Fuel Efficiency & Trip Cost Calculator

Convert between MPG and L/100km, and calculate the fuel cost of a journey.

Formula

L/100km = 235.214583 / MPG(US)

Tips

  • MPG and L/100km are inverse measures: higher MPG is better, lower L/100km is better.
  • A US gallon is about 3.785 L; an Imperial gallon is about 4.546 L, so UK MPG figures look ~20% better than US figures for the same car.
  • Improving from 15 to 20 MPG saves more fuel per mile than improving from 40 to 50 MPG — the inverse relationship is counterintuitive.

Frequently asked questions

Where does the constant 235.214583 come from?

It is 100 × 3.785411784 (litres per US gallon) ÷ 1.609344 (km per mile), the factor that converts miles-per-gallon into litres-per-100-kilometres.