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AyRojgar

Car rental service

Renting out cars by the day or on monthly contract. In Dhaka a sedan is Tk 4,000 a day for 10 hours and 100 km and a Hiace Tk 5,500, but that is not profit once driver pay and depreciation are counted.

  • Last reviewed: 19 September 2026
  • Version 1
Car rental service

Car rental service

Starting capital
৳6,00,000 – ৳35,00,000
Editorial estimate
Manpower
1 – 5 people
First sale
15 – 60 days
Editorial estimate
Break-even
15 – 28 months
Editorial estimate
Kind of work
Mobile service · Medium difficulty

About the business

Renting out a car is really two businesses, and running one on the other's arithmetic is how operators lose money. The first is the day trip - weddings, outings, airport runs, journeys out of town. A Dhaka operator's published rate card of 16 September 2026 shows a sedan (Axio or X-Corolla) at Tk 4,000 a day, a Noah or Voxy at Tk 5,000 and a 12-seat Hiace at Tk 5,500, each capped at 10 hours and 100 kilometres with toll and parking included and extra charged beyond that; a bKash advance confirms the booking. The second is the monthly contract - a car placed with an office, an NGO or a factory for the month. The income there is certain but lower, and it arrives after the month, once a bill clears. Both are undone by the same two costs that nobody counts: the driver's salary and the depreciation of the car. The driver is paid whether the month was busy or empty, and the car ages every day it runs, so engine, tyres, brakes and paint cost nothing today and everything two years from now. Fuel is government-set: from 1 June 2026, octane Tk 145, petrol Tk 140 and diesel Tk 115 a litre. Leave those three out and Tk 4,000 a day looks like profit. It is not.

Unit economics

ItemRangeEvidenceSuggest a correction
Monthly working capital৳40,000 – ৳1,50,000Editorial estimate
Selling price৳4,000 – ৳5,500 / unitMarket quote
Variable cost৳1,600 – ৳3,100 / unitEditorial estimate
Gross margin44% – 60%Editorial estimate
Time to first revenue15 – 60 daysEditorial estimate
Break-even time15 – 28 monthsEditorial estimate
Cash cycle0 – 45 daysDisputed
Waste / loss5% – 12%Editorial estimate
Daily capacity1 – 2Market quote

What you need to start

  • The car is the capital. Add a GPS tracker, a first aid box, a fire extinguisher, a spare tyre and jack, and a phone for the driver.Equipment
  • Trade licence from the city corporation or municipality: form Tk 10, licence book Tk 50, standard tax Tk 30, non-judicial stamp Tk 150-300, licence fee Tk 100-60,000 by trade type, plus VAT and signboard fee. Issued in 3-5 working days, renewed yearly.Licence
  • Vehicle papers from the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA): registration certificate, fitness certificate with renewal, and tax token, plus an ownership transfer on a used car. Fees can be checked on BRTA's own fee calculator, but no specific amount could be verified here.Licence
  • Ride Sharing Service Guideline, 2017: approved by government on 15 January 2018, gazetted 22 February 2018 (published 28 February 2018) and effective from 8 March 2018. It applies if you want to work through an app. No separate rent-a-car policy was found on BRTA's own site.Licence
  • A valid driving licence for the driver. If the owner does not drive, keep the driver's licence, ID and guarantor papers on file: both the car and the day's cash are in his hands.Skill
  • A secure garage or parking space and a servicing garage you trust. Leaving the car on the street risks both damage and fines.Workspace

