Work out the petrol or diesel fuel cost of commuting to work in the UK, compare hybrid office days and see how a workplace fuel allowance compares with your estimated monthly expense.
Enter a one-way home-to-office distance. We calculate the return trip automatically. These are example inputs, not live fuel prices, salary benefits or approved reimbursement amounts.
Daily return-trip fuel cost—
Monthly commute fuel expense—
Monthly miles driven—
Use the calculator to estimate your costs.
Office driving cost: calculation method
In the UK, count the one-way journey in miles and multiply it by two for the daily return. A part-time onsite pattern may have fewer driving days than the calendar month; use only actual days travelled rather than adding non-driving days to the estimate.
Fuel used (litres) = total miles ÷ Imperial mpg × 4.54609. Monthly fuel cost = litres × pounds per litre.
Do not use US MPG in the Imperial MPG field. UK forecourt prices in pence per litre must be divided by 100 to enter pounds per litre.
UK work travel petrol cost: worked example
A 12-mile one-way commute means 24 miles a day. Over 22 working days, that is 528 miles. At 45 Imperial MPG and an illustrative £1.50 per litre, fuel expenses are approximately £80.01 a month.
For a UK worker, the relevant commute may include stop-start roads and motorway stretches. The field accepts Imperial mpg rather than US mpg, and a forecourt fuel figure such as 150 pence per litre must be entered as £1.50. Hold distance and attendance constant to see what a different real-world mpg would do to your budget.
The GBP figure is fuel only. UK drivers may separately pay for a station car park, road tolls or relevant city-centre driving charges as well as servicing, tyres and insurance. Do not assume a reduction in commuting days eliminates fixed costs; the calculation intentionally keeps them out.
Employee allowance versus monthly fuel expense
UK home-to-regular-workplace travel should be considered separately from journeys made on an employer's business. A monthly petrol contribution is not automatically the same as an approved mileage allowance or an HMRC deduction. This page is for fuel budgeting; confirm workplace or tax questions using the applicable policy.
Item
How to interpret it
Daily work commute cost
Estimated fuel used for the complete home-office-home journey
Monthly office travel cost
Daily fuel cost multiplied by actual onsite days
Fuel allowance coverage
Allowance divided by monthly estimated fuel expense
Uncovered expense
Monthly fuel expense less allowance, floored at zero
Frequently asked questions about office commuting expenses
How do I calculate monthly petrol cost to commute to work in the UK?
Count the actual one-way miles to your normal workplace, not the round trip: the UK calculator adds the drive home. Use the measured Imperial mpg from your own fill-up records, then enter the amount in pounds per litre. Car parking, tolls and city-centre driving charges are separate costs you may need to budget outside this fuel result.
Can I compare two and five office days per week?
At an illustrative £1.48 per litre, 44 Imperial mpg and a 13-mile one-way commute, 20 office days cost about £79.50; reducing attendance to 16 days brings the fuel estimate to £63.60. The £15.90 difference assumes the same route, mpg and pump price.
Is ordinary commuting the same as allowable business mileage?
No. Normal home-to-office travel is not automatically eligible for tax relief or business mileage reimbursement. This tool estimates fuel used, not HMRC eligibility or mileage allowance payments. Check the applicable guidance and workplace policy.
What if my employer gives a fixed office petrol or gas allowance?
Enter any employer petrol contribution as a monthly amount in pounds, not pence. If your company pays for some business journeys but not normal travel to work, only include the contribution applicable to this commute. This calculator does not check allowances, deductions or eligibility.
UK example: Imperial mpg, pump prices and hybrid working
Suppose the journey to the office is 13 miles each way, your car delivers 44 Imperial mpg, and you attend for 20 days in a month. The full 520-mile commute uses approximately 53.72 litres. At an illustrative £1.48 per litre, its monthly fuel budget is about £79.50. For 12 office days, the journey totals 312 miles and the fuel budget falls to about £47.70. These amounts do not include car parks, congestion charges, tolls or vehicle ownership costs.
UK forecourt signage sometimes displays 148.0 pence per litre. Enter 1.48 in the fuel-price field because the calculator uses pounds, not pence. The efficiency field uses Imperial gallons: a UK Imperial gallon equals approximately 4.54609 litres. Copying a US mpg figure into that field without conversion will distort the result.
Compare two schedules by changing the office-days input rather than changing both days and mileage together. This isolates the effect of attendance. A normal trip from home to a regular workplace should not be confused with a separate business journey; this tool calculates fuel consumption, not HMRC travel or tax eligibility.
UK price sensitivity: check pounds, not pence
A 12-mile journey to work and the same journey home over 22 days totals 528 miles. At 45 Imperial mpg, this requires roughly 53.34 litres. If the example pump price is £1.50 per litre, the fuel cost is about £80.01. Changing just the price to a hypothetical £1.80 gives approximately £96.01—an increase of about £16, without changing attendance or mileage.
Some forecourt displays quote 150.0 pence per litre; enter 1.50 here, because the calculator expects pounds. For a like-for-like comparison with public transport or working from home, calculate parking and ticket costs elsewhere and do not treat this fuel estimate as a total car-ownership cost. A workplace travel reimbursement or tax-relief decision needs its own evidence and rules; the result here only measures fuel spending.