Commute cost calculator
A longer commute is a pay cut you chose. This works out what your travel costs per year, which is the figure worth putting next to a salary when comparing jobs.
Nothing is uploaded. This page does the arithmetic in your browser using JavaScript. The numbers you enter never leave your device.
How this is calculated
Distance is doubled for the return journey, then multiplied by days per week and weeks per year to get annual mileage.
Annual cost = annual mileage × your cost per mile. The cost per mile figure should include fuel and the wear you are putting on the vehicle — tyres, servicing, brakes — not just what you pay at the pump.
It is worth entering a higher cost per mile once and seeing the difference. Fuel-only figures make long commutes look much cheaper than they are.
Worked example: 15 miles each way, 5 days a week, 52 weeks: 15 × 2 × 5 × 52 = 7,800 miles a year. At $0.20 a mile that is $1,560, or $130 a month.
Common questions
What cost per mile should I use?
Fuel alone is roughly $0.10–$0.15 for a typical car depending on local prices. Adding wear and servicing brings it closer to $0.20–$0.30. Official mileage rates are higher still because they include depreciation, which a commute genuinely causes.
Should I include parking?
Yes. Add annual parking or tolls to the result yourself, or raise the cost per mile to absorb them. For city commutes parking often exceeds the fuel cost.
Does this include the value of my time?
No, and it is deliberately not priced. Time cost is real but personal — an hour on a train is different from an hour in traffic. Work that out separately.
What this does not do: This estimates vehicle running costs only. It excludes parking, tolls, public transport fares, insurance changes, and the value of your time, and it is not a tax-deductible mileage calculation.
Applying anywhere with this? The free resume checker compares your resume against a job advert and shows which keywords you're missing — all in your browser, nothing uploaded.