London Congestion Charge and ULEZ Calculator

Driving into London can come with more than one daily charge stacked on top of each other, and the rules around which vehicles pay what are not always obvious. This calculator works out your likely daily, weekly and annual cost based on your vehicle and how often you drive in.

Whether you commute into the city regularly or are just planning an occasional trip, knowing the real cost in advance avoids an unwelcome surprise.

How to use the calculator

Choose which zone or zones you drive into, your fuel type, and your vehicle's Euro emissions standard if it is not electric. Enter how many days a week you typically drive in, and the calculator shows your daily charge, plus weekly, monthly and annual estimates.

How the charges work

The Congestion Charge applies to most vehicles driving within central London during charging hours, regardless of how clean the vehicle is. ULEZ works differently, charging vehicles that do not meet minimum emissions standards, across a much larger area than the Congestion Charge zone. Petrol vehicles generally need to meet Euro 4 standards to avoid the ULEZ charge, roughly covering cars first registered from 2006 onwards. Diesel vehicles need the stricter Euro 6 standard, generally covering cars registered from September 2015 onwards. Fully electric vehicles are exempt from ULEZ entirely.

Both zones only charge on specific days and hours, not around the clock, and both schemes have changed their rules and boundaries more than once since they were introduced. Because of this, the figures in this calculator should be treated as a helpful estimate for planning purposes, with the final word always belonging to the current information published directly by Transport for London.

Why this matters more since 2025

Vehicle rules around London, and around vehicle taxation more broadly, have shifted quite a bit recently. Electric vehicles, once treated favourably across almost every motoring charge, have started losing some of those advantages as adoption has grown, similar to the end of the Vehicle Excise Duty exemption for electric cars from April 2025. It is worth checking the current rules for your specific vehicle rather than relying on older assumptions about what electric or hybrid ownership exempts you from.

Worked example

Take a diesel car meeting Euro 5, one standard below the Euro 6 needed for ULEZ compliance, driven into both the Congestion Charge zone and ULEZ 5 days a week.

Since the car does not meet Euro 6, it is not ULEZ compliant, so both charges apply on every entry. That comes to around £27.50 a day, £137.50 a week, and around £7,150 a year for someone driving in on a regular working pattern. Swap that same driver into a Euro 6 diesel or any petrol car meeting Euro 4, and the ULEZ charge disappears entirely, leaving only the Congestion Charge portion of the bill.

Common mistakes to avoid

A common mistake is assuming an older but well maintained car will be fine because it still runs well. ULEZ compliance depends entirely on the emissions standard the vehicle was built to meet, not how well it has been looked after, so a car in excellent condition can still be non-compliant if it predates the relevant Euro standard. Another mistake is forgetting that these are two genuinely separate charges that can both apply on the same journey, not alternatives to each other, which is why the combined daily cost can catch drivers out.

It is also worth double checking current rates and rules before relying heavily on any estimate, including this one. Transport for London reviews charges, zone boundaries and exemptions periodically, so figures that were accurate a year or two ago may no longer be current.

Related calculators

Once you know your daily charges, our road tax calculator and car tax guide cover the rest of your annual vehicle costs, and our MPG calculator and fuel cost calculator can help you work out fuel spending on top. It is also worth checking your take-home pay to see how these charges fit into your wider monthly budget, since a regular commute into central London can add up to a significant cost over a year. If driving in is proving expensive, it may be worth comparing the cost against public transport for the same journey.