Avis Preferred Plus Benefits Through Walmart+: A Complete Guide to What Members Actually Get

Walmart+ is a membership program that bundles a range of perks across shopping, fuel, streaming, and travel. One of its less-discussed but genuinely useful inclusions is access to Avis Preferred Plus status — an elevated tier within Avis's loyalty program that normally requires renting a significant number of vehicles per year to earn. For frequent travelers, understanding exactly what this status provides, how it compares to standard Avis membership, and what factors determine how much value it delivers can make a meaningful difference in how they plan and book car rentals.

This page breaks down the Avis Preferred Plus benefit within Walmart+ in full — what the status means, what it changes about the rental experience, and the variables that determine whether it's worth factoring into your membership decision.

What Avis Preferred Plus Status Actually Is

Avis Preferred is the base loyalty tier in Avis's rewards program, available to anyone who creates a free account. Avis Preferred Plus sits one level above that. Ordinarily, reaching Plus status requires completing a set number of qualifying rentals within a calendar year — a threshold that casual or occasional renters often don't hit.

Walmart+ members receive Preferred Plus status as part of their membership, bypassing that rental threshold entirely. This matters because the gap between standard Preferred and Preferred Plus isn't cosmetic — it affects the practical experience of renting a car, from how you pick up your vehicle to what choices are available to you at the counter.

Within the broader landscape of Walmart+ benefits, the Avis perk sits alongside things like Paramount+ streaming access, Peacock Premium, discounts on fuel, and free delivery on groceries. It's one of the travel-adjacent benefits in the bundle, and for members who rent cars even a few times a year, it tends to be one of the more tangible perks in the package.

What Changes at the Preferred Plus Level 🚗

The most immediate difference Preferred Plus members notice is the skip-the-counter experience. At participating Avis locations, Preferred Plus members can go directly to their assigned vehicle rather than waiting in line at the rental desk. At busy airports, this can save a significant amount of time — particularly during peak travel periods when counter lines can stretch considerably.

Beyond pickup convenience, Preferred Plus status generally comes with:

Priority vehicle selection. At locations with a choice board or open selection area, Preferred Plus members can choose from a wider pool of available vehicles in their reserved class, or sometimes vehicles in a class above what they booked. This isn't a guaranteed upgrade — it depends on location inventory and availability — but it's an option that standard Preferred members don't always have access to.

Expedited returns. The return process is also streamlined, with members able to drop the vehicle and receive their receipt without needing extended interaction at the return desk.

Earned points on rentals. Avis Preferred Plus members accumulate points on qualifying rentals, which can be applied toward future free rental days. The rate at which points accumulate, and the redemption thresholds, are subject to Avis's current program terms — which can change — so it's worth reviewing the current structure directly through Avis.

Access to Avis's widest vehicle selection at preferred locations. This varies considerably by airport and city. High-traffic hub locations tend to offer the most inventory options; smaller regional locations may have limited fleets regardless of loyalty status.

The Variables That Shape How Much Value You Get

Not every Walmart+ member will find the Avis Preferred Plus benefit equally useful. Several factors determine how much practical value this perk delivers:

How often you rent. The benefit delivers the most value to members who rent cars multiple times per year — whether for business travel, family trips, or regular regional travel where driving makes more sense than flying. Someone who rents once every few years may find the skip-the-counter convenience pleasant but not meaningfully impactful on their overall travel experience.

Which airports and locations you use. The Avis Preferred experience — particularly the direct-to-car option — is most fully realized at major hub airports where Avis has a full-service preferred lot. At smaller regional airports or off-airport locations, the operational setup may not support the same level of expedited service, and the experience can be closer to standard regardless of status.

Timing and demand. During peak travel seasons, conventions, and holidays, even Preferred Plus members encounter inventory constraints. The benefit of broader vehicle selection is most meaningful when inventory is plentiful. When every car on the lot is spoken for, status matters less.

Whether you're already an Avis member. If you've previously reached Preferred Plus through actual rentals, the Walmart+ inclusion doesn't add new value. But if you've been at the base Preferred tier, or haven't used Avis before, the status bump is a real upgrade.

Your typical reservation class. Members who tend to book mid-size or standard vehicles often find more selection flexibility at the Preferred Plus tier than those booking compact cars, where inventory tends to move faster and options are narrower.

How Avis Preferred Plus Compares to the Standard Experience

This table reflects the general program structure as it has operated; specific terms are always subject to change by Avis, so confirming current benefits at the time of booking is worth doing.

Subtopics Worth Exploring Within This Category

Does Avis Preferred Plus Actually Save You Money on Rentals?

The relationship between loyalty status and rental cost isn't direct. Preferred Plus status doesn't automatically generate lower base rates — Avis rental prices are set through the same market-based pricing as any other booking. Where the financial benefit tends to show up is through points accumulation toward free rental days, and occasionally through status-based rate codes that offer members access to discounted corporate-style rates. Whether those rates beat what's available through third-party booking platforms is genuinely situational and worth comparing at the time of booking.

How Upgrades Work — and When They Don't

One of the questions members most often have about Preferred Plus is how vehicle upgrades actually function. Avis doesn't promise free class upgrades at booking — the upgrade experience is discretionary and inventory-dependent. At locations with an open selection board, Preferred Plus members may be able to select a vehicle from a higher class if one is available. At locations where vehicles are pre-assigned, the path to an upgrade typically runs through the counter, and outcomes vary by location, agent discretion, and how full the lot is.

Using Avis Preferred Plus for Business Travel

For members who rent cars frequently for work, the time-savings dimension of Preferred Plus can be disproportionately valuable. Skipping a 20-to-40-minute counter line at a major airport several times per month adds up. Many business travelers find this the most consistently realized benefit — it's less variable than upgrades and more immediate than points redemption. Some employers also have corporate accounts with Avis that may or may not stack with Preferred Plus benefits; understanding how those interact is worth clarifying before assuming both apply simultaneously.

Activating and Linking Your Walmart+ Membership to Avis

The Avis Preferred Plus benefit doesn't activate automatically when you sign up for Walmart+. Members need to link their Walmart+ account to an Avis Preferred account — either creating one if they're new to Avis or connecting an existing account. Once linked, the status upgrade applies going forward. If the link isn't completed, you'll continue under whatever status your Avis account had before. The process has historically been managed through the Walmart+ member portal, though the specific steps may evolve as the programs are updated.

International Rentals and Avis Preferred Plus

Avis operates globally, and Preferred Plus status through Walmart+ applies to the Avis Preferred program generally — not just domestic rentals. That said, how the skip-the-counter and direct-to-car features function varies considerably outside the United States. Some international locations operate through licensee arrangements where loyalty benefits are honored differently. Members planning international travel who intend to use the Avis benefit should verify how the status is recognized at their specific destination before relying on it.

What Shapes the Full Picture

The Avis Preferred Plus benefit within Walmart+ sits at an interesting intersection: it's one of those perks that's genuinely useful for the right member profile, clearly valuable relative to what it would cost to obtain independently, and easy to underuse if you don't know what it actually changes about the rental experience.

For members who travel frequently enough to rent cars, understanding how to activate the status, which locations support the full suite of benefits, and how points accumulation works over time gives the perk considerably more practical weight. For members who rarely rent, it's a nice-to-have that adds marginal value without being the reason to hold the membership.

What it doesn't do is eliminate the need to compare rates, check availability, or think through the logistics of a specific trip. Status improves the experience of renting through Avis — it doesn't override the fundamentals of planning travel well.