Calculate how much your car costs to run per kilometre using current EPRA fuel prices and your vehicle's fuel efficiency.
Running cost per kilometre depends on two numbers: what you pay per litre and how many kilometres your car covers on that litre. This calculator combines the current EPRA-regulated pump price with your vehicle's fuel efficiency to show the exact shilling cost of every kilometre you drive.
How Is Cost Per Kilometre Calculated?
Cost per kilometre equals the price per litre divided by your vehicle's fuel efficiency in kilometres per litre. A car doing 12 km/litre on KES 214.03 petrol costs KES 17.84 per kilometre; a more efficient car doing 18 km/litre on the same fuel costs KES 11.89 per kilometre — a third less for the same trip.
How Do I Find My Car's Actual Fuel Efficiency?
Fill the tank, reset the trip odometer, drive normally until near empty, then refill and note the litres it took plus the distance covered. Dividing distance by litres gives your real-world km/litre figure, usually lower than the manufacturer's rated efficiency once Nairobi traffic, road condition, and driving style are factored in. This calculator defaults to 12 km/litre — typical for a mid-size petrol car in mixed Kenyan driving — until you enter your own figure.
Why Does My Fuel Efficiency Change Between Trips?
Fuel efficiency drops in stop-start traffic, on rough or unpaved roads, with a heavier load, or with underinflated tyres, and improves on steady highway cruising. A car that gets 14 km/litre on the Nairobi–Nakuru highway can drop to 8–9 km/litre in Nairobi CBD traffic during rush hour.
How Do I Use This Calculator for a Specific Trip?
Select your fuel type, confirm the price per litre against the current EPRA circular, enter your vehicle's efficiency in km/litre, then add the trip distance to see the total fuel cost for that journey alongside the per-kilometre rate. Leave the distance field blank to compare only the cost per kilometre across fuel types or vehicles.
What's a good fuel efficiency for a car in Kenya?
Most petrol sedans in mixed Nairobi driving average 10–14 km/litre, smaller hatchbacks reach 16–18 km/litre, and diesel pickups or SUVs typically manage 8–12 km/litre. Highway-only driving improves these figures by roughly 20–30%.
Does this calculator use the current EPRA fuel price automatically?
Yes — the price per litre field defaults to the current EPRA-regulated Nairobi price for your selected fuel type, though you can overwrite it if you're buying elsewhere or a new EPRA circular has been issued.