Opaque price developments always pose big questions for commuters at the gas station. A study by the ADAC shows that arbitrary price fluctuations are increasing. When should you fill up and when should you not? The automobile club provides answers.
Price fluctuations when refueling: ADAC explains
According to the ADAC, there is cold-blooded calculation behind the seemingly arbitrary price changes: “With frequent price fluctuations at the petrol stations, the mineral oil companies are trying to maximize their profits,” explains the General German Automobile Club (ADAC).
Reason enough for the self-proclaimed “Yellow Angels” to provide more clarity in the price jungle. To do this, they examined a total of 14,000 petrol stations and their price fluctuations throughout Germany in May 2024.
The result is sobering: there were a total of eight price spikes during the course of the day when filling up. Compared to the studies of recent years, this is at least one more price spike. The time of day when the expensive gas station prices occur has also changed.
Expensive in the morning, cheap in the evening
While the price of petrol remains relatively stable between midnight and 6 a.m., according to the ADAC study, there is a sudden and steep increase from 6 a.m. onwards. This culminates shortly after 7 a.m. with a price that is almost four times as high as in the early morning hours. At this time, when many commuters are likely to be on the road, the price of petrol also reaches its daily high.
After that, prices drop just as abruptly until they start to rise again around 9 a.m. This trend continues, with the price curve then steadily falling over the course of the day. There are further price peaks for fuel at 10 a.m., 1 p.m., 3 p.m., 5 p.m., 7 p.m. and a final time at 9 p.m.
These peaks are lower than the previous ones. Gasoline prices are lowest between 7 p.m. and 8 p.m. The times from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. and from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. are only slightly more expensive.
In summary, you should avoid filling up your tank in the early morning hours, especially between 6 and 8 a.m. Later in the evening, prices drop and you can save money on filling up your tank – especially between 7 and 8 p.m.
Lower price extremes than in 2023
The difference between the most expensive and the cheapest price level is on average 6.4 cents for petrol and 7.3 cents for diesel drivers. With a 50-litre tank full, you can save up to 3.65 euros at the pump. Overall, the price differences are getting closer. For comparison: last year the difference was 8.1 cents for petrol and 8.9 cents for diesel.
If you want to make the most of your savings at the pump, you can use various apps such as “ADAC Drive” to find out about current fuel prices. This way, you can always keep an eye on the price fluctuations of the oil companies and save money when filling up.
Source: ADAC
By Ole Wetjen
