Cycling more expensive per mile than driving?

[presta]

So, I've totted up everything I spent on cycling between 11.2.01 when I bought the bike, and 1.4.20 when I quit cycling, and it comes to £2945.11 for a total of 191 items, including the bike at £464.99. Then I looked up the inflation rate for cycling from the ONS, which wasn't recorded before 2015, but the average for the ten years since is 3.05%. Applying that to each price for the years from when the money was spent until now, and then totting up those gives a total expenditure of £5116.77 at today's prices. That was for a total of 45744 miles, which works out at 11.2p/mile.

Then there's the cost of food, my diet cost an average of £1.86/1000kcal in 2025/26.

During the last three years whilst I've led a completely sedentary lifestyle I've burnt an average 2387kcal/day, and based on my most recent 2920 miles of touring, I was burning ~4400kcal/day cycling 50-60 miles a day. From that, my excess calorie consumption, (ie. the additional consumption over and above that when sedentary) works out at 38.5kcals per mile. At £1.86/1000kcal, that works out at 7.2p/mile.

Adding up the two, that gives a total cost of 18.4p/mile, and if I leave out the purchase price of the bike, which is about the only fixed cost, it's 16.2p/mile.

Considering that people will commonly already have a car on the drive, and consider buying a bike to use for some of their travel if and when it's convenient, I don't think it's that unreasonable to compare the marginal cost of car miles against the total cost of cycling.

Google Gemini gives this for the variable costs of running a petrol car:

And this when I asked for an electric car:

 

[All uphill]

Considering that people will commonly already have a car on the drive, and consider buying a bike to use for some of their travel if and when it's convenient, I don't think it's that unreasonable to compare the marginal cost of car miles against the total cost of cycling.

What!

So you start from the premise that a car is free, because most people already own one?

That's classic petrol head maths!

Google tells me that people replace their car every 4 to 6 years in the UK. Why not suggest people replace their car with a bike?

I know it's not possible for everyone, but it is for many. Tell them they can save thousands every year on VED, depreciation, insurance, repairs even before they turn a wheel, and they will....



Give you a reason why they really need a car to do the weekly shop, instead of getting it delivered.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

So, I've totted up everything I spent on cycling between 11.2.01 when I bought the bike, and 1.4.20 when I quit cycling, and it comes to £2945.11 for a total of 191 items, including the bike at £464.99. Then I looked up the inflation rate for cycling from the ONS, which wasn't recorded before 2015, but the average for the ten years since is 3.05%. Applying that to each price for the years from when the money was spent until now, and then totting up those gives a total expenditure of £5116.77 at today's prices. That was for a total of 45744 miles, which works out at 11.2p/mile.

Then there's the cost of food, my diet cost an average of £1.86/1000kcal in 2025/26.

During the last three years whilst I've led a completely sedentary lifestyle I've burnt an average 2387kcal/day, and based on my most recent 2920 miles of touring, I was burning ~4400kcal/day cycling 50-60 miles a day. From that, my excess calorie consumption, (ie. the additional consumption over and above that when sedentary) works out at 38.5kcals per mile. At £1.86/1000kcal, that works out at 7.2p/mile.

Adding up the two, that gives a total cost of 18.4p/mile, and if I leave out the purchase price of the bike, which is about the only fixed cost, it's 16.2p/mile.

Considering that people will commonly already have a car on the drive, and consider buying a bike to use for some of their travel if and when it's convenient, I don't think it's that unreasonable to compare the marginal cost of car miles against the total cost of cycling.

Google Gemini gives this for the variable costs of running a petrol car:

View attachment 815197

And this when I asked for an electric car:

View attachment 815198

Who upthread said one can do anything with mathematics? Was it @All uphill?
How can you allocate your extra food intake exclusively to cycling? In the same period of time you were cycling, did you never do any other activities that made you hungrier than your usual?
What about the money you saved by cycle touring instead of going for a holiday abroad?
The stuff you bought, allocated to the bike, was it used exclusively while cycling?
I know that, off the bike, I use many items of clothing bought because they are comfy on the bike.
Waterproof socks, gloves, are good for long walks in wet weather, a buff can be used plenty when not cycling.
Accessories: I use an older bike light as a torch now.
Old inner tubes are used to tie trees to stakes (tree ties are really pricey, more than an inner tube!)
And so on
I feel your statement is a false equivalence, to quote the old, long gone, politics forum

 

[tyred]

The cost of cycling is proportional to the number of pubs on your route.

 

[Ajax Bay]

The cost of cycling is proportional to the number of pubs on your route.

You have nailed it and shined perspective on this clickbait titled thread.
The cost of driving is far less than cycling because you can't (shouldn't) drink at any of the "pubs on your route".
Riding (with others or meeting there) to a pub every Wednesday costs (average per week) £15 (2-3 pints of beer, East Devon prices): way more than the weekly cost of my cycling, averaging 150km a week.
Consumables (9sp), which do not include parafinalia, are oil (£1), chains £60, cassette (£30), tyres (£105), brake pads (£25),
Annuals might be mudguards (?every 2), a rim, bar tape, cables, clothing.
All up, well below my typical expenditure on alcohol per year.

