This Calculator Tells You If It’s Cheaper To Fly Or Drive

Never overspend on travel again.

Once you’ve picked your dream destination, trip planning typically starts with the question: How are you going to get there? You have options, of course. Take a bus, catch a train, choose to drive or snag a plane ticket. But which option is most cost effective?

TravelMath has come up with a helpful tool that automatically calculates the average cost of all your transportation choices for you—which means you’ll know just how many margaritas you can afford when you get there.

TravelMath calculates the average price of a roundtrip ticket to your destination and compares it to how much gas you’ll need, using the average gas price in your starting state. Once all the information is collected, TravelMath comes up with a fly or drive score that lets you know which is the better option.

For example, I calculated a trip to from Chicago to Washington, D.C. during the non-peak travel season. If I were to drive my fuel-efficient car with a buddy, it would be about $87.29 roundtrip (or $43.65/person). While it would be easier to fly for only an hour and a half compared to driving for 11 hours, a roundtrip flight averages at about $223 per person.

The only downside is that these scores don’t factor in the cost of luggage when flying or rental car price. All in all, it’s a hugely useful tool that’ll make planning your next vacation or weekend getaway a breeze. Happy travels!