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Autogas / LPG vehicleDOE AFDC quarterlyWeek of 30 March 2026

Autogas (Propane) Price Per Gallon for Fleet Vehicles

Autogas is propane sold for use as a motor fuel. Fleets, school buses, taxi operators, and police forces in selected markets run on autogas. Pricing sits well below residential propane on a per-gallon basis, with the federal alternative fuel tax credit further widening the gap.

Autogas fleet refueling band, typical
$1.47to$2.09/ gallon
Estimated from DOE AFDC quarterly Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Price Report. Residential reference (EIA): $2.674 (week of 30 March 2026).

What autogas is

Autogas is the international name for propane (or, in some markets, propane-butane mix) used as a transportation fuel. In the US the LPG vehicle fuel is essentially HD-5 propane, the same specification used for residential heating but delivered through a different supply channel. In Europe, autogas is more often a propane-butane blend with the butane fraction varying by season (summer blends include more butane, winter blends more propane, to manage vapour pressure). The US autogas industry standardises on HD-5 propane year-round.

The US Department of Energy Alternative Fuels Data Center (AFDC) publishes a quarterly Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Price Report that includes autogas alongside CNG, ethanol E85, biodiesel B20, electricity, hydrogen, and conventional gasoline and diesel. The autogas figure is a quarterly national survey of public refueling station prices and fleet card transactions, run for DOE by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. It is the cleanest public reference for autogas pricing in the US.

Where autogas vehicles run

The largest US autogas fleet segment is school buses. Several thousand US school districts operate propane school buses (Blue Bird, IC Bus, Thomas Built all manufacture propane-powered models). The fuel economy is similar to diesel on a BTU basis but propane runs cleaner (lower NOx, much lower particulate matter), important in children-carrying applications. Fleet operations of delivery vehicles (UPS, FedEx Ground, ServiceMaster, Bimbo Bakeries among the larger operators) include autogas vehicles for medium-duty applications. Taxi and rideshare fleets are smaller in the US (large in Italy, Poland, South Korea) but exist in select markets. Police forces (some Ford Police Interceptor models are bi-fuel gasoline-propane) run autogas in cities where fleet economics favour it.

Refueling infrastructure for autogas is less dense than gasoline but more available than CNG or hydrogen. AFDC lists more than 1,000 public-access autogas refueling stations in the US, with private fleet stations adding several thousand more. Most fleet autogas operations have on-site refueling because public station density is insufficient for daily-mileage fleet operations.

Why autogas is cheap per gallon

The autogas per-gallon price sits well below residential propane for three reasons. First, no residential delivery layer. Autogas at a refueling station is filled from a single bulk tank by a self-service dispenser (or attendant); there is no bobtail truck route, no tank lease, no regulator service, no 24-hour emergency call coverage. The dealer's overhead is dramatically lower per gallon dispensed. Second, fleet volume contracts. A school district running 50 propane buses at 12,000 miles per bus per year on 7-9 MPG consumes roughly 75,000 to 100,000 gallons per year. That volume qualifies for the heavy-commercial or large-industrial pricing tier, often within 30 to 60 cents per gallon of the Mont Belvieu spot price.

Third, the federal alternative fuel tax credit. Section 6426 of the Internal Revenue Code provides a tax credit of 37 cents per gallon for alternative fuels including autogas when used in highway vehicles. The credit has been renewed intermittently over the years; check the IRS for current status. When applicable, the credit substantially widens the per-gallon gap between autogas and conventional gasoline. Some state alternative fuel incentive programs add to this federal credit. Together these economic levers have historically made autogas one of the cheaper highway fuels per gallon in the US.

The energy density adjustment

One important caveat on comparing autogas to gasoline on a per-gallon basis: propane has lower energy density than gasoline. A gallon of HD-5 propane contains 91,452 BTU against gasoline at approximately 116,090 BTU per gallon (regular E10). Propane vehicles get fewer MPG than the same vehicle on gasoline (typically 10 to 25% lower MPG), which partly offsets the per-gallon price advantage.

On a cost per mile basis, however, propane often still wins for fleet applications when the contract pricing is competitive. A propane school bus at 8 MPG on $1.50 per gallon autogas costs $0.19 per mile in fuel; the same bus on diesel at 7 MPG and $4.00 per gallon costs $0.57 per mile. The per-mile gap funds the up-front incremental capital cost of the propane vehicle in roughly three to five years for typical fleet duty cycles.

Public autogas station pricing

For owners of personal propane vehicles (a small but stable US segment), the public refueling station price is the relevant number. Public autogas stations typically price in the $2.20 to $3.20 per gallon range depending on region, with regional variation similar to the residential propane survey: lowest in the Mid-Continent, highest in New England and the Lower Atlantic. A handful of major urban markets (Houston, Atlanta, Indianapolis, Phoenix) have multiple public autogas stations in competition, which keeps retail station pricing tight to wholesale.

The Propane Education and Research Council and the National Propane Gas Association maintain station locator tools that show public-access autogas stations and their pricing where available. The AFDC station locator (afdc.energy.gov/stations) is the federal reference.

Autogas fleet contract structures

Fleet autogas contracts mirror commercial propane contracts for industrial accounts. The dominant structures are:

The economic case for autogas, summarised

The autogas economic case for a fleet operator rests on four elements: lower per-gallon fuel cost, lower maintenance cost (propane combustion is cleaner than gasoline or diesel, extending spark plug life and oil change intervals), lower exposure to gasoline and diesel price volatility, and (when applicable) the federal alternative fuel tax credit. The economic case against rests on three elements: lower MPG than gasoline or diesel, the up-front capital cost of propane vehicles and refueling infrastructure, and the operational inconvenience of less-dense public refueling infrastructure.

For a high-mileage centrally-fueled fleet (school buses, delivery vans), the economics typically favour autogas. For mixed-use or low-mileage fleets, they typically do not. The DOE AFDC publishes total-cost-of-ownership calculators that handle this math.

Related

FAQ

Why is autogas cheaper than residential propane?

No residential delivery layer (no bobtail truck, tank lease, regulator service), fleet volume contracts, and (when applicable) the federal alternative fuel tax credit. The same propane out of the same Mont Belvieu storage cavern costs the fleet less because the supply chain is shorter and the contract structure is commercial.

What is the MPG penalty for running a vehicle on autogas instead of gasoline?

Typically 10 to 25% lower MPG depending on the vehicle and the engine calibration. Propane has lower volumetric energy density than gasoline (91,452 BTU/gal vs ~116,090 BTU/gal), so per-gallon range is shorter. Cost per mile usually still favours autogas for fleet operations.

Where can I find autogas refueling near me?

The DOE AFDC station locator at afdc.energy.gov/stations is the federal reference. PERC and NPGA also maintain consumer-facing station finders.

Is the federal alternative fuel tax credit still in effect?

The Section 6426 credit has been renewed intermittently with periods of lapse and retroactive renewal. Check current IRS guidance or the AFDC federal incentives page for the current state. The credit, when in effect, is 37 cents per gallon for highway-use autogas.