Volkswagen e-Golf
What it costs to keep fuelled
$403a year, fuel only
The 2019 Volkswagen e-Golf is EPA-rated at 119 MPGe combined (126 city / 111 highway). Over 15,000 miles a year that is about 126 gallons, $403 a year in fuel, or $0.027 per mile at $3.20/gal.
Across its full 2015–2019 run it averages 117.8 MPGe, improving by 3 MPGe over 5 model years.
The band is how far one gallon-equivalent of energy carries it: 119 of the 120 MPGe this scale runs to. The square tick is the compact cars average, 26.2.
- Fuel, per year
- $403 at 15,000 mi
- Per mile
- $0.027
- Per kilometre
- $0.017
- Gallon-equivalents/yr
- 126
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 | $210 | $315 | $420 |
| $3.00/gal | $0.025 | $252 | $378 | $504 |
| $3.20/gal | $0.027 | $269 | $403 | $538 |
| $3.50/gal | $0.029 | $294 | $441 | $588 |
| $4.00/gal | $0.034 | $336 | $504 | $672 |
| $4.50/gal | $0.038 | $378 | $567 | $756 |
| $5.00/gal | $0.042 | $420 | $630 | $840 |
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
5 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 119 MPGe | 126 | 111 | $650 | — | 1 |
| 2018 | 119 MPGe | 126 | 111 | $650 | — | 1 |
| 2017 | 119 MPGe | 126 | 111 | $650 | — | 1 |
| 2016 | 116 MPGe | 126 | 105 | $650 | — | 1 |
| 2015 | 116 MPGe | 126 | 105 | $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 compact cars bay
Among the 227 compact cars models tracked here, the Volkswagen e-Golf ranks 1 on current figures, against a class average of 26.2 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 Volkswagen e-Golf get?
The 2019 Volkswagen e-Golf is rated at 119 MPGe combined by the EPA — 126 city and 111 highway. Across all 5 model years in the database it averages 117.8 MPGe, ranging from 116 to 119 depending on year and trim.
How much does a Volkswagen e-Golf cost in fuel per year?
At 119 MPGe and 15,000 miles a year, it burns about 126 gallons — roughly $403 a year with fuel at $3.20 a gallon, or $0.027 per mile. The EPA's own published annual figure for the 2019 model is $650.
Has the Volkswagen e-Golf become more efficient over time?
Yes. It has gone from 116 MPGe in 2015 to 119 in 2019 — an improvement of 3 MPGe, or 3% across 5 model years.
Is the Volkswagen e-Golf efficient for its class?
It ranks 1 of 227 in the Compact Cars class on current figures, against a class average of 26.2 MPGe. That is 92.8 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.
