Chevrolet Bolt EV
What it costs to keep fuelled
$400a year, fuel only
The 2023 Chevrolet Bolt EV is EPA-rated at 120 MPGe combined (131 city / 109 highway). Over 15,000 miles a year that is about 125 gallons, $400 a year in fuel, or $0.027 per mile at $3.20/gal.
Across its full 2017–2023 run it averages 119 MPGe, improving by 1 MPGe over 7 model years.
The band is how far one gallon-equivalent of energy carries it: 120 of the 160 MPGe this scale runs to. The square tick is the small station wagons average, 28.2.
- Fuel, per year
- $400 at 15,000 mi
- Per mile
- $0.027
- Per kilometre
- $0.017
- Gallon-equivalents/yr
- 125
1 mile = 1.609344 km · fuel at $3.20/gal, fixed JUL 2026
MPGe — not a fuel billSOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
How this is worked out
- Start from the EPA combined figure for the model year — a laboratory test cycle run to a fixed procedure, not a road result. Where a year sold several engines or drivetrains, the trims are averaged and the trim count is printed beside the row so you can see how much averaging is behind it.
- Fix a pump price. This site keeps one reference price, $3.20 a US gallon, fixed JUL 2026 and printed next to every dollar figure it produces. It is an assumption with a date on it, not a quote — put your own price in.
- Fix an annual distance. Every annual figure on this site uses 15,000 miles a year, roughly the US average. A cost per year with no stated distance is not a number, it is a mood.
- Divide distance by economy for gallons, multiply by price for the year's fuel, divide price by economy for one mile. The per-kilometre line is that last figure divided by 1.609344 — the same money, in the unit most of the world drives in.
- Stop there. No depreciation, no tyres, no insurance, no servicing. This is the fuel line of the ledger and it is labelled as one; depreciation usually dwarfs everything on it.
gallons/yr = miles/yr ÷ MPG fuel $/yr = gallons/yr × $/gal cost $/mi = $/gal ÷ MPG cost $/km = cost $/mi ÷ 1.609344
The full method, the licence note, and what a test figure cannot tell you →
Re-run the ledger at another pump price
Every line above rests on one pump price. Here is the same entry re-costed at six others, because the price is the part that changes while the test sheet stays put.
| Fuel price | Per mile | 10,000 mi/yr | 15,000 mi/yr | 20,000 mi/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2.50/gal | $0.021 | $208 | $313 | $417 |
| $3.00/gal | $0.025 | $250 | $375 | $500 |
| $3.20/gal | $0.027 | $267 | $400 | $533 |
| $3.50/gal | $0.029 | $292 | $438 | $583 |
| $4.00/gal | $0.033 | $333 | $500 | $667 |
| $4.50/gal | $0.037 | $375 | $563 | $750 |
| $5.00/gal | $0.042 | $417 | $625 | $833 |
This is an electric vehicle, so the EPA rates it in MPGe — the distance it travels on the energy equivalent of a gallon of petrol. The dollar figures above are a petrol-equivalent illustration only; charging at home is billed per kWh and is normally far cheaper. Treat the MPGe as an efficiency comparison, not a fuel bill.
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
The whole service history, sheet by sheet
7 model years on file. Read down the combined column: a nameplate that got heavier shows it here long before any brochure admits it.
| Year | Combined | City | Highway | EPA fuel cost/yr | CO₂ g/mi | Trims |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 120 MPGe | 131 | 109 | $650 | — | 1 |
| 2022 | 120 MPGe | 131 | 109 | $650 | — | 1 |
| 2021 | 118 MPGe | 127 | 108 | $650 | — | 1 |
| 2020 | 118 MPGe | 127 | 108 | $650 | — | 1 |
| 2019 | 119 MPGe | 128 | 110 | $650 | — | 1 |
| 2018 | 119 MPGe | 128 | 110 | $650 | — | 1 |
| 2017 | 119 MPGe | 128 | 110 | $650 | — | 1 |
Where a model year offered several engines or drivetrains, the figure is the average across all EPA-tested trims that year — the trim count is shown so you can see how much averaging is involved.
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Marked against the rest of the small station wagons bay
Among the 76 small station wagons models tracked here, the Chevrolet Bolt EV ranks 1 on current figures, against a class average of 28.2 MPGe — the square tick on the gauge above.
Nothing in its class is rated higher — it leads the group.
Questions asked across the counter
What MPG does the Chevrolet Bolt EV get?
The 2023 Chevrolet Bolt EV is rated at 120 MPGe combined by the EPA — 131 city and 109 highway. Across all 7 model years in the database it averages 119 MPGe, ranging from 118 to 120 depending on year and trim.
How much does a Chevrolet Bolt EV cost in fuel per year?
At 120 MPGe and 15,000 miles a year, it burns about 125 gallons — roughly $400 a year with fuel at $3.20 a gallon, or $0.027 per mile. The EPA's own published annual figure for the 2023 model is $650.
Has the Chevrolet Bolt EV become more efficient over time?
Yes. It has gone from 119 MPGe in 2017 to 120 in 2023 — an improvement of 1 MPGe, or 1% across 7 model years.
Is the Chevrolet Bolt EV efficient for its class?
It ranks 1 of 76 in the Small Station Wagons class on current figures, against a class average of 28.2 MPGe. That is 91.8 better than typical for the class.
Pull another logbook off the same shelf
Same class, nearest economy first — the ones a buyer is genuinely choosing between.
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Cost per mile, per kilometre and per year are computed at a reference price of $3.20 a gallon over 15,000 miles, fixed JUL 2026 — set your own pump price. Estimates based on official test figures and average fuel prices. Real-world consumption varies with driving style, load, terrain and maintenance.
