Ford Focus Electric
What it costs to keep fuelled
$449a year, fuel only
The 2018 Ford Focus Electric is EPA-rated at 107 MPGe combined (118 city / 96 highway). Over 15,000 miles a year that is about 140 gallons, $449 a year in fuel, or $0.030 per mile at $3.20/gal.
Across its full 2012–2018 run it averages 105.6 MPGe, improving by 2 MPGe over 7 model years.
The band is how far one gallon-equivalent of energy carries it: 107 of the 120 MPGe this scale runs to. The square tick is the compact cars average, 26.2.
- Fuel, per year
- $449 at 15,000 mi
- Per mile
- $0.030
- Per kilometre
- $0.019
- Gallon-equivalents/yr
- 140
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 | $0.023 | $234 | $350 | $467 |
| $3.00/gal | $0.028 | $280 | $421 | $561 |
| $3.20/gal | $0.030 | $299 | $449 | $598 |
| $3.50/gal | $0.033 | $327 | $491 | $654 |
| $4.00/gal | $0.037 | $374 | $561 | $748 |
| $4.50/gal | $0.042 | $421 | $631 | $841 |
| $5.00/gal | $0.047 | $467 | $701 | $935 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | 107 MPGe | 118 | 96 | $700 | — | 1 |
| 2017 | 107 MPGe | 118 | 96 | $700 | — | 1 |
| 2016 | 105 MPGe | 110 | 99 | $700 | — | 1 |
| 2015 | 105 MPGe | 110 | 99 | $700 | — | 1 |
| 2014 | 105 MPGe | 110 | 99 | $700 | — | 1 |
| 2013 | 105 MPGe | 110 | 99 | $700 | — | 1 |
| 2012 | 105 MPGe | 110 | 99 | $700 | — | 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 compact cars bay
Among the 227 compact cars models tracked here, the Ford Focus Electric ranks 2 on current figures, against a class average of 26.2 MPGe — the square tick on the gauge above.
Closest more-efficient alternatives in the same class: Volkswagen e-Golf (119).
Questions asked across the counter
What MPG does the Ford Focus Electric get?
The 2018 Ford Focus Electric is rated at 107 MPGe combined by the EPA — 118 city and 96 highway. Across all 7 model years in the database it averages 105.6 MPGe, ranging from 105 to 107 depending on year and trim.
How much does a Ford Focus Electric cost in fuel per year?
At 107 MPGe and 15,000 miles a year, it burns about 140 gallons — roughly $449 a year with fuel at $3.20 a gallon, or $0.030 per mile. The EPA's own published annual figure for the 2018 model is $700.
Has the Ford Focus Electric become more efficient over time?
Yes. It has gone from 105 MPGe in 2012 to 107 in 2018 — an improvement of 2 MPGe, or 2% across 7 model years.
Is the Ford Focus Electric efficient for its class?
It ranks 2 of 227 in the Compact Cars class on current figures, against a class average of 26.2 MPGe. That is 80.8 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.
