I rent the rug doctor regularly. It does a decent job, for the most part, if you pre-treat any spots. I'm jealous of the person who said they get part of their money back when they return it to the retailer- we don't get that here
For us, it's $45 for 24 hours, plus the cost of shampoo, defoamer, pre-treater, etc. In between rentals, I have a Bissel shampooer that does an ok job. I think this year I am going to hire Stanely Steemer to come take care of things for the Holidays. I'm too tired and too busy to spend a whole day on cleaning my carpets.