Is it worth driving further for cheaper gas?
Usually not. A detour of 3 miles each way has to beat your nearest pump by about 7 cents a gallon before you save a thing, and most streets are closer together than that. Here is what the drive costs, and why the near station often wins.
So why does PumpWatt sometimes rank by distance?
Nearest WinsThe prices are too close to drive for. The card orders by distance and drops the money column, because a saving nobody can rely on is not a saving.
Cheapest firstOne station is far enough ahead to be worth the trip. The saving beside each row already has the drive taken out of it.
Both lists hold the same three stations, the three cheapest to fill for your car. Distance only breaks a tie the prices could not.
What the drive costs you
| Extra miles | Minutes | Cost per gallon |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 4 | 2¢ |
| 4 | 8 | 4¢ |
| 6 | 12 | 7¢ |
| 10 | 20 | 11¢ |
A car rated 26 mpg, carrying the 12% real-world haircut this site applies to every EPA figure, filling 13 gallons at $3.20. Miles are there and back. Minutes at 30 mph. Your time is priced at $0 an hour unless you set it, so these are the gallons burned getting there and nothing else. Fill up runs it with your car and your stations.
When it is worth going
- It is on your way already. No extra miles, no cost, take the cheaper one.
- A card or an app beats the drive. Ten cents a gallon in rewards buys a lot of detour.
- You are filling a big tank. The same drive spread over 22 gallons costs less per gallon than over 13.
- Not for a 3 cent sign. Three cents on a 13 gallon fill is 39 cents. The drive there costs more.
How the call is made
- Every price carries a margin of error, and it grows the older the price is.
- No clear leader once that is counted, no money ranking. That is the nearest-wins case.
- A price we do not trust never gets a station's name on it. The row keeps its place and loses its number.
- Nothing moves up because it pays us. Links that pay are marked and they never touch the order.
Questions people ask
Is it worth driving further for cheaper gas?
Usually not. A detour of 3 miles each way costs a typical car about 7 cents a gallon in the gas it burns getting there. The cheaper station has to beat your nearest pump by more than that before you save anything. It is worth it when the station is already on your route, or when a rewards card or cashback app takes more off than the drive adds.
How much does driving further for gas cost per gallon?
About 2 cents a gallon for every 2 extra round-trip miles, for a car doing 26 mpg on the label with a 13 gallon fill at $3.20 a gallon. Four extra miles is about 4 cents, six is about 7 cents, ten is about 11 cents. A bigger tank spreads the same drive over more gallons, so it costs less per gallon.
Why does PumpWatt say the nearest station wins?
Because the prices are too close to drive for. Every price carries a margin of error that grows as it ages. When no station is clearly ahead once that is counted, PumpWatt stops ranking by money and orders by distance instead. The stations shown are still the three cheapest to fill.
Does the cheapest sign always win?
No. The sign is only the start. PumpWatt subtracts your rewards and cashback apps, applies your card, adds the gas burned reaching the station and any warehouse membership fee, then ranks by what the fill really costs your car. A cheaper sign further away often loses.
Where does the rest of the math live?
Every default on this site, and where it came from, is listed on Methods.