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    Parking at JFK for a week: $273. Uber round trip from nearby: ~$72. You’re lighting $200 on fire.

    Did the math after a recent trip and was kind of shocked.

    On-airport parking at JFK runs $39/day. For a 7-day trip that's $273 just to park. A round-trip Uber from a nearby area runs around $70–75 depending on where you are.

    The ParkingAccess comparison across major US airports shows most travelers overpay $50–80 per trip vs. available alternatives — either off-site lots or rideshare.

    A few data points from their breakdown:
    – National average: $16.64/day (but major airports are 2–3x that)
    – Off-site lots: 30–60% cheaper than on-airport at almost every major airport
    – Prepaying online saves another 35% on top

    The default behavior (just park at the airport lot) is one of the most reliable ways to overpay on a trip. Takes about 2 minutes to compare before you go.

    What's your go-to for airport parking at your home airport?

    Parking at JFK for a week: $273. Uber round trip from nearby: ~$72. You're lighting $200 on fire.
    byu/gregb_parkingaccess inFrugal



    Posted by gregb_parkingaccess

    14 Comments

    1. Either_Dinner3547 on

      Not everyone lives nearby. Ubers during peak times from even 45 min away can easily run 100+.

    2. oak_pine_maple_ash on

      My airport has dynamic pricing but is generally around $15/day if you book in advance. For a four-day work trip, financially it’s a wash from our house. But the Uber pickup situation is HORRIBLE here – we’ve had waits of over an hour. So unless we are going away for 7+ days we generally drive, since we value our time.

    3. SacredHippoXIV on

      For a trip, it’s no longer sufficient to find a good deal on the flight.

      You’ve got to factor in the airport transportation too.

      Going from a secondary airport, and parking there can save hundreds.

      It’s crazy to me that the cost of getting everyone to and from the airport is often around the cost of a seat!

      And let’s not even talk about the bullshit basic economy that tries to put your 5 year old 7 rows behind his parents….

    6. DoritosDewItRight on

      If you live close enough that an Uber is $36 one way, why can’t you take the LIRR to Jamaica and then the Airtrain to JFK?

    7. steelfork on

      Business travelers get reimbursed for parking. It’s a no-brainer when you don’t have to pay for it.

      That skews the statistics. I’ll bet most of us here on r/Frugal already are using less expensive ways to get to the airport.

    10. SortedN2Slytherin on

      I fly out of PDX (Portland, OR). When I’m ready to fly out, I make an arrangement with my family where I park at a nearby transit center and take the train to the airport. They come get my car that day and hold it at their home. When I’m ready to return, they bring my car back the night before and I take the train back to the transit station. It’s perfect because they live less than 5 miles from the station, the car won’t stay longer than the limit of 24 hrs, and I will end up paying less than $6 round trip for the train.

    13. Moretoesthanfeet on

      So gonna share this because I moved out of province. At YVR airport parking is $$, but there’s a South terminal with really cheap parking and free(or maybe cheap, memory is iffy) parking. If you’re gone for a while you can save big $$ by parking at South terminal and shuttling to the main

    14. jadejazzkayla on

      I thought you were going to tell us about an inexpensive parking place near JFK.

      I’m not ubering 75 miles one way.

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