To find out whether E85 saves you money, compare what each fuel costs per mile in your car—not just the price per gallon. Divide the local price of each fuel by the miles per gallon your car gets on that fuel. E85 is cheaper to drive on only when its cost per mile is lower.
The calculation: compare cost per mile
Use a separate fuel-economy figure for each fuel. The basic formulas are:
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- Gasoline cost per mile = gasoline price per gallon ÷ gasoline MPG
- E85 cost per mile = E85 price per gallon ÷ E85 MPG
Use prices and MPG in matching units: dollars per gallon and miles per gallon produce dollars per mile. Multiply the result by 100 to see cents per mile, which is usually easier to compare. The fuel with the lower cost per mile is less expensive to use under those inputs.
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1Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problems2Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute3Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFor example, suppose gasoline costs $3.50 per gallon and your car averages 30 MPG on it. Gasoline then costs about 11.7 cents per mile: $3.50 ÷ 30 × 100. If E85 costs $2.60 per gallon and the car averages 22.5 MPG on E85, E85 costs about 11.6 cents per mile: $2.60 ÷ 22.5 × 100. In this hypothetical case, E85 is very slightly cheaper per mile. The result is close enough that a small change in price or observed MPG could reverse it.
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This comparison answers the fuel-cost question for the miles driven. It does not include other ownership costs, such as maintenance, taxes, or the value of time spent traveling to a different station.
Keep the units consistent when you use a calculator. If you enter a price in cents rather than dollars, divide by MPG and keep the result in cents per mile; if you enter dollars, the result is dollars per mile until you multiply by 100. Do not compare a cost in dollars per mile with one in cents per mile without converting one of them.
Find the E85 break-even price
You can also calculate the highest E85 price that would match gasoline’s cost per mile. Set the two costs per mile equal, then solve for the E85 price:
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Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Break-even E85 price = gasoline price × (E85 MPG ÷ gasoline MPG)
Using the example MPG figures—30 MPG on gasoline and 22.5 MPG on E85—the ratio is 22.5 ÷ 30 = 0.75. E85’s break-even price is therefore 75% of the gasoline price. At $3.50 per gallon for gasoline, that is $2.625 per gallon for E85. Below that price, E85 costs less per mile under the assumed MPG figures; above it, gasoline costs less. At the break-even price, the two fuels cost the same per mile.
The 25% discount in this example comes from the assumed difference between 30 MPG and 22.5 MPG. It is not a universal E85 discount or an estimate of what every flex-fuel vehicle will lose in fuel economy. Use your own vehicle’s figures to find its threshold.
| Input | Example | How it is used |
|---|---|---|
| Gasoline price | $3.50 per gallon | Multiplied by the E85-to-gasoline MPG ratio to find the break-even E85 price |
| Gasoline fuel economy | 30 MPG | The gasoline MPG in the cost-per-mile comparison and the denominator of the MPG ratio |
| E85 fuel economy | 22.5 MPG | The E85 MPG in the cost-per-mile comparison and the numerator of the MPG ratio |
| Break-even E85 price | $2.625 per gallon | At this hypothetical price, cost per mile is equal for both fuels |
The threshold is a calculation, not a pump-price forecast. A local E85 price below it is a potential per-mile saving only if the MPG inputs reasonably represent your driving and the fuel is approved for your vehicle.
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The ratio also gives a quick way to interpret your own fuel-economy figures. If your E85 MPG is three-quarters of your gasoline MPG, the E85 price must be at or below three-quarters of the gasoline price to break even. If your measured MPG ratio is different, use that ratio instead. The threshold rises or falls with the MPG relationship, so a price discount that works for one vehicle may not work for another.
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You can check the threshold by plugging it back into the cost-per-mile formula. At $2.625 per gallon and 22.5 MPG, E85 costs about 11.7 cents per mile. Gasoline at $3.50 per gallon and 30 MPG also costs about 11.7 cents per mile. The slight rounding in these figures is why the formula, rather than rounded cents, should determine a close result.
Gather inputs that match your car and location
The result is local and vehicle-specific. You need a gasoline price, an E85 price, gasoline MPG, and E85 MPG. A national average or someone else’s vehicle result cannot settle the question for your car at your nearest stations.
Use prices from stations you could actually use
Record the posted per-gallon price for gasoline and E85 at the stations relevant to your regular routes. Compare prices from the same area and time period; prices can change, so an E85 price from one day and gasoline price from another may not describe the choice you face now. If you would have to make a special trip for E85, consider the extra distance and time separately rather than treating the pump price as the entire cost of access.
Use the price you would actually pay for the fuel grade and blend available to you, not a national average or an old receipt. The calculation is only as current as its price inputs. If the E85 station and gasoline station are far apart, note that the comparison is between their posted fuel costs; it does not automatically count the extra trip required to reach one of them.
