These Cars Have the Cheapest Running Costs in the US
The costs of owning and driving a car go beyond the purchase price or lease payments and include factors such as fuel efficiency, parts and repairs, and auto insurance. It’s something to keep in mind when shopping for a new car, but a new report from driver training app Zutobi , which breaks down the various costs of operating a vehicle and ranks the cheapest and most expensive cars to drive in the U.S., can help.
Cheapest Cars to Drive in the USA
Instead of a single, all-encompassing ranking, the report provides separate lists for conventional gasoline vehicles and electric vehicles (EVs). There are also separate rankings of parts and vehicle registration fees by state.
The report contains a lot of data, but the focus here will be on the cheapest conventional vehicles driven in the United States, based on fuel efficiency and auto insurance costs. The top 10 from the Zutobi report are listed below. Note that two of the 10 vehicles have a model year that was apparently more fuel efficient than the others:
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Honda Fit 2018 4cyl. 1.5l Automatic
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Hyundai Accent 4cyl. 1.6L Automatic (AV-S1)
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Honda Civic 4Dr 4cyl 1.5L Automatic
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Mini Cooper Convertible, 3-cylinder, 1.5 L, automatic transmission (AM-57)
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Toyota Yaris 2020 4cyl. 1.5L Manual transmission 6-speed
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Toyota RAV4 4cyl. 2.5L Automatic (S8)
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Toyota Corolla 4cyl. 1.8l Automatic
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Nissan Rogue 3cyl. 1.5L Automatic (AV-58)
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Honda CR-V AWD 4-cyl. 1.5 l Automatic
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Subaru Forester AWD 4cyl. 2.5L Automatic (AV-57)
Key Takeaways to Consider When Buying a New Car
When Lucas Waldenbeck, co-founder of Zutobi, collected and analyzed data from his company’s recent report, several themes emerged that may be useful the next time you shop for a new car:
Compact and subcompact cars tend to be the most affordable.
It’s not surprising, but the report’s data supports the idea that the fuel efficiency and maintenance costs of compact and subcompact cars make them some of the cheapest cars to operate, Waldenbeck says.
Hatchbacks and sedans are reliable mid-size options.
If you want a slightly larger vehicle but are on a tighter budget, Waldenbeck suggests considering hatchbacks and sedans. Although they have more room for passengers and cargo, they are still relatively compact compared to SUVs, minivans and trucks and are generally more fuel-efficient.
Consider the model, not where it was made.
While some people don’t think much about where a car is made, others have strong opinions on the matter, firmly believing that domestic cars are always better value than foreign cars, or vice versa. But given that the list of cheapest cars to operate includes both domestic and foreign manufacturers, Waldenbeck says the emphasis should be on the efficiency of individual models rather than their origins. He recommends potential buyers research each model’s features, “taking into account factors such as reliability, maintenance costs and fuel efficiency.”
What about electric vehicles?
Zutobi’s report has separate sections that rank the cheapest electric vehicle models , as well as compare the operating costs of gasoline vehicles versus electric vehicles. For more information, check out the hidden costs of electric vehicles and why it makes sense to hold off on buying a used EV —at least for now.