The best apps for pain relief at the petrol pump

Petrol prices are all over the shop. They’re as high as ever so we need smart new ways to find where the cheaper fuel is. Well, those smart ways are right there on your smartphone. We’ve taken a closer look at a bunch of apps that propose to be paracetamol for petrol-pump pain. Each has a subtle differences, so we’ve compared them to help you choose before you get downloading.

Much like Waze works for maps, FuelMap is a “crowdsourced database containing petrol stations and fuel prices around Australia.” Made by the people behind Wiki Camps, FuelMap will first load up with a handy tutorial video to get you started. After this… BOOM. Get ready for fuel-price overload. You can scroll the map based on your location, but you’ll only see local prices at a particular zoom level. But don’t worry, a handy red button will shortcut you to that level. Sort by cheapest, closest, or fuel type. The app will even track your car’s fuel economy but a heads up: it won’t locate fuel prices along a planned route like Waze can.

Just like FuelMap, MotorMouth enables you to trawl around the map looking for the cheapest petrol prices sorted by fuel type. And like FuelMap it won’t locate fuel prices along a planned route like Waze can. But Motormouth has the ability to view trends and 7-day forecasts – here’s hoping cheap (and plenty of sun) – as well as tracking prices in saved station locations. The app also has enables registered users to earn credits for submitting data, but what incentives these credits unlock is still being worked on by the developers.

Petrol Spy isn’t all that different to the aforementioned. It offers all the usual guff but the trend graph is an improvement on others – it has finer detail that portrays clearly the weekly rollercoaster cycle of fuel prices, enabling you to make an informed decision on the best day to fill up near you. The app has the added incentive of the chance to win $25 fuel card every day you enter some data. So if you’re lucky, you’ll be saving money twice.

The ‘Gas’ in the name gives away this app’s origins but there are plenty of Aussies giving it a go. GasBuddy is different to the rest, it doesn’t open to a map by default but instead to a list of local fuel outlets and prices. Only once you’ve chosen the right price (the most important thing, right?) will it give you the map, or you can toggle out of the list view. This makes sense because the filter has already accounted for a reasonably close location. Since it’s not too far away, you’re getting what you want: the cheapest fuel.

The filtering is comprehensive. Select fuel type, price and distance, or amenities at your topping-up destination. The ‘Drives’ section of the app makes GasBuddy stand out from the rest. It combines GPS and device sensor data in the background to tell you if you’re driving uneconomically – it’ll score you down for hard braking, sudden acceleration, and speeding. Be warned though, this function will gobble up your battery power. The app also prompts you to take on challenges (primarily a prompt to add data) to keep the crowdsourcing ticking along. If you’re looking for the most comprehensive fuel app, this is the one.

Waze is Google-based mapping app that’s aimed at a different market to Google Maps. Other than featuring cartoon avatars, a chat system between users, and some neat features like intuitively locating car parks near your destination, it also has crowdsourced fuel prices along your route.

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