Constantly Spending Money at the Pump? Here Are 3 Ways to Save (2024)

When you own a car, filling your tank is an unavoidable expense (unless you happen to have an EV, of course). And at this point, you may be tired of spending so much money on gas fill-ups every week.

I'm right there with you. I drive a minivan, which means my car is hardly fuel-efficient. In fact, local driving pretty much sucks the gas right out of my tank so I often have to refill multiple times per week.

If you're desperate for ways to save on gas fill-ups, here are some tips worth employing.

1. Use credit cards that put extra cash back in your pocket

Some credit cards give you extra back at the pump. While using a credit card with extra gas rewards won't make it so you're spending less per gallon, you'll get back more money per gallon you buy.

The Blue Cash Preferred® Card from American Express, for example, gives you 3% back at gas stations. This card has a $0 intro annual fee for the first year, then $95. (See rates and fees.)

Meanwhile, if you're an Amazon Prime member, the Prime Visa offers 2% cash back at gas stations with no annual fee at all. It also gives you an impressive 5% back on Amazon purchases.

2. Fill up your tank at Costco

It doesn't necessarily make sense to get a Costco membership for the gas alone. But if you have one already, I highly recommend filling up your car at Costco when you shop there.

In my neck of the woods, Costco's gas is the cheapest in town. I like to time my Costco runs to when my tank is getting low.

See, there are multiple gas stations in my town that are closer to my home than Costco. But if I wait until my tank is running low to do my food shopping, I'm making it so I'm not driving out of my way for a Costco gas station fill-up.

3. Consider a Walmart+ membership

Because I have an Amazon Prime membership, a Walmart+ membership doesn't make a lot of sense for me. A major benefit of the program is free shipping on any order and free grocery delivery with an order of $35 or more. But since I buy the majority of my groceries from Costco and a specific supermarket I like in town, Walmart+ doesn't offer me a ton of value.

However, if you're a regular Walmart shopper, then it could pay to join the program not only for the perks I just mentioned, but for the savings on fuel. As a member of Walmart+, you can save $0.10 per gallon of gas at more than 14,000 stations throughout the country. At a cost of $98 per year, which breaks down into $8.17 per month, it may be more than worth signing up.

Let's say you fill up your car twice a week. If your Walmart+ membership saves you $1.20 per fill-up, that's $9.60 in monthly savings (assuming four weeks per month), which is more than your Walmart+ membership cost.

It can be frustrating to constantly be spending money on gas. As a parent who's always shuttling kids around to school and sporting events, I get it. But these moves could result in a fair amount of savings, so it's worth giving them a try.

Alert: our top-rated cash back card now has 0% intro APR until 2025

This credit card is not just good – it’s so exceptional that our experts use it personally. It features a lengthy 0% intro APR period, a cash back rate of up to 5%, and all somehow for no annual fee! Click here to read our full review for free and apply in just 2 minutes.