahead, next to Sundai Preparatory School), Nissan (three minutes to the left, near the East Exit police box), Nippon Ekimae Terminal (three minutes south) and Toyota Shinkansen Exit (three minutes from the east exit deck).
A short walk from the east exit: Nico Nico Shinteramachi 2-chome (five minutes), Nico Nico East Exit (about six minutes), Orix East Exit (seven minutes) and Nico Nico Teppomachi-Naka (about ten minutes).
West exit: Nippon West Exit (five minutes), Toyota West Exit (five minutes), Orix Ekimae (eight minutes), Nico Nico Kakyoin (about 550 m north along Ekimae-dori, about eight minutes) and Times (about nine minutes).
About ten minutes from the west exit (Honcho): Toyota Honcho, Nippon Honcho No. 1 and Nico Nico Honcho. Nippon Honcho No. 1 is five minutes from Hirosedori subway on the Namboku Line, and Nico Nico Honcho is five minutes from Kotodai-Koen subway.

"Ekimae" does not always mean right outside the station. Nippon Ekimae Terminal is south of the east exit, and Orix Ekimae is in Chuo 2-chome, eight minutes from the west exit.

Check closing times and accepted vehicles before returning

Watch for early closings. Times closes at 18:00, Nippon West Exit at 18:00 on weekends and holidays (19:00 on weekdays), and Nico Nico Kakyoin at 18:00 on weekends and holidays. Over New Year, Toyota Honcho closes at 17:00 on 31 December and all day on 1–3 January. Nippon West Exit and Honcho No. 1 close on 1 January 2027. Nissan is open 08:00–20:00 from 26 December 2026 to 3 January 2027.

If you return a car rented elsewhere, choose a branch that accepts it. Nippon West Exit does not. Nippon Ekimae Terminal has a height limit, so full-size wagons cannot be collected or returned there. Orix Ekimae excludes vehicles 484 cm long, 188 cm wide or 210 cm tall and above from one-way rentals. All four Toyota branches exclude registration classifications 1 and 2 from one-way rentals.

On the day you take a Shinkansen home, decide which exit you will use to reach the gates after returning the car. Allow time for refuelling, entering the branch, the return inspection and the walk to the station.

Match the rental period to your Sendai stay and Tohoku tour

If you stay in central Sendai first and then head for Matsushima or the mountains, compare renting at the station the next morning. Against picking up at Sendai Airport and keeping the car overnight, add parking and the fare from the airport to the difference in rental cost. A branch on the same side as your hotel also means less carrying of luggage.

On a one-direction tour across several prefectures, returning at another branch is an option. Quote it with the one-way charge and the return branch's vehicle limits included. For winter equipment, do not judge by a name such as "SUV". Check how tyres and drive type are described for the booking you make.

Frequently asked questions

Which rental branch is closest to Sendai Station?

Eki Rent-a-Car Sendai Station is inside S-PAL Sendai East Building, reached by the east-exit lift from the east–west passage. Outside the station, Toyota East Exit is one minute (about 180 m) from the east exit.

Which branches open early or close late?

Nissan East Exit is open 07:00–21:00 and Eki Rent-a-Car 07:30–21:00. Nippon Ekimae Terminal, Nippon Honcho No. 1, Toyota East Exit and Toyota Shinkansen Exit also open at 07:30.

What time does Nippon Sendai Station West Exit close?

It is open 08:00–19:00 on weekdays and 08:00–18:00 on weekends and holidays. It stays open until 19:00 on 21–23 November 2026, closes at 18:00 on 31 December 2026 and 2–3 January 2027, and is closed on 1 January 2027.

Can I return a car rented elsewhere at Sendai Station?

All four Toyota branches, both Orix branches, Eki Rent-a-Car, and Nippon Ekimae Terminal and Honcho No. 1 handle returns from other branches. Nippon West Exit does not.

What does a two-day rental cost?

For a compact car with basic CDW for two days, the Japanese-licence standard rates before discounts come to ¥17,820–¥20,790 at the six large companies. Eki Rent-a-Car is lowest at ¥17,820. Nico Nico is ¥13,420. A foreign licence can change the price: Toyota C1 starts at ¥10,340 for the first 24 hours.