What does your drive really cost?
Estimate only. Gas cost = (miles ÷ MPG) × price per gallon.
This is the math. The app is the movie.
A calculator gives you an estimate. LiveGasCost gives you the real number — the actual dollars leaving your tank climbing live, mile by mile, while you drive. 99¢ once, and every drive stays on your phone.
Tell me when it's readyHow your gas cost is calculated
It's simpler than it feels. Take the distance you drive, divide by your car's miles-per-gallon to get the gallons you burn, then multiply by what you pay at the pump. A 30-mile round-trip commute in a 25-MPG car at $4.07 a gallon burns about 1.2 gallons — roughly $4.89 a day, which is where a “cheap” commute quietly turns into $1,250+ a year. Seeing the yearly number is usually the wake-up call.
Why it's worth watching live
A once-a-year total is easy to ignore. Watching the cost tick up in real time as you drive changes how it feels — the same way a live fare meter makes you notice a long detour. That is the whole idea: not a number you look up afterwards, but one you watch while you can still do something about it.
Is this gas cost calculator free?
Yes, completely. Use it as much as you like. If you want the live version that runs while you actually drive, watching the cost climb mile by mile, that's the LiveGasCost app.
What gas price should I enter?
Use what you actually pay locally. The national average for regular is $4.07 a gallon (EIA US regular average, week of Aug 31, 2026), so that's the default — but prices vary a lot by region and station.
What MPG should I use?
Your car's combined EPA figure is a good start, and it's what the app fills in automatically once you pick your year, make, and model. If you know your real-world average is lower, use that — the honest number is the useful one.
Why does the yearly figure look so big?
Because a commute is the same drive, over and over. A 30-mile round trip at 25 MPG and $4.07 a gallon is about $4.89 a day, which is roughly $1,250 a year for a commute most people would call cheap. Seeing the yearly number is usually the wake-up call.