Use fuel economy for each fuel, not one MPG figure for both
Use observed MPG on gasoline and observed MPG on E85 when you can gather comparable data. If you do not have both, a vehicle-specific estimate can help with an initial calculation, but label it as an estimate. A vehicle’s advertised or official fuel-economy information may not match your route, weather, load, driving style, or the fuel blend available at your station.
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data Center (AFDC) directs readers to its Vehicle Cost Calculator for fuel-economy and fuel-cost comparisons. Its result can be a useful starting point, but for a decision based on your real local prices and driving, check that the vehicle and fuel assumptions match your circumstances.
A calculator cannot make an estimate more precise than the figures entered. If you use estimated MPG, the answer is an estimate too; replace those inputs with your own comparable fill-up records when practical. Use the calculator or worksheet to compare the two fuels on the same basis, not to assume the same MPG for both.
Measure your own MPG over comparable fill-ups
A single short trip or one tank can be unrepresentative. When practical, record several fill-ups on each fuel and compare periods with similar driving. This makes the input more useful than relying on a brief trip-computer reading.
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- Confirm the vehicle can use E85. Check the owner’s manual, fuel label, or an official vehicle lookup for the exact vehicle. Do this before testing or fueling; an E85 calculation is not permission to use E85 in a car that is not approved for it.
- Track gasoline separately. At a fill-up, record the odometer reading and gallons purchased. At the next fill-up, record those figures again. Calculate the miles driven between fill-ups divided by gallons used. For better consistency, use the same fill-up approach each time and avoid comparing a partial-fill record with a full-tank record.
- Repeat for E85. After switching to E85 in an approved flex-fuel vehicle, use the same recording method over several fill-ups. Keep the fuel types separate in your notes; do not blend the gallons or miles from the two fuels into one MPG figure.
- Compare similar driving periods. If gasoline MPG was measured mostly on highway trips and E85 MPG mostly in stop-and-go traffic, the difference may reflect the routes as well as the fuel. More comparable routes, loads, and driving conditions make the comparison more informative.
- Calculate an average for each fuel. For an overall period, divide the total miles recorded on that fuel by the total gallons used during the same period. Then put those two MPG figures into the cost-per-mile formulas.
For example, if the gasoline period covers 900 miles and uses 30 gallons, its average is 900 ÷ 30 = 30 MPG. If a separate E85 period covers 675 miles and uses 30 gallons, its average is 675 ÷ 30 = 22.5 MPG. Those averages can then be paired with the local price per gallon for each fuel. The examples illustrate the calculation; they are not expected results for every car.
Fuel economy can vary from one tank to the next. If the measured figures are close, or the calculated costs differ by only a small amount, collect more comparable fill-ups before treating the result as decisive. Recalculate when the local prices change or when the E85 blend available to you changes.
Do not combine a single gasoline tank with a long-term E85 average and assume the difference is caused entirely by fuel. The periods should be similar enough to make a useful comparison. Recording total miles and total gallons separately for each fuel also avoids the distortion that can come from taking a simple average of tank-by-tank MPG values when the tanks cover different distances.
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Why E85 MPG varies—and what the energy figures do not mean
E85 is not always a single, identical ethanol blend. The DOE AFDC says it contains 51%–83% ethanol depending on geography and season. That variation affects energy content and means an MPG result from one place or time may not transfer exactly to another.
The DOE AFDC says E85 containing 83% ethanol has about 27% less energy per gallon than gasoline. That is an energy-content comparison, not a promise that every flex-fuel vehicle will get 27% fewer miles per gallon on E85. The agency explains that the effect on fuel economy lessens as ethanol content decreases, and vehicle and driving conditions also matter. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) says ethanol has about 33% less energy than pure gasoline and notes that the actual vehicle fuel-economy effect varies; its FAQ was last updated April 1, 2024.
These percentages describe energy content, not the answer to the cost question. Cost per mile depends on the actual MPG and the pump prices in your comparison. Even if a blend’s energy content suggests why fuel economy could differ, it does not tell you the exact MPG for a particular FFV, route, or tank.
Do not use either energy-content percentage as a substitute for the car’s E85 MPG in the calculation. The useful input is the MPG your vehicle gets on the fuel you can buy, whether measured over your own driving or estimated from vehicle-specific information. This is also why there is no one E85 discount that guarantees savings for every car.
Check compatibility and station access before acting on the result
E85 is not a general gasoline replacement for every car. The DOE describes flex-fuel vehicles (FFVs) as designed to use gasoline and blends up to 83% ethanol. Verify the exact vehicle’s approval using its owner’s documentation, fuel label, or an official government vehicle lookup. Do not infer compatibility from a calculation, a fuel-economy label, or the fact that a vehicle runs on gasoline.
