Estimate fuel costs for any trip based on distance, fuel efficiency, and gas prices.
Quick answer
The trip uses 10.71 gallons and costs $37.50, which is about $0.125 a mile. A round trip of the same length doubles both figures.
| Fuel economy | Gallons | Fuel cost |
|---|---|---|
| 20 mpg | 15.00 | $52.50 |
| 25 mpg | 12.00 | $42.00 |
| 28 mpg | 10.71 | $37.50 |
| 35 mpg | 8.57 | $30.00 |
| 45 mpg | 6.67 | $23.33 |
These figures are computed with the same formulas as the Fuel Cost Calculator above. Change the inputs in the tool to see your own result.
The Fuel Cost Calculator estimates what a trip will cost in fuel. Enter the distance, your fuel economy and the fuel price, in miles and MPG with a price per gallon, in kilometres and litres per 100 km, or in kilometres per litre, and tick the round-trip box to double the distance. It shows the fuel needed, the total cost and the cost per mile or kilometre. It runs in your browser and needs no account.
Made for everyone. Typical uses:
A 300-mile trip at 28 mpg with fuel at 3.50 per gallon needs 10.71 gallons and costs 37.50, which is 0.125 per mile. In metric, 500 km at 7 L/100 km and 1.50 per litre needs 35 litres and costs 52.50.
It assumes the fuel economy you enter applies to the whole trip, while real economy changes with speed, traffic, hills, weather and load. US mode uses US gallons, and amounts are shown without a currency symbol, in whatever currency you used for the price.
Accuracy: Formulas follow standard published methods and are checked against worked reference examples. Results are estimates based on the values you enter and do not replace advice from a qualified professional.
Expert Tip
Use your own measured fuel economy (distance driven divided by fuel added over a few tanks), because manufacturer figures are usually better than real-world results.
The Fuel Cost Calculator turns a trip distance, a fuel economy figure and a fuel price into the amount of fuel you will need and what it will cost. Three unit sets are available, so you can enter the numbers the way your car reports them: miles, miles per US gallon and price per gallon; kilometres, litres per 100 km and price per litre; or kilometres, kilometres per litre and price per litre. A round-trip box doubles the distance. Amounts are shown in whatever currency you use for the fuel price.
With miles per gallon or kilometres per litre, the fuel needed is the distance divided by the economy figure. With litres per 100 km, it is the distance multiplied by the figure and divided by 100. The cost is the fuel needed multiplied by the price, and the cost per mile or kilometre is the cost divided by the distance. A blank or zero fuel economy is rejected with a message, so you never get a silently wrong answer.
Each of these was produced with the calculator.
Cars are rated in different ways around the world, and the two scales run in opposite directions: a higher mpg or km/L is better, while a lower L/100 km is better. To convert US miles per gallon to litres per 100 km, divide 235.215 by the mpg figure, so 28 mpg is 8.4 L/100 km. To convert L/100 km to km per litre, divide 100 by the figure, so 7 L/100 km is about 14.3 km/L. The Unit Converter handles distance and volume, and the Currency Converter converts the price if you are driving abroad.
Run the same distance through the calculator for two cars. Over 12,000 miles a year at 3.50 per gallon, a car that does 28 mpg uses 428.6 gallons and costs 1,500, while one that does 40 mpg uses 300 gallons and costs 1,050, a difference of 450 a year. For a commute, 25 miles each way for 22 working days is 1,100 miles a month, which at 28 mpg and 3.50 costs 137.50. That is the figure to compare with public transport or a car-pool share. To see how a car loan changes the full cost of owning, read what changes a car loan payment and use the Car Payment Calculator.
The estimate assumes the economy you enter holds for the whole journey. In practice it depends on speed, traffic, hills, weather, air conditioning, tyre pressure and load. A manufacturer's rating is usually better than what drivers achieve, so use the figure from your own tank fills if you have it. The Speed Calculator helps estimate journey time. Nothing you enter is sent anywhere.
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