Ask someone what their commute costs and you will usually get a fuel number. That number is typically about 60-70% of the real figure. The rest hides in maintenance, in the trips you did not plan, and in the days something went wrong. Here is how to find the real number, once, and then make it stop moving.

Step 1: measure distance, not spending

Fuel prices change; your route does not. Write down:

One-way distance of your commute in kilometres.
Trips per day (usually two).
Working days per month (typically 22-26).

Multiply them. A 15 km one-way commute, twice a day, 24 days a month is 720 km. This is the only stable number in your commute budget, so build everything on it.

Step 2: cost the fuel honestly

Divide your monthly distance by your vehicle's real-world fuel economy — not the brochure figure — and multiply by today's price from our petrol price page. Real-world economy in Pakistani city traffic is meaningfully worse than highway figures, so use what your own tank has told you over the last two fills.

Step 3: add the costs people leave out

Maintenance, spread monthly. Add up last year's servicing, tyres, brakes, oil, battery, and repairs. Divide by twelve. This is a real monthly cost even in a month you spend nothing.
Parking and tolls. Small daily amounts that are large monthly amounts.
Unplanned trips. The rides you take when your vehicle is in the workshop, when it rains, or when you are running late.
Depreciation. Your vehicle is worth less than it was last year. If you plan to replace it, that is a cost you are already incurring.
Your time. Not a rupee cost, but two hours a day of driving is a real thing to weigh.

Step 4: compare it to the alternative

Now price the same route as a shared seat, and as a fixed monthly plan. The comparison people expect is fuel versus fare. The comparison that matters is total monthly cost versus total monthly cost — and only one of those two numbers includes tyres, servicing, depreciation, and repair weeks.

Step 5: make it predictable

With fuel now being reviewed frequently rather than fortnightly, a budget built on one fixed fuel price is out of date within days — see what daily fuel reviews mean. There are two ways to get predictability back:

Fix the recurring part. Your commute is the same trip every day, which makes it the right candidate for a fixed monthly arrangement.
Keep a separate allowance for one-off trips. Do not let occasional travel contaminate your commute number, or you will never be able to compare options properly.

A worked example

A 720 km month in a car at 11 km/l is roughly 65 litres — around Rs 21,500 at current prices. Add Rs 4,000 monthly for maintenance and tyres, Rs 1,500 for parking, and one or two unplanned rides, and the honest figure is closer to Rs 28,000. That is the number to compare against, not the Rs 21,500 fuel line.

Frequently asked questions

How many working days should I use?

Count your actual pattern. A six-day week is about 26 days; a five-day week about 22. It changes the total by a fifth, so it matters.

Should I include depreciation?

If you intend to replace the vehicle, yes — you are paying for it whether or not it shows up as a monthly transaction.

Does a monthly plan cover every trip I take?

It covers the recurring commute. One-off trips are booked separately, which is why keeping the two budgets apart is useful.

What is a realistic maintenance figure?

Use your own last twelve months rather than an average from the internet. Vehicle age and road conditions dominate this number.