Will Driving to Cheaper Gas Save You Money?

The average price for a gallon of gas in my area is $3.29 according to gaspricewatch.com. One zip code over it’s $3.23. And by my mom’s house it’s $2.88. Naturally, if I need gas when I’m visiting mom I’ll fill up. But is it worth saving a few pennies to drive to the next zip code. What if I don’t need to see my mom, should I go by there to get gas?

Thank the Internet for calculators cause figure this out would probably make my head explode. I found a handy calculator on bankrate.com that takes all the guesswork and arguing (I’m not telling who thinks I should visit my mother).

Here’s what the driving to the next zip saves me…(no snickering at my gas mileage)

What is the capacity of your car’s gas tank? 20 gallons

How many miles per gallon does your car get? 19 miles

My Home Gas Station

How far is your primary gas station? .5 miles

What is the price of gas at your primary gas station? $3.29

One Zip Code Over

How far is it to your secondary gas station? 7.8 miles

What is the price of gas at your secondary gas station? $3.23

Net savings from traveling for gas $-0.06

Here’s what seeing mom gets me…

How far is it to your third gas station? 12.36 miles

What is the price of gas at your secondary gas station? $2.88

Net savings from traveling for gas $6.15

Okay the Gas Station 3 really didn’t call for a calculator. That extreme $2.88/gal price of course is a deal. But honestly it scares me. I don’t usually go for anything that’s too good to be true and I haven’t actually gone to this station. Still I know prices in my mom’s area are usually, but not always, cheaper. This does, however, prove that driving to the next zip code doesn’t save me anything—in fact, I lose. Not to mention the carbons I’m sending out in a futile attempt to save pennies.

Hey, Mom, do you need anything ‘cause I’m comin’ over.