 

[T4tomo]

Could I respectfully suggest you read my original post a little more carefully.

So how are you getting to 10p per mile on a bike? Set out thy sums.....

the immersive waxing should pay for itself in extended chain life I'd have thought, but in any case is pretty neglible cost

 

[Alex321]

So how are you getting to 10p per mile on a bike? Set out thy sums.....

the immersive waxing should pay for itself in extended chain life I'd have thought, but in any case is pretty neglible cost

He was calculating that based on paying somebody (£30 a time!) to wax the chain, needing doing every 300 miles or so.

 

[T4tomo]

Ah! a fairly left field ASSumption

Well given the preamble

I'm about to move over to immersive chain waxing. All the parts are ordered and on their way.

I'm constantly on the look out for some low key money making thing to do in retirement.

if the OP takes in 3rd party chains to wax alongside whist doing his own as suggested, he'll actually make 10p per mile!

 

[scotsbikester]

So how are you getting to 10p per mile on a bike? Set out thy sums.....

Here are my sums. Each of these is a statement from my original post. Hence my suggestion that you read it more carefully. Others have managed to understand. Let me guide you, step by step, towards comprehension.

"So I thought "does anybody charge for rewaxing chains"."

"It turns out people do charge."

"What I was very surprised at was the cost. £30/40 ish. "

"For a cyclist who stays out of the rain, and mainly rides on clean tarmac, the rewaxing interval is suggested at about 300 miles."

"That works out at 10p a mile. "

Does that make sense? At all? Can you see that if one is charged £30 to have your chain waxed, and you get it done every 300 miles that works out at 10p a mile? £30 divided by 300 miles is 10p per mile.

30/300 = 0.1 GBP. A tenth of a pound is 10 pence.

 

[scotsbikester]

Ah! a fairly left field ASSumption

Well given the preamble

if the OP takes in 3rd party chains to wax alongside whist doing his own as suggested, he'll actually make 10p per mile!

In what way is it a "left field ASSumption" (I see what you did there, how very witty of you, Oscar Wilde eat your heart out).

Have you heard of Google? You can search "the internet" using it. If you do that you might find things like:

https://www.veloatelier.co.uk/chain-waxing

https://www.velosport.co.uk/pages/workshop/

 

[Ajax Bay]

For a cyclist who stays out of the rain, and mainly rides on clean tarmac, the rewaxing interval is suggested at about 300 miles. That works out at 10p a mile. My electric car costs less than 2p a mile in electric. OK, petrol/diesel costs more than that, though a high mpg diesel probably gets down to about 10p a mile. so "is cycling is more expensive per mile than driving?"

"Let me guide you, step by step, towards comprehension" of why @T4tomo rational "left field ASSumption" assertion merits appreciation.
Step 1: Flawed strawman
Step 2: Undermined analysis
Step 3: Condescending responses
Step 4: Klickbait swallowed

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Here are my sums. Each of these is a statement from my original post. Hence my suggestion that you read it more carefully. Others have managed to understand. Let me guide you, step by step, towards comprehension.

"So I thought "does anybody charge for rewaxing chains"."

"It turns out people do charge."

"What I was very surprised at was the cost. £30/40 ish. "

"For a cyclist who stays out of the rain, and mainly rides on clean tarmac, the rewaxing interval is suggested at about 300 miles."

"That works out at 10p a mile. "

Does that make sense? At all? Can you see that if one is charged £30 to have your chain waxed, and you get it done every 300 miles that works out at 10p a mile? £30 divided by 300 miles is 10p per mile.

30/300 = 0.1 GBP. A tenth of a pound is 10 pence.

Can one see, that if you have your car fully waxed at a dealer every 300 miles at £150 a pop. That is 50p per mile before other costs. The sums add up.

 

[Velorum59]

Ive no idea how much modern high tech bikes are to run - but I find riding an old school steel frame, hub gear (or SS/FW) bike is way cheaper than a car. That includes £35 a year for 3rd part indemnity and theft / damage insurance.

 

[sevenfourate]

Not just financial cost though is it.

What about the environmental cost of car use compared to cycling ? What about the cost of additional personal stresses when driving in to the office compared to cycling ? What about the cost of additional pressure on an already bulging at the seams road network ? What about the cost of…..etc etc

 

[Andy in Germany]

Not just financial cost though is it.

What about the environmental cost of car use compared to cycling ? What about the cost of additional personal stresses when driving in to the office compared to cycling ? What about the cost of additional pressure on an already bulging at the seams road network ? What about the cost of…..etc etc

The important thing is that those costs, plus healthcare costs, damage to buildings, et c, are covered by someone else. That's the wonderful, hidden subsidy of the car culture.
And yet somehow the Vehicle Excise Duty, created to try and cover a bit of the cost to society, is seen as a terrible burden placed on the poor, downtrodden motorist.
I've heard it said that you can tell which group is dominant in a western country, by looking at who gets the most subsidies and least consequences.