Top 10 cheapest cars to run 2026
The cheapest cars to buy aren’t necessarily the cheapest cars to run. After some number crunching, we’ve identified the new cars that will be kindest to your wallet over time.
If you’re car shopping but don’t have much to spend, you’ll likely be paying a lot of attention to the RRPs of an array of city cars, superminis or small SUVs. Or maybe you’ll be eyeing the latest PCP finance deals to find something with a low monthly payment. What you might not have considered, though, is the total cost of running your potential purchase over the first few years.
The cost of owning any car isn’t just about the amount of money you need to find up front; you’ll also need to consider how much you’re likely to spend on running costs like insurance, fuel, maintenance and road tax over your whole ownership period.
It’s also worth remembering that you’ll get a chunk of money back when it’s time to sell, the difference between this sum and what you originally paid being the car’s depreciation.
Taking all of these factors into consideration produces a Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) figure for any car. The TCO is a number that’s easy enough to work out after you’ve owned a car, but predicting the total ownership costs before you buy is a bit of a dark art. Find out how these figures are calculated at the bottom of the page.
Top 10 cheapest cars to run
The table below shows the top 10 cheapest cars to run based on their Total Cost of Ownership, breaking the cost down per mile, per month and the total cost over 36 months and 30,000 miles.
| Rank | Make/model | Pence per mile | Monthly | Total cost (36 months/ 30k miles) |
| 1. | Citroen Ami | 22.17p | £184.72 | £6,649.88 |
| 2. | Fiat Topolino | 26.75p | £222.91 | £8,024.61 |
| 3. | Hyundai i10 | 43.86p | £365.48 | £13,157.45 |
| 4. | Dacia Jogger | 41.98p | £349.82 | £12,593.44 |
| 5. | Renault Clio | 42.44p | £353.67 | £12,732.04 |
| 6. | Kia Picanto | 42.57p | £354.75 | £12,770.90 |
| 7. | Dacia Sandero | 43.7p | £364.14 | £13,109.11 |
| 8. | Fiat 500 Electric | 43.76p | £364.65 | £13,127.31 |
| 9. | Chery Tiggo 4 | 43.85p | £365.43 | £13,155.64 |
| 10 | Toyota Aygo X | 44.46p | £370.52 | £13,338.60 |
Electric cars are starting to appear more frequently in our rankings. It’s not surprising that the Citroen Ami comes out on top, but this tiny city car with a 28mph top speed will not suit everyone.
The other cars are city cars and superminis with far greater day-to-day flexibility than the Ami can offer. But there is one exception. Of the two cars from value-focused brand Dacia on the list, the Jogger stands out because it is a family-sized MPV with a big interior space and seven seats. You don’t have to buy a small car to get one that’s cheap to run.
Scroll on to learn more about the cheapest cars to run, or click on the links in the table above to jump to a specific model...
1. Citroen Ami
- Model: Ami 6kW
- Total cost over three years/30,000 miles: £7,427.44
- Monthly: £206.32
- Per mile: 24.76p
When you look at the rest of the cars on this list, the Citroen Ami could be seen as something of an imposter as it’s technically not a car at all; it’s legally classed as a quadricycle. It still has four wheels, a steering wheel and an enclosed space with seating for two people, however. The Ami can also be run for as little as 24.76p per mile. This adds up to a running cost of just under £2,500 per 10,000 miles driven.
There’s a slight caveat, however, as very few Ami owners will end up doing as many as 10,000 miles a year. This is because the French quadricycle is a vehicle that has been built specifically for those who clock up lower mileages in built-up urban environments.
The Ami saw a mid-life facelift at the end of 2025 but with a lack of creature comforts, a range of just over 46 miles and a top speed of 28mph, it wouldn’t really be suitable for longer trips and those cost savings demand real compromises.
2. Fiat Topolino
- Model: Topolino 6kW
- Total cost over three years/30,000 miles: £8,024.61
- Monthly: £222.91
- Per mile: 26.75p
It should come as no surprise that the Citroen Ami is very closely followed by the Fiat Topolino, because they’re pretty much the same car, with differences that lie in little more than branding. The Topolino (which means ‘little mouse’ in Italian) is marginally more expensive to run than the Ami, but there’s all of about 2p per mile in it.
The same caveats apply here, as well. Although it does have four wheels, a steering wheel and seating for two, making it seem rather car-like, it’s classed as a quadricycle. Plus, Topolino owners are no more likely to do 10,000 miles per year than Ami drivers.
There’s the same 46-mile range and 28mph top speed as the Ami, so it’s still not a car for longer journeys. Are the savings worth what you’re missing from a ‘proper’ car? Only you can answer that.