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Availability can also change the practical value of a lower per-mile cost. The DOE AFDC page, accessed October 9, 2026, reported more than 4,200 public E85 stations in 44 states and more than 20.9 million FFVs on U.S. roads. Those are time-sensitive U.S. counts, not a promise that a station is nearby or open; check the current local options before planning around E85. The AFDC provides an official station locator.
If E85 is available only outside your normal route, include the cost and inconvenience of reaching it in your decision. A lower pump price can still be worthwhile for a regular route past an E85 station, while a detour made solely to buy fuel may reduce or eliminate the practical saving. The per-mile formula compares fuel use; it does not calculate the cost of a special trip to the pump.
To keep the decision clear, first compare fuel costs per mile using the four inputs. Then separately consider access: whether the station is convenient, whether a detour is required, and whether the time involved matters to you. The per-mile result remains useful, but it should not be mistaken for a complete calculation of the cost of making a special trip.
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- E85 is below its break-even price: Based on the MPG and price inputs, E85 has the lower fuel cost per mile. The size of the difference indicates whether the saving is meaningful for your driving.
- E85 is above its break-even price: Gasoline has the lower fuel cost per mile under those inputs.
- The costs are nearly equal: Treat the comparison as sensitive to input changes. A slightly different pump price or observed MPG could change which fuel is cheaper.
- Your MPG inputs are estimates or from unlike driving: Treat the result as provisional. Improve the comparison with vehicle-specific data or comparable fill-ups.
To estimate the fuel-cost difference over a known distance, multiply each cost per mile by the miles you expect to drive, then subtract the lower total from the higher one. For instance, a difference of 0.1 cent per mile over 10,000 miles would amount to $10 in fuel cost, if that per-mile difference held across those miles. This is an illustration of the arithmetic, not a prediction of a driver’s annual savings.
You can also express the difference as a rate: subtract the lower cents-per-mile result from the higher one. Keep the distance and rate in matching units. A small difference per mile may become more noticeable over many miles, while a larger difference over only a few miles may produce a smaller total. The result still depends on the prices and MPG staying as assumed; update it when either changes.
A simple repeatable worksheet
Keep a small record of the inputs so you can update the comparison when a price or MPG figure changes:
| Fuel | Local price per gallon | Matching MPG | Cost per mile |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline | Your current gasoline price | Your gasoline MPG | Price ÷ MPG |
| E85 | Your current E85 price | Your E85 MPG | Price ÷ MPG |
For cents per mile, multiply each final column calculation by 100. For the break-even E85 price, multiply the gasoline price by E85 MPG divided by gasoline MPG. Enter prices on a per-gallon basis and use miles per gallon for both fuel types. Revisit the worksheet when prices change, your MPG evidence improves, or the available E85 blend differs.
If you want to compare a planned trip or a regular annual distance, multiply each fuel’s cost per mile by the same number of miles. That gives an estimated fuel cost for each option under the inputs you entered. Subtract the smaller total from the larger total to see the difference. This extends the same comparison; it does not account for a special trip to reach a station or other ownership costs.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is E85 cheaper than regular gas?
It depends on your local prices and your car’s MPG on each fuel. Divide each price per gallon by its matching MPG and compare the cost per mile. E85 is cheaper to use only if that result is lower than gasoline’s.
How much cheaper does E85 need to be to save money?
There is no universal discount. Calculate the break-even E85 price by multiplying the gasoline price by E85 MPG divided by gasoline MPG. E85 must be below that price to cost less per mile under those MPG assumptions.
Does E85 always reduce MPG by 27%?
No. The DOE Alternative Fuels Data Center says E85 containing 83% ethanol has about 27% less energy per gallon than gasoline; that is not a guaranteed MPG reduction for every vehicle. E85’s ethanol content varies from 51% to 83% by geography and season, and vehicle and driving conditions matter.
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No. Use E85 only in a vehicle approved for it. The DOE describes flex-fuel vehicles as designed for gasoline and blends up to 83% ethanol. Check the exact vehicle’s owner’s manual, fuel label, or an official vehicle lookup before fueling.
What if I do not know my car’s E85 MPG?
Use a vehicle-specific estimate as a provisional input, or measure MPG over several fill-ups if the vehicle is approved for E85. Record miles and gallons separately for gasoline and E85, and compare periods with similar routes and conditions. Recalculate when you have better figures.
Should I count the trip to an E85 station?
The cost-per-mile formula compares the fuel used, not the cost or time of reaching a station. If buying E85 requires a special detour, consider that distance and inconvenience separately; a lower pump price may not mean a lower practical cost.
The Bottom Line
Compare local prices divided by fuel-specific MPG, then use the break-even formula to see how low E85 must be for your car. The answer is vehicle- and location-specific, so use comparable MPG data and verify that your vehicle is approved for E85.
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