How the work is done

  1. 1Decide first which business you are in: day trips or monthly office contracts. They need different cars, different customers, and the money arrives at different times.
  2. 2Pick the car. Day trips favour sedans, Noah or Voxy and Hiace; offices on monthly contracts usually want a small car.
  3. 3Check the BRTA papers: registration certificate, current fitness and tax token. On a used car, complete the ownership transfer or fines and liability stay in the previous owner's name.
  4. 4Take the trade licence from the city corporation or municipality and a TIN from NBR; offices and NGOs will ask for both before signing a contract.
  5. 5If you want to work through an app, find out what the Ride Sharing Service Guideline, 2017 requires. It was gazetted on 22 February 2018 and took effect on 8 March 2018.
  6. 6Hire the driver: valid licence, a copy of the national ID and a guarantor. The driver's pay is a monthly cost, not a trip cost - it falls due even when the car sits idle.
  7. 7Put the limits in writing when you quote: how many hours, how many kilometres, whether toll and parking are included and what applies beyond. The going package is 10 hours and 100 km.
  8. 8Take an advance at booking. Confirming with a bKash advance is now standard practice; without it a last-minute cancellation costs you the whole day.
  9. 9Write up every day: kilometres run, fuel spent, tolls, and what went to the driver. Octane is Tk 145, petrol Tk 140 and diesel Tk 115 a litre.
  10. 10Put money aside for wear every month. Tyres, battery, brakes, an engine overhaul and paint all arrive together one day, and if nothing was set aside the car stops that day.
  11. 11On a monthly contract put the billing terms in writing: what date the bill goes, how many days to payment, and whose account the fuel comes out of.

Seasons

  1. JanHigh
  2. FebHigh
  3. MarNormal
  4. AprNormal
  5. MayNormal
  6. JunNormal
  7. JulNormal
  8. AugNormal
  9. SepNormal
  10. OctNormal
  11. NovHigh
  12. DecHigh
HighNormalLow

Where it works well

  • Strong fitChattogram · Regular monthly contracts carrying staff for the port, industries and shipping offices.
  • Strong fitCox's Bazar · Day-trip demand peaks in the tourist season, with steady runs from hotels to Inani, Himchari and Teknaf.
  • Strong fitDhaka · Monthly contracts from offices, NGOs and embassies, and day trips for weddings and airport runs: both kinds of work are heaviest here.
  • Strong fitGazipur · A large market for monthly contracts moving factory staff and visiting foreign buyers.
  • Strong fitSylhet · Airport runs, tea garden and Jaflong or Ratargul trips, and heavy demand from families with members abroad for functions.
  • PossibleBandarban · Hill tourism creates rental demand, but the roads need jeep-type vehicles and wear is much higher.
  • PossibleBogura · The transport hub of the north; trips for offices and traders across the surrounding districts start here.
  • PossibleCumilla · The Dhaka-Chattogram highway brings long-distance trips, with demand from families with members abroad for functions.
  • PossibleKhulna · Demand from Sundarbans-bound tourists and city offices, though the market is small.
  • PossibleNarayanganj · Factory and business monthly contracts, though competition is heavy because Dhaka is next door.

Risks and cautions

  • HighOther: Ignoring depreciation is the biggest mistake in this trade. Every day the car runs it is worth less, and tyres, battery, brakes, clutch, an engine overhaul and paint all land together one day. Unless part of what is left of the Tk 4,000 after fuel is set aside every month, the car stops on the day of the big repair and the income stops with it.
  • HighDependency: The business rests entirely on the driver. His pay is monthly, so it falls due even when the car is idle, and if he quits or falls ill the car does not move. The day's cash, the fuel account and the care of the car are all in his hands, so keeping a driver without his licence, ID and a guarantor is handing over the whole capital.
  • HighDemand: Every idle day still costs. Driver pay, garage rent, tax token and fitness do not depend on bookings. When the monsoon or political unrest stops leisure trips, the day-trip business stops dead, and without a monthly contract the costs come out of pocket.
  • MediumLate payment: A monthly corporate contract gives certain income, but the money comes after the month once the bill clears, while the driver's pay and fuel have already been paid by the owner. One or two months of held-up bills leaves a small owner with nothing to run on.
  • MediumCompliance: Without the right papers the car is stopped on the road. An expired fitness certificate or tax token brings a fine, and buying a used car without transferring ownership leaves the previous owner's liabilities sitting on you. Working through an app means separately meeting the 2017 ride-sharing guideline.

Sources

What changed

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