Fuel prices europe

The figures above come from the EU Weekly Oil Bulletin: every member state reports its national average pump price, taxes included, for the same week. That is what makes the comparison fair — it is one method applied to 27 countries on one date, not 27 websites quoting different days.

Most of the spread between countries is tax, not oil. Crude and refining cost roughly the same across the continent; excise duty and VAT are set nationally and can differ by more than 50 cents per litre between the cheapest and the dearest market. That is also why the ranking barely moves from week to week, even when oil does.

For a trip, the practical rule is simple: top up in the cheaper country before you cross into the dearer one, and stay off the motorway when you can. Motorway service stations charge a clear premium almost everywhere in Europe, and in several countries a supermarket station a few kilometres off the exit is the cheapest fuel in the region.