Calculator
Add the inputs you know — purchase price, annual km, fuel type and consumption are required; running-cost lines are optional (leave blank if you don't have a figure yet and the calculator skips them). The depreciation slider lets you stress-test the residual-value assumption, which is the silent biggest TCO line on most cars.
What's included in TCO
A complete Irish-market total cost of ownership has nine moving parts:
- Fuel or electricity — the biggest variable for high-mileage drivers; near-trivial for low-mileage EV owners on home night-rate.
- Motor tax — €120 (BEV) to €2,400/year for high-emission older cars. Use our motor tax calculator for the exact band.
- Insurance — €450–€2,500/year depending on age, address, NCB, claims history and car. Get fresh quotes annually.
- Servicing — €350–€500/year for petrol/diesel, €100–€200/year for EVs. Includes oil, filters, brakes, fluids on schedule.
- Tyres — annualised; typically €200–€450/year depending on tyre size, brand and driving style.
- NCT — €60 every 2 years from year 4, then annually from year 10. Annualised: €15–€30/year. Cheap relative to everything else.
- Finance interest — if you have PCP / HP / loan / dealer-finance. The full monthly payment goes in this calculator's "Finance" line.
- Other — eFlow tolls (€2.40 per M50 crossing × your usage), parking, AdBlue (diesels), washes, accessories.
- Depreciation — the silent biggest cost. €15,000 lost over 5 years on a €30,000 family car is €3,000/year.
Insurance premium is TCO. Claims excess that you actually pay if you have an accident is one-off bad luck, not recurring TCO. Don't pad your TCO with hypothetical accident costs; budget separately for an emergency fund.
Real Irish 2026 cost benchmarks
Approximate Irish-market 2026 figures, drawn from our running cost guide, depreciation guide, and real fuel-station / energy-tariff observations:
| Component | Typical Irish 2026 range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Petrol fuel | €1,500–€2,500/year | 17k km × 6.5 L/100 km × €1.82/L = €1,968 |
| Diesel fuel | €1,200–€2,200/year | 17k km × 5.0 L/100 km × €1.69/L = €1,437 |
| EV electricity (mixed) | €450–€900/year | 17k km × 18 kWh/100 km × ~€0.18/kWh = €551 |
| Motor tax — modern petrol | €170–€280/year | WLTP bands €170 (≤100 g/km) to €280 (151–160 g/km) |
| Motor tax — BEV | €120/year | Flat regardless of OMV |
| Insurance — experienced driver | €500–€900/year | Comprehensive, full NCB, family car |
| Insurance — young driver (17–24) | €1,200–€2,500/year | N-plates, lower NCB |
| Servicing — petrol/diesel | €350–€500/year | Full annual service incl. oil, filters, brakes |
| Servicing — EV | €100–€200/year | No oil, no exhaust, no clutch |
| Tyres (annualised) | €200–€450/year | Based on 30–60k km set life |
| NCT (annualised) | €15–€30/year | €60 / 2 years from year 4 |
| M50 daily commute tolls | €500–€1,200/year | €2.40 × 2 × 5 days × 47 weeks |
| Depreciation — petrol family | €2,500–€4,000/year | 50% residual at 5 years on €30k car |
| Depreciation — modern BEV | €2,200–€3,800/year | 50–55% residual at 5 yr (improved 2024+) |
Fuel vs electricity — €/100 km in Irish 2026
The headline EV running-cost advantage:
| Fuel/charging route | Rate | Cost per 100 km |
|---|---|---|
| Petrol — typical 6.5 L/100 km | €1.82/L | €11.57 |
| Diesel — typical 5.0 L/100 km | €1.69/L | €8.45 |
| Petrol HEV — typical 4.5 L/100 km | €1.82/L | €8.01 |
| EV at home night-rate — 18 kWh/100 km | €0.10/kWh | €1.80 |
| EV at home day-rate — 18 kWh/100 km | €0.30/kWh | €5.40 |
| EV at public AC — 18 kWh/100 km | €0.45/kWh | €8.10 |
| EV at public DC fast — 18 kWh/100 km | €0.60/kWh | €10.80 |
| EV blended (80% home night / 20% public AC) | ~€0.17/kWh | €3.06 |
The EV advantage is real but conditional on home charging with a night-rate tariff. EVs that rely heavily on public fast charging (€0.60/kWh DC) end up not meaningfully cheaper than a HEV. The "home charge 80%+"configuration is where the dramatic savings live.
Depreciation — the silent biggest cost
On most cars at typical Irish mileage, depreciation is the single biggest TCO line — bigger than fuel, bigger than insurance, bigger than servicing. Yet it's the line most drivers never see, because it shows up only when you sell the car.
