Road Trip Cost Calculator
Estimate the full cost of a road trip — fuel, food, accommodation — and see whether renting a car for the trip instead would work out cheaper.
This is a placeholder rate for comparison only — check a real quote before deciding (see the Carla Car Rental link in the sidebar).
How to use
Estimate realistic food costs
Fast-food/petrol-station meals run about £8-12 per person per meal; sit-down restaurant meals £15-25; self-catering (supermarket + cooking at accommodation) can bring the daily total down to £10-15 per person. £25-30/person/day is a reasonable blended average for a mix of quick lunches and one proper evening meal.
Fuel price varies by route
Motorway service stations are typically 10-15p/litre more expensive than supermarket forecourts just a few miles off the route. If your route passes a supermarket (Tesco, Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury's) fuel station, filling up there before joining the motorway can meaningfully cut your total.
When renting beats driving your own car
Renting tends to make more financial sense on very long trips that would pile heavy mileage and wear onto your own car, or when your own car's fuel economy is much worse than a small rental's. It's also worth it if your car is old and a long trip carries real breakdown risk. For a normal weekend or week-long trip in a car you already own and trust, driving your own car is usually cheaper once you factor in depreciation on a rental-sized mileage hit.
Frequently asked questions
How accurate is this road trip cost estimate?
It's a solid starting estimate, not a receipt. The fuel figure uses your own mpg or L/100km input and a real UK/US gallon conversion, so that part is close to exact. Food and accommodation are averages you set yourself — actual spend depends heavily on where you eat and stay, so treat the total as a planning budget and add a 10-15% buffer for the unexpected.
Does this include tolls or parking?
No. Tolls, congestion charges, parking, and ferry crossings aren't included because they vary enormously by route and country. If your route has motorway tolls (common in France, Italy, or on the US East Coast) or city-centre parking, add a manual estimate on top of the total shown here.
Should I rent a car instead of driving my own for a long trip?
It can make sense for very long trips that would add heavy mileage and wear to your own car, or if your car has poor fuel economy compared with a smaller rental. It also makes sense if your own car is old and a long trip carries breakdown risk. This calculator only compares rental cost plus fuel against your own fuel cost — it doesn't account for your car's depreciation, servicing, or the convenience of not swapping vehicles, so use it as a starting point rather than a final answer.
What if we're splitting the trip across more people?
Increase the number of people and the calculator recalculates the food total and the cost-per-person automatically. Fuel and accommodation costs are shared regardless of group size (assuming you're all in one car and splitting rooms), so adding people mainly changes the food line and brings down everyone's individual share of the total.