Road Trip Cost

Estimating Total Fuel, Food, and Lodging Cost for a Road Trip

A road trip’s total cost is fuel plus food plus optional lodging. Fuel cost comes from your trip distance, your vehicle’s fuel economy, and the local fuel price — the rest is a straightforward per-day budget.

The Formula

$$\vA{\text{Fuel Cost}} = \frac{\text{Distance}}{\text{Fuel Economy}} \times \text{Fuel Price}$$ $$\vB{\text{Food Cost}} = \text{Days} \times \text{Food per Day}$$ $$\vC{\text{Total}} = \vA{\text{Fuel Cost}} + \vB{\text{Food Cost}} + \text{Lodging Cost}$$

Worked Example

An 800km trip at 8 L/100km and $1.50/L, over 3 days at $40/day food, no lodging:

1. Fuel: $\vA{800 \times 0.08 \times 1.50 = 96}$
2. Food: $\vB{3 \times 40 = 120}$
3. Total: $\vA{96} + \vB{120} = \vC{216}$

Key Factors to Consider

• Fuel prices commonly vary by 20% or more across a longer road trip route. Checking fuel price apps for the areas actually being traveled through, rather than assuming a single flat price the whole way, can noticeably change the real fuel cost compared to using one region’s price for the entire trip.
• Highway driving generally uses less fuel per distance than city or stop-and-go driving. A trip that’s mostly highway will typically beat a vehicle’s “combined” fuel economy rating, while one with a lot of city driving through towns along the way often falls short of it — worth adjusting the fuel economy input based on the actual route’s mix of highway versus stop-and-go driving.
• This calculator doesn’t include vehicle wear-and-tear, tolls, or parking, which can add up meaningfully on a longer trip. Tolls on certain highways, paid parking in cities along the route, and general vehicle wear are all real costs beyond fuel, food, and lodging that a thorough road-trip budget may want to add separately.
• Splitting fuel and lodging costs among multiple travelers changes the per-person cost significantly. This calculator estimates the TRIP’s total cost — dividing that total by the number of people sharing the vehicle and lodging (rather than assuming one person bears the whole cost) gives a more useful per-person budget for a group trip.

Common Mistakes

• Forgetting that fuel economy ratings are usually given in different units for different regions. Mixing up L/100km and MPG (or forgetting to convert) can throw off the fuel cost estimate by a wide margin — double-check which unit your vehicle’s own rating actually uses before entering it.
• Using a single national average fuel price instead of checking prices along the actual route. Fuel prices can swing significantly between states, provinces, or even neighboring towns — a route-specific check gives a more accurate total than one flat assumed price.
• Leaving out food and lodging entirely and only budgeting for fuel. Fuel is often the smallest of the three costs on a multi-day trip — a full road-trip budget needs all three pieces, not just the one that’s easiest to calculate from distance alone.

Useful to Know

• Want to double-check your vehicle’s own fuel economy first? Gas Mileage (MPG) Calculator calculates MPG or L/100km from a fill-up’s distance and fuel used.
• Renting a vehicle for the trip instead of driving your own? Car Rental Cost Calculator totals the daily rate, add-on fees, and taxes into one rental cost.
• Planning a broader trip budget beyond just the drive itself? Travel Budget Calculator covers flights, lodging, food, and activities together in one estimate.