Typical Irish residual values in 2026 (5-year):
- Petrol family car: 45–55% of original purchase
- Diesel family car: 35–45% (Irish demand has weakened on older diesels with NOx in mind)
- Petrol HEV: 50–60% (Toyota especially holds value)
- BEV (modern): 50–55% — improved significantly since 2023 as Irish demand matured
- Used import: depends entirely on the original Irish OMSP and the import pricing — often holds value better in absolute terms because the buy-in was lower
On a €30,000 car at 50% residual, you lose €15,000 over 5 years — €3,000/year — far more than the entire fuel bill for the same period. See our car depreciation guide for the full curves and how to slow the hit (low mileage, full service history, popular spec, colour neutral).
Worked examples — petrol vs EV at 17,000 km/year
Example A — €30,000 petrol VW Golf 1.5 TSI, 5-year ownership
| Fuel (6.5 L/100 km × 17k km × €1.78) | €1,968/yr |
| Motor tax (WLTP 130 g/km, €200) | €200/yr |
| Insurance | €700/yr |
| Servicing | €450/yr |
| Tyres (annualised) | €300/yr |
| NCT (annualised) | €20/yr |
| Depreciation (50% residual after 5 yr) | €3,000/yr |
| Annual total | €6,638/yr |
| Per km | €0.39/km |
| Per month | €553 |
| 5-year total | €33,190 |
Example B — €38,000 BEV (Hyundai Kona Electric), same mileage, 80% home night charging
| Electricity (18 kWh/100 km × 17k km × ~€0.17 blended) | €520/yr |
| Motor tax (BEV flat) | €120/yr |
| Insurance | €650/yr |
| Servicing | €150/yr |
| Tyres (annualised) | €350/yr (heavier / instant torque) |
| NCT (annualised) | €20/yr |
| Depreciation (52% residual after 5 yr) | €3,648/yr |
| Annual total | €5,458/yr |
| Per km | €0.32/km |
| Per month | €455 |
| 5-year total | €27,290 |
The EV is ~€1,200/year cheaper to run despite a higher purchase price. The savings come from electricity (~€1,400/yr advantage), motor tax (€80/yr), servicing (€300/yr), partly offset by slightly higher tyres and €600/yr more depreciation in absolute terms. Over 5 years, the EV saves nearly €6,000.
Example C — Same petrol VW Golf, but 35,000 km/year (sales rep)
Fuel doubles to €4,050. Servicing doubles to €900. Tyres double to €600. Depreciation accelerates to €3,800/year (~40% residual at 5 yr from higher mileage). Annual total jumps to €10,090/yr (€0.29/km — lower per-km because of fixed costs spread). Same EV at 35k km/year would land around €7,500/yr (€0.21/km) — the per-km gap narrows relatively but the absolute saving widens to ~€2,600/year.
Why these are estimates (and how to track real costs)
Calculator outputs are useful for budgeting before purchase or for like-for-like comparisons. They're notwhat you'll actually spend. Real spending varies by:
- Driving style — aggressive driving costs 15–25% more in fuel
- Specific insurance underwriter — same driver, same car, different insurer = €200–€600/yr swing
- Service plan — main-dealer vs SIMI independent vs DIY = €150–€600/yr swing
- Energy tariff — Electric Ireland vs Bord Gáis vs SSE Airtricity smart-tariff = 15–30% swing on EV charging cost
- Tyre choice — premium brand vs mid-range vs budget = €100–€400/yr swing
- Real depreciation — colour, spec, mileage at sale, condition all move the residual
The clean way to know your actual TCO: track every fuel-up, every service, every renewal in odo.ie. After 12 months you have real €/100 km, real €/month and real €/km — not a benchmark, your number. Solo free for one car; Family €4/mo for three; Pro €8/mo with Revenue-ready trip logbook.
Stop estimating. Start tracking.
The calculator above gives you a TCO from inputs. odo.ie turns those inputs into real numbers — every fuel-up, every service, every renewal logged once and surfaced as €/100 km, €/month, €/year. Solo free forever for one car; Family €4/mo for three.
Sources
- odo.ie internal benchmarks — drawn from real user data and Irish-market observations.
- SEAI — EV electricity consumption norms.
- Department of Transport — average annual mileage and Budget 2026 documentation.
- AA Ireland, Insurance Ireland — insurance market reference data.
- SIMI — service-cost industry data.
- Pump prices (May 2026) — real-time observations across Dublin, Cork, Galway.
- ESB ecars, IONITY, EasyGo — public charging tariffs.