Your assumptions
Years and miles apply to both cars. The default 15,000 miles a year is the figure AAA uses.
Gas car
Electric car
Where the money goes (financed purchase)
| Item, whole period | Gas car | Electric car |
|---|
Totals are estimates from the numbers above, before any income tax effects. Lease totals count the lease payments and the amount due at signing, with a new lease started when one ends, and do not model mileage limits or end-of-lease fees. Resale value is the price times the share of value kept, adjusted for years owned. Real prices, rates and resale values vary by model, state, credit and mileage. Not financial advice.
Get one money rule a week
A short free email on how money really works. No spam, unsubscribe any time.
You'll confirm on our newsletter page, run by Beehiiv. Free.
How this is calculated
Fuel cost = miles a year divided by miles per gallon times the fuel price. For the electric car it is miles a year times kWh per 100 miles divided by 100, times a blended electricity price (home price for most charging, public fast-charging price for the share you enter). Buy with cash = price minus any rebate, minus what the car is worth when sold, plus running costs. Finance adds the interest paid on a standard loan over the years you keep the car and pays off any balance when you sell. Lease adds the payments and the amount due at signing. Running costs are fuel, maintenance, insurance and registration and taxes for each year.
Sources
All figures retrieved October 2, 2026. Fuel prices change weekly, so check the EIA link for the latest.
- U.S. average regular gasoline $4.465 and on-highway diesel $6.382 a gallon, week of 9/28/2026 (next release 10/6/2026): EIA Weekly Retail Gasoline and Diesel Prices
- Home electricity $0.196 per kWh, U.S. city average, August 2026 (series APU000072610): BLS Average Price Data
- Average new-vehicle price $50,089, August 2026: Kelley Blue Book
- Average new electric-vehicle price $54,813, August 2026 (Kelley Blue Book data, reported by InsideEVs)
- Maintenance, insurance and registration costs for a medium sedan, electric vs gas (15,000 miles a year): AAA Your Driving Costs 2026
- Value lost after 5 years: electric 57.2%, all vehicles 41.8%: iSeeCars
- New-car loan rate 7.0% APR (Q2 2026); a new lease averages $148 less a month than a new loan ($765 loan payment per Experian, so about $617): Edmunds and Experian, via Edmunds release
- Gas car 25.6 mpg (new vehicles without battery-electric and plug-in hybrids, model year 2024): EPA Automotive Trends Report
- Electric car efficiency, 23 to 37 kWh per 100 miles across 2026 models (the 30 default is our assumption in that range): fueleconomy.gov
- Diesel mpg 25 (a 2026 diesel pickup, combined): fueleconomy.gov
- Public fast charging about $0.4775 per kWh (Q3 2026 index) and 20% public-charging share (our assumption): ChargeCostLab
- Federal new clean vehicle credit not available for vehicles acquired after Sept. 30, 2025: IRS
Common questions
Is an electric car cheaper than a gas car over time?
It depends on what you pay for the car, the fuel and the electricity, how far you drive, and what the car is worth when you sell. This calculator adds those up for the years you choose. Change any number and the answer updates.
Where do the fuel prices come from?
Gas and diesel use the U.S. average pump price from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) weekly survey, week of September 28, 2026. Home electricity uses the BLS U.S. average price per kWh for August 2026.
Why is the diesel car using gas-car costs for upkeep and resale?
We could not find a sourced diesel-specific figure for maintenance, insurance or resale value, so we left them the same as the gas car and say so. Replace them if you have better numbers.
What about the federal EV tax credit?
The federal new-clean-vehicle credit does not apply to vehicles acquired after September 30, 2025, according to the IRS, so the rebate box starts at $0. State or utility incentives may exist. Enter yours in the rebate box.
Why is the lease payment the same for both cars?
We only found an average U.S. lease payment, not one split by gas, diesel and electric. Type a real quote for each car. The average is only a starting point.
How is resale value worked out?
Each car's value is its price times the share of value it keeps after 5 years, adjusted for the number of years you keep it. The defaults come from an iSeeCars study of used-car values. Real resale value depends on the model, mileage and condition.
Is this financial advice?
No. It is a calculator for education. It does not tell you which car to buy.