What Does Riding to Work Save You?
Enter the commute, how often you ride it, and what you would otherwise pay to get there.
Your Year on the Bike
| Line | Per year |
|---|---|
| Car costs avoided (fuel, wear, insurance share) | $1,044 |
| Parking avoided | $0 |
| Bike upkeep | -$72 |
| E-bike charging | -$5 |
| Net savings | $972 |
Calories use the 2024 Compendium of Physical Activities value for cycling at your speed. CO2 uses the EPA figure you entered. The IRS rate is an average all-in car cost; if you keep the car anyway, your real saving is the variable part, so lower the cents per mile to taste.
How It Works
Miles times what a mile costs, minus what the bike costs, with the carbon and calories alongside.
The Formulas
Commuting miles = one-way distance x 2 x days per week x weeks per year Car costs avoided = miles x cents per mile + parking per day x commuting days Transit fares avoided = fare per day x commuting days Bike upkeep = miles x upkeep cents per mile E-bike charging = miles x 18 Wh per mile / 1,000 / 0.9 x price per kWh Net savings = costs avoided - bike upkeep - charging CO2 avoided = car miles x grams per mile Calories = MET for your speed x 3.5 x weight (kg) / 200 x minutes ridingThe Defaults and Where They Come From
72.5 cents per mile is the IRS standard mileage rate for business use in 2026, set in December 2025. It is the agency's estimate of the full cost of owning and running a car, fuel and depreciation included. If the car stays in the driveway on bike days, the cost you avoid is closer to the variable part: fuel, tires, and wear, which is a smaller number. Enter it if you know it.
400 grams of CO2 per mile is the EPA's figure for a typical passenger vehicle, assuming about 22 mpg. Your car's number is 8,887 grams divided by its mpg.
18 cents per kilowatt-hour is the 2026 US residential average from the Energy Information Administration. An e-bike commuter draws about 18 Wh per mile in a middle assist level; the e-bike range calculator works that figure out for your bike and conditions.
Calories use the 2024 Compendium of Physical Activities, which assigns 6.8 METs to cycling at 10 to 11.9 mph, 8.0 at 12 to 13.9 mph, and 10.0 at 14 to 15.9 mph, with 6.0 METs for an e-bike with light assist. The cycling calories calculator has the full table.
A Worked Example
Five miles each way, three days a week, 48 weeks: 1,440 miles. At 72.5 cents a mile the car would have cost $1,044. Bike upkeep at 5 cents a mile is $72, so the net is $972, or $81 a month. Add $10 a day of downtown parking and the net jumps to $2,412. The ride avoids 576 kg of CO2 and burns about 77,700 calories, roughly 22 pounds of body fat, in 120 hours of riding at 12 mph.
What the Calculator Leaves Out
Time. At 12 mph a 5-mile commute takes 25 minutes, which in many cities is close to the drive at rush hour and faster than the bus. Health is out too, except as calories. And the bike itself: a commuter that lives on a rack outside the office all day is the bike most likely to be stolen, which is what bike commuter insurance is for.
Frequently Asked Questions
- How much money does commuting by bike save per year?
- A 5-mile each-way commute ridden three days a week for 48 weeks replaces 1,440 car miles, which at the 2026 IRS standard mileage rate of 72.5 cents is about $1,040 in fuel, maintenance, and wear before parking. Add $10 a day of parking and the saving passes $2,400. Your own numbers go in the calculator; the IRS rate is a fair all-in cost of owning and running a car.
- Does an e-bike still save money once I pay for charging?
- Yes, by a wide margin. An e-bike uses roughly 15 to 20 watt-hours per mile, which at the 2026 average electricity price of about 18 cents per kilowatt-hour works out to under half a cent per mile, or about $5 a year for the commute above. The e-bike costs more to buy and insure than a pedal bike, and both are small next to what the car costs per mile.
- How much CO2 does a bike commute avoid?
- Each car mile you replace avoids about 400 grams of carbon dioxide, the EPA's figure for a typical passenger vehicle at 22 mpg. The 1,440-mile commute above avoids about 576 kg, or 0.58 metric tons, a year, out of the 4.6 tons the average car emits annually. Driving a more efficient car lowers the per-mile figure; enter yours if you know it.
- What should I budget for bike upkeep when I commute?
- Set aside a few cents a mile for tires, chains, brake pads, and an annual tune-up, which is the calculator's default of 5 cents, or about $70 a year for the commute above. Riding year round in rain and grit pushes it higher; a dry-weather commuter on a simple bike spends less. Keep the receipts: they also prove the bike's value if you insure it.
More Cycling Calculators
See how far the e-bike goes on a charge, and what the commuter should be insured for.
Bike Insurance Value Calculator
Add up the bike, upgrades, and accessories to find the stated value to insure it for, and what a total loss pays.
InsuranceHomeowners Claim vs. Bike Insurance Calculator
See what a stolen or totaled bike pays on a homeowners policy after depreciation and the deductible, next to a stated-value bike policy.
E-bikesE-bike Class Finder
Answer three questions about throttle, assisted speed, and motor power to find out whether a bike is Class 1, Class 2, Class 3, or outside the system.
E-bikesE-bike Range Calculator
Estimate miles per charge from battery size, assist level, rider weight, terrain, and weather, plus what a full charge costs.
Fit and FitnessBike Size Calculator
Turn your height and inseam into a frame size for road, gravel, hybrid, mountain, and e-bikes, with a starting saddle height.
Fit and FitnessCycling Calories Burned Calculator
Calories for any ride from your weight, time, and pace, using the 2024 Compendium of Physical Activities, e-bikes included.
Fit and FitnessSweat Rate Calculator
Weigh in before and after a ride to get your sweat rate per hour and a drinking target that keeps up with it.
Fit and FitnessFTP and Power Zones Calculator
Enter your FTP or a 20-minute test result and get all seven power training zones in watts, plus watts per kilogram.
Fit and FitnessHeart Rate Zones Calculator
Five heart rate training zones from your age, resting heart rate, or a measured maximum, with the formula shown.
Fit and FitnessProtein Intake Calculator
A daily protein target in grams from your weight, age, goal, training hours, and diet, split across your meals with food equivalents.
Your commute runs on the bike. Keep it insured
Theft at the office rack, crash damage in traffic, and liability if you hit someone: all on one policy, from $9 a month, with no renters or homeowners policy needed.
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