3. Hyundai i10
- Model: i10 1.0 Advance Auto
- Total cost over three years/30,000 miles: £12,242.59
- Monthly: £340.07
- Per mile: 40.81p
The Hyundai i10 is based on the same platform as the Kia Picanto we’ll be talking about shortly, sharing the same 1.0-litre, 66bhp engine, but features slightly sportier and more aggressive exterior styling.
Unfortunately, it’s not quite as funky inside, with a pretty plain interior design and layout. Again, though, it’s very well made, and spacious. The latest i10 also has a longer wheelbase than the car it replaced, which helps to improve the ride and handling. There are better-driving or handling city cars in this dwindling class, but you’ll have to pay more to buy and run them.
The Hyundai has everything stacked in its favour when it comes to reducing its TCO figure and at 43.86p per mile, this is a very affordable car. Fuel economy stands at 54.3mpg and CO2 figures of 119g/km. If you choose Advance trim with the automatic gearbox, the i10 sits in insurance group 3, meaning it shouldn’t break the bank when it comes to getting insurance.
4. Dacia Jogger
- Model: Jogger 1.8 HEV Expression
- Total cost over three years/30,000 miles: £12,593.44
- Monthly: £349.82
- Per mile: 41.98p
You expect to see city cars and superminis on a list of the cheapest cars to run, but a large MPV like the Dacia Jogger is a surprise. Though maybe it shouldn’t surprise you too much, considering it is the second car from the Romanian brand here.
Despite being a large family car, under the skin the Jogger is basically a stretched version of the Sandero. While you can get it with a smaller 1.0-litre three-cylinder engine, the cheapest Jogger to run is the 1.8-litre hybrid at just 41.98p per mile over 30,000 miles.
Around town, the Jogger can run on electricity alone for a short period of time, but there’s always the petrol engine waiting in the wings for when the battery gets low or more power is required. Refinement and comfort is more than adequate for family life, although road and wind noise does creep in at higher speeds.
Of course, it’s simply a low-cost car to begin with. Expression trim is actually one step above the basic ‘Essential’ model, but the slightly fancier model is likely to depreciate at a slower rate. The Essential version also lacks the Expression’s 10.1-inch touchscreen, reversing camera, and automatic air conditioning.
5. Renault Clio
- Model: Clio 1.0 TCe 90 Generation
- Total cost over three years/30,000 miles: £12,732.04
- Monthly: £353.67
- Per mile: 42.44p
The Renault Clio may be on the verge of being replaced, with the all-new sixth-generation version arriving in UK showrooms in early 2027, but the outgoing model still makes a lot of sense, especially from a running costs perspective. Unlike some models on this list, it’s a very well-rounded and capable car as well as an affordable one to run.
For the lowest price per mile, it’ll need to be the entry-level TCe 90, which uses a three-cylinder engine and a six-speed manual gearbox. Although it’s some way off the 65.7mpg managed by the hybrid E-Tech 145, 54.3mpg isn’t to be sniffed at.
You also get more boot space than in the hybrid - an impressive 391 litres, compared to the E-Tech’s underwhelming 309 litres due to the location of its battery pack.
With the all-new Clio’s launch looming, the TCe 90 now seems to be missing from the configurator, but if you’re quick, it should be possible to buy a new, in-stock example.
6. Kia Picanto
- Model: Picanto Hatchback 1.0 Pure Auto
- Total cost over three years/30,000 miles: 12,770.90
- Monthly: £354.75
- Per mile: 42.57p
The Kia Picanto might be one of the smallest cars offered by the South Korean brand, but it feels just as well made inside, with a spacious cabin featuring an abundance of premium-feeling materials as its much larger siblings. It’s also very comfortable and refined for such a small car, and fun to drive. As a final bonus, every model in the Kia range is sold with a brilliant seven-year warranty.
The Picanto is now only available with a 1.0-litre engine producing all of 66bhp. On the plus side, this three-cylinder unit can achieve nearly 60mpg. For the lowest per mile figure, it’ll need to be the entry-level Pure version with an automatic gearbox.
7. Dacia Sandero
- Model: Sandero 1.0 TCe Essential
- Total cost over three years/30,000 miles: £13,109.11
- Monthly: £364.14
- Per mile: 43.7p
The Dacia Sandero is officially one of the cheapest cars to buy in the UK outright, so it’s only fitting that it’s the cheapest non-electric car to run on this list.
