Hyundai Sonata
What it costs to keep fuelled
$1,584a year, fuel only
The 2023 Hyundai Sonata is EPA-rated at 30.3 MPG combined (26.3 city / 36.3 highway). Over 15,000 miles a year that is about 495 gallons, $1584 a year in fuel, or $0.106 per mile at $3.20/gal.
Across its full 1989–2023 run it averages 23.8 MPG, improving by 10.6 MPG over 35 model years.
The band is how far one gallon carries it: 30.3 of the 60 MPG this scale runs to. The square tick is the large cars average, 21.5.
- Fuel, per year
- $1,584 at 15,000 mi
- Per mile
- $0.106
- Per kilometre
- $0.066
- Gallons burned/yr
- 495
1 mile = 1.609344 km · fuel at $3.20/gal, fixed JUL 2026
Test figure — not a road resultSOURCE·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 | $0.083 | $825 | $1238 | $1650 |
| $3.00/gal | $0.099 | $990 | $1485 | $1980 |
| $3.20/gal | $0.106 | $1056 | $1584 | $2112 |
| $3.50/gal | $0.116 | $1155 | $1733 | $2310 |
| $4.00/gal | $0.132 | $1320 | $1980 | $2640 |
| $4.50/gal | $0.149 | $1485 | $2228 | $2970 |
| $5.00/gal | $0.165 | $1650 | $2475 | $3300 |
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
35 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 | 30.3 MPG | 26.3 | 36.3 | $2063 | 301 | 4 |
| 2022 | 30.3 MPG | 26.3 | 36.3 | $2063 | 301 | 4 |
| 2021 | 30 MPG | 26.3 | 36.3 | $2088 | 301 | 4 |
| 2020 | 31.3 MPG | 27.3 | 37 | $1983 | 289 | 3 |
| 2019 | 28.3 MPG | 25.3 | 34 | $2200 | 315 | 3 |
| 2018 | 28.3 MPG | 25.3 | 34.7 | $2200 | 314 | 3 |
| 2017 | 28.7 MPG | 25 | 34.3 | $2183 | 313 | 3 |
| 2016 | 28.7 MPG | 25 | 34.3 | $2183 | 313 | 3 |
| 2015 | 28.3 MPG | 24.7 | 34.3 | $2200 | 315 | 3 |
| 2014 | 25.5 MPG | 22.5 | 32.5 | $2450 | 343 | 2 |
| 2013 | 26.7 MPG | 23.3 | 33.7 | $2333 | 332 | 3 |
| 2012 | 26.7 MPG | 23.3 | 33.7 | $2333 | 333 | 3 |
| 2011 | 26.3 MPG | 22.7 | 33.3 | $2367 | 338 | 3 |
| 2010 | 24 MPG | 20.7 | 31 | $2617 | 372 | 3 |
| 2009 | 24 MPG | 20.7 | 31 | $2617 | 372 | 3 |
| 2008 | 23.7 MPG | 20.3 | 29.7 | $2650 | 377 | 3 |
| 2007 | 23.3 MPG | 20 | 29.3 | $2683 | 383 | 3 |
| 2006 | 23.3 MPG | 20 | 29.3 | $2683 | 383 | 3 |
| 2005 | 21.3 MPG | 18.5 | 26.3 | $2938 | 420 | 4 |
| 2004 | 21.3 MPG | 18.5 | 26.5 | $2938 | 420 | 4 |
| 2003 | 21.3 MPG | 18.5 | 26.5 | $2938 | 420 | 4 |
| 2002 | 21.3 MPG | 18.8 | 26.3 | $2938 | 420 | 4 |
| 2001 | 21 MPG | 18.3 | 26 | $2963 | 424 | 4 |
| 2000 | 21 MPG | 18.3 | 26 | $2963 | 424 | 4 |
| 1999 | 21.3 MPG | 18.3 | 26.3 | $2925 | 418 | 4 |
| 1998 | 19.7 MPG | 17.3 | 24 | $3167 | 454 | 3 |
| 1997 | 19.7 MPG | 17.7 | 24.3 | $3167 | 454 | 3 |
| 1996 | 20.7 MPG | 17.7 | 25 | $3033 | 432 | 3 |
| 1995 | 20 MPG | 17.7 | 24.7 | $3117 | 447 | 3 |
| 1994 | 19.7 MPG | 17.3 | 23.7 | $3167 | 454 | 3 |
| 1993 | 19.3 MPG | 17.3 | 23.7 | $3217 | 461 | 3 |
| 1992 | 19.3 MPG | 17.3 | 23.7 | $3217 | 461 | 3 |
| 1991 | 19.7 MPG | 17.3 | 24 | $3167 | 454 | 3 |
| 1990 | 19.7 MPG | 17.3 | 24 | $3167 | 454 | 3 |
| 1989 | 19.7 MPG | 17.3 | 23.7 | $3167 | 454 | 3 |
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 large cars bay
Among the 149 large cars models tracked here, the Hyundai Sonata ranks 9 on current figures, against a class average of 21.5 MPG — the square tick on the gauge above.
Closest more-efficient alternatives in the same class: Honda Civic 5Dr (35.3), Ford C-MAX Hybrid FWD (40), Honda Accord Hybrid (48), Hyundai Sonata Hybrid Blue (51), Hyundai Ioniq (55).
Tailpipe CO₂ is rated at 301 grams per mile, which works out to roughly 4.5 tonnes a year at 15,000 miles.
Questions asked across the counter
What MPG does the Hyundai Sonata get?
The 2023 Hyundai Sonata is rated at 30.3 MPG combined by the EPA — 26.3 city and 36.3 highway. Across all 35 model years in the database it averages 23.8 MPG, ranging from 18 to 32 depending on year and trim.
How much does a Hyundai Sonata cost in fuel per year?
At 30.3 MPG and 15,000 miles a year, it burns about 495 gallons — roughly $1584 a year with fuel at $3.20 a gallon, or $0.106 per mile. The EPA's own published annual figure for the 2023 model is $2063.
Has the Hyundai Sonata become more efficient over time?
Yes. It has gone from 19.7 MPG in 1989 to 30.3 in 2023 — an improvement of 10.6 MPG, or 54% across 35 model years.
Is the Hyundai Sonata efficient for its class?
It ranks 9 of 149 in the Large Cars class on current figures, against a class average of 21.5 MPG. That is 8.8 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.
