Calculate fuel cost for a trip, estimate annual fuel expenses, and compare two vehicles' fuel economy.
| Vehicle Type | City MPG | Hwy MPG |
|---|---|---|
| Compact sedan | 28–32 | 37–42 |
| Midsize sedan | 24–28 | 34–38 |
| Full-size sedan | 18–22 | 28–32 |
| Compact SUV | 24–28 | 30–35 |
| Midsize SUV | 18–23 | 25–30 |
| Full-size SUV | 14–18 | 20–25 |
| Pickup truck (V8) | 13–17 | 17–22 |
| Minivan | 19–22 | 26–28 |
| Hybrid sedan | 50–55 | 50–53 |
| Plug-in hybrid | 40–50 | 38–45 |
| Electric (MPGe) | 85–140 | 80–130 |
You have a 640-mile drive to a family wedding in a pickup that gets 17 mpg, and the station by the on-ramp shows $3.79. That is about 37.6 gallons and $142.68 for the trip, a number worth having before you decide between driving and flying. This calculator prices one trip, scales the same math to a year of commuting, and compares two vehicles over the same mileage.
Take the page defaults: 300 miles, 30 mpg, $3.50 a gallon. That is 300 ÷ 30 = 10 gallons, 10 × $3.50 = $35.00, and $35.00 ÷ 300 = $0.117 per mile.
Those steps are the whole model for a trip: gallons = distance ÷ fuel economy, cost = gallons × price per gallon, cost per mile = cost ÷ distance. Metric inputs are converted first: kilometres × 0.621371 become miles, km/L × 2.35215 becomes mpg, L/100 km becomes 235.215 ÷ the value, and a price per litre is multiplied by 3.78541 to get a price per gallon. For 480 km at 7.5 L/100 km and 1.65 per litre, that is 298.26 miles at 31.36 mpg, 9.51 gallons and a cost of 59.40.
The Annual Cost tab multiplies out the commute: 40 miles a day × 5 days a week × 52 weeks = 10,400 miles. At 30 mpg that is 346.67 gallons, $1,213.33 a year and $101.11 a month.
Compare Vehicles runs the same formula twice. Over 15,000 miles at $3.50, a 20 mpg car costs 15,000 ÷ 20 × 3.50 = $2,625.00 and a 35 mpg car $1,500.00, a $1,125.00 difference. Results are rounded to the cent and gallons to three decimals.
It reuses the efficiency and price from the trip inputs, so those fields must hold valid numbers or the annual results go blank. The distance-unit menu also decides whether your daily distance is miles or kilometers.
It shows the absolute difference between the two vehicles. The one with the smaller cost figure is the cheaper to run; the tile does not say which is which.
Not here. The Compare tab takes MPG only. You could enter an equivalent MPG, but electricity is priced per kWh, so it is better to work that out with the electricity cost page.
Enter what you actually get. Speed, cold weather, towing and short trips all lower it. Measuring a few full tanks gives a much better figure than an estimate.
Fuel use is distance divided by mpg, so the gain shrinks as mpg rises. At 12,000 miles and $3.50, moving from 10 to 20 mpg saves $2,100 a year; from 30 to 50 it saves $560.