When it launched, the original Sandero was Britain’s cheapest car to buy outright, and by some margin, but it was much more basic back then. It’s since grown up, thanks to a close relationship with the current Renault Clio. Also, the famously simple Access trim, with its lack of body-coloured bumpers, a radio or air-conditioning, is no longer part of the Sandero range; today’s base model is Essential, and comes with a modest but still respectable list of kit.
Regardless, the Dacia is still an excellent-value car, especially considering its now more-refined nature, with improved ride comfort and a relaxed setup making it a decent car both in town and on the motorway. Interior quality is much improved in comparison to the previous generation of Sandero, with softer touch materials and a generous level of standard kit.
8. Fiat 500 Electric
- Model: 500 Electric Hatchback Icon 24kWh
- Total cost over three years/30,000 miles: £13,127.31
- Monthly: £364.65
- Per mile: 43.76p
The Fiat 500 Electric is one of the cheapest EVs currently on sale, so its appearance in the list isn’t unexpected. As with a lot of these cars, some compromises are necessary to get the low per-mile figure.
For the lowest running costs it’ll need to be the entry-level version of the car with the smaller, 24kWh battery, which means a range of only 118 miles, compared to 199bhp with the bigger pack. But still, that’s a lot better than the Citroen Ami/Fiat Topolino cousins, and because it’s a proper car, it actually has some power behind it.
93bhp might not sound like much, but when there’s 220Nm of torque being delivered instantly from the single, front-mounted motor, the 500 will feel plenty potent around town, where it’s best suited. It has just about enough capability to work for excursions away from the city, too, you’ll just need to pack light thanks to the diddy 185-litre boot.
Latest Fiat 500 Electric deals
9. Chery Tiggo 4
- Model: 1.5 Hybrid Aspire DHT
- Total cost over three years/30,000 miles: £13,155.64
- Monthly: £365.43
- Per mile: 43.85p
There might be all sorts of aggressively priced newcomers from Chinese brands emerging in the UK, but only one works out cheap enough over three years to make the cheapest cars cut.
It’s the Chery Tiggo 4, which is best thought of as a budget alternative to the excellent Ford Puma. The Tiggo 4 isn’t anywhere near as well-rounded as the Puma, but it’s close enough that you’ll accept its not-so-good elements (it isn’t that great to drive, for instance) and reap the savings.
There’s only one engine available - a 1.5-litre, four-cylinder hybrid. Fuel economy of 53mpg is decent rather than exceptional, so it’ll probably be Chery’s aggressively-priced finance offering which will be doing a lot of the heavy lifting in terms of keeping the running costs low.
Keeping things easier still in the configurator, there are only two available trim levels. Also, it’s just £2,000 to upgrade from the base Aspire model to the range-topping Summit, which brings a meaningful uplift in equipment for a modest increase in monthly payments. We recommend taking that option.
10. Toyota Aygo X
- Model: 1.5 Hybrid Icon CVT
- Total cost over three years/30,000 miles: £13,338.60
- Monthly: £370.52
- Per mile: 44.46
The latest Toyota Aygo X went beyond what we’d normally expect for a mid-life facelift. It ended up with a completely new 1.5-litre hybrid engine and a completely redesigned, longer front end to fit it in.
At the same time, it got a lot more expensive, but that’s offset by very low running figures. Although it’s considerably more powerful than before, the Aygo X has also seen drastic economy improvements, with a WLTP combined cycle of 74.3mpg. We’ve actually managed to improve upon this in our testing, managing 86mpg at the launch of the car.
Like a lot of cars here, the Aygo X is not that practical. In fact, with a boot space of just 226 litres, you’ll fit less in the Toyota than you will in something like a Kia Picanto. The rear seats are super tight, too, so you might as well avoid carrying any passengers back there and use them as extra luggage space.
How we calculate a car’s Total Cost of Ownership
To get an accurate figure on the Total Cost of Ownership, we’ve teamed up with the experts at car data firm CAP HPI, and with the benefit of their expertise and algorithms, we’ve come up with the cheapest new cars to run that are on sale right now on a pence-per-mile basis.
CAP is the industry leader for new and used car valuations, and its figures are widely used by manufacturers to calculate new car finance costs based on predicted depreciation. When it comes to the cost of running a car, depreciation is by far the biggest factor, accounting for anything from 50 to 85% of the total depending on the model in question.
Our own analysis suggests that EVs typically cost less than half as much to fuel as petrol cars. This is based on ZapMap's data showing that the typical split of public and home charging for EV drivers in the UK is 84 per cent home and 16 per cent public. EVs charged mainly using public chargers, however, tend to be much closer to their petrol equivalents in terms of fuel costs. Servicing costs are also lower for EVs, but insurance is usually more expensive.
Cheapest cars on Auto Express
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