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Gas prices may no longer be at their peak, but they remain higher than levels seen last year. And with inflation continuing to take a bite out of budgets elsewhere, finding cheap gas is a priority for many consumers.
Searching for the cheapest gas near you no longer requires wasting gas driving around to find the best price. There are now dozens of apps that do the legwork for you. Many of them compile gas price data in real time for users, allowing you to shop around for gas straight from your phone.
Best Apps for Finding Cheap Gas Near You
Gas apps are the easiest way to find cheap gas—and they require little commitment compared to loyalty programs that limit you to a single fuel brand. While deciding which gas app to use, characteristics such as cost, membership benefits and how the app makes money can help you make an informed decision about which is best for you.
1. GasBuddy
- Cost: Free.
- How the app makes money: GasBuddy shares your location information with “trusted partners to provide tailored advertisem*nts, analyze attribution, do analytics, conduct research and to recognize your device across the internet.” It also has a history of sharing location data with advertisers—so be sure to opt out of sharing your location in your privacy settings.
GasBuddy is one of the most well-known apps to maximize your gas savings. The app allows users to search for gas prices by their current location, ZIP code or city. It offers a free rewards card for users that gives you discounts as much as 25 cents per gallon and links directly to your checking account to pay for gas.
One of GasBuddy’s most unique features isn’t in the app, but is available online.
The Fuel Insights feature offers helpful visualizations, including a regularly-updated average price in your state, county or metro area. If the Fuel Insights tool says that the average cost of gas in Orlando is $3.84, for instance, you’ll think twice before stopping at an Orlando gas station charging $4.15 a gallon.
GasBuddy also offers a trip cost calculator that will estimate the cost of gas for your next road trip, allowing you to more accurately calculate your getaway budget.
2. Waze
- Cost: Free
- How the app makes money: Waze is fully funded through ads placed within its app, according to a Waze spokesperson, and doesn’t share driver data with advertisers.
Though most people know Waze as a navigation app, it also has a feature that shows prices at gas stations near you. The app allows you to sort gas options according to the price, distance or brand. Some gas stations place ads within the app, which are typically placed at the top of the list, so the first result isn’t always the cheapest.
Waze is available anywhere in the world where there’s cellular and GPS reception, making it a good option for use while traveling. The app is available for iOS and Android devices.
3. WEX Connect
- Cost: Free
- How the app makes money: WEX generates revenue through account servicing fees and finance fees, and uses that revenue to create tools that benefit its customers, such as the WEX Connect app. WEX verified that no user information is collected or sold.
WEX Connect is a free app from WEX Inc., a payment processing service for fleet and other industries. The app is available to everyone, not just WEX customers.
WEX Connect shows gas prices within a certain radius near you. You can save favorite gas stations for easy access later on. WEX Connect also pulls up electric vehicle charging stations near you and will indicate which ones are available or currently in use. There’s also a service and car wash tab that shows repair shops and car washes near you.
4. Upside
- Cost: Free
- How the app makes money: When users redeem an offer inside the app, Upside gets a share of the profit on that purchase. The company does not sell the user information it collects.
Upside is an app that partners with businesses to offer cash back to users. Those businesses include more than 45,000 gas stations nationwide, according to the app’s website. Users can earn as much as 25 cents back per gallon of gas.
To claim cash-back offers, you must download the app and create a free account. A credit or debit card must be used to purchase the gas. Upside then requests a copy of your receipt. In some cases, Upside offers a “check-in” option where it verifies your purchase with the business by using a partial debit or credit card number you’ve stored in your Upside account wallet.
Cash back gets added to your account and can be redeemed via PayPal, bank deposit or digital gift card. There is a $1 fee for cashouts less than $10 to a bank account and those less than $15 to PayPal.
Read more: 16 States Have Approved Stimulus Checks—Is Yours Next?
5. Google Maps
- Cost: Free
- How the app makes money: Google makes money through ads on its platforms. Google says it doesn’t sell users’ personal information.
Don’t feel like downloading a new app? There’s one you may already have on your phone that will show you gas prices: Google Maps.
The Google Maps app showcases gas prices when you search for gas near you. The gas price data are pulled by Google through a variety of channels, including licensed data from third parties and user-contributed information. The downside of using Google Maps for gas prices is that the prices aren’t updated in real time; in some cases, an asterisk indicates that gas prices are more than 24 hours old, which means they may not be accurate.
You can also see this gas price information by using Google Maps in a browser if you’re on a computer or tablet.
