Road Trip Cost Calculator
Calculate full road trip cost: fuel, lodging, food, and incidentals — split per person and per day.
What this calculates
A road trip costs more than gas. Hotels, food, parking, and roadside coffees add up fast. This calculator combines all the typical expenses — fuel, lodging, food, miscellaneous — into a single total split per person and per day so you can plan honestly.
Formula & how it works
Total = fuel_cost + (nights × lodging_per_night) + (days × food_per_day × people) + miscellaneous. Fuel: (miles ÷ MPG) × price_per_gallon. Per person: total ÷ people. Per day: total ÷ trip_days. Real trips usually run 10-20 % over estimate — pad accordingly.
Worked example
2-person 7-day, 2,000-mile trip. Fuel: 2000/28 × $3.50 = $250. Lodging: 6 nights × $130 = $780. Food: 7 × $50 × 2 = $700. Misc: $200. Total $1,930. Per person: $965. Per day: $276. Per mile: $0.97 — a useful number to remember.
Frequently asked questions
What about EV trips?
Replace fuel cost with charging cost. Long-distance EV trips on DC fast-chargers run about 60-80 % of gas cost. Home pre-charging + occasional DC bumps is cheapest.
Tolls?
Add $20-100 per long trip depending on route. East-coast US drives can hit $50+ in tolls one-way. Use route planners (Google, Waze) to estimate.
Hotel vs camping vs friend's couch?
Camping saves $80-150/night but adds setup time. Friend's place is free with social cost (hosts get tired). Mixing modes — camp 2 nights, hotel 4 — keeps cost and energy reasonable.
Hidden costs?
Parking ($10-40/day in cities), bridge tolls, pet boarding back home, vehicle wear/maintenance (~$0.10/mile real cost), gear you forgot and bought on the road.