Ampol, BP, Shell, 7-Eleven or United: which servo is cheapest?

Published on 2026-10-07

No brand is cheapest everywhere in Australia: each servo sets its own price, and where your city sits in the price cycle usually matters more than the logo on the canopy. Independents and warehouse sites are often the cheapest in their area, but the only reliable answer is today's reported price at the servos near you.

The short answer: the servo and the day, not the brand

No chain charges one national price. Each site prices against the competition around it, its location and its volume, so an Ampol can beat a United in one suburb and lose to it in the next.

In the big capitals, timing adds a second layer. Prices slide for days or weeks and then jump back up in a single morning, usually with a major restoring first and the rest following. Filling up on the wrong day of the cycle costs more than any brand choice.

So “Ampol or 7-Eleven?” has no answer in the abstract. The useful question is: which of the servos I can reach in ten minutes is cheapest today?

Is fuel from cheaper servos lower quality?

No. All petrol and diesel sold in Australia must meet the national fuel quality standards set under the Fuel Quality Standards Act 2000, whatever the brand on the pump. Independents and majors often draw from the same terminals.

What differs is the premium lines with their own additive packages, such as Amplify at Ampol, Ultimate at BP or V-Power at Shell, plus the service: shop, coffee, car wash. The base fuel meets the same standard.

And only buy 95 or 98 if your owner's manual asks for it. A car designed for 91 gets no extra power or economy from premium, just a dearer tank.

What actually differs between brands

The majors (Ampol, BP, Shell, Caltex) have the widest networks, including highway service centres. Convenience-led chains like 7-Eleven sell fuel alongside the store. Independents such as United, Metro Petroleum, Liberty and Puma Energy tend to run leaner sites.

Costco fuel is often among the cheapest in its area, but it is for members only and the queue and the drive are part of the price. Do the maths on the detour before you cross town for it.

Range varies by site: ULP 91, E10 and diesel are almost everywhere, while 95, 98, premium diesel, LPG and E85 depend on the individual servo. Check before you detour.

How to check who is cheapest today

Price reporting is state law, not a national feed. Western Australia's FuelWatch publishes tomorrow's prices at 2:30 pm and locks them for 24 hours; NSW, the ACT and Tasmania run FuelCheck, where a servo has 30 minutes to report a change; Victoria's Servo Saver publishes with a 24-hour delay; Queensland and South Australia have their own schemes.

Refil reads the official schemes it has access to, so a price you see is the price the servo reported to its regulator. Where a state's feed is not available yet, servos can appear without an official price, and drivers can fill them in. The Northern Territory has no reporting scheme.

What works: set a realistic radius around your usual routes, see which servos fall inside, and pick the cheapest for your fuel, whatever the brand. A wide spread between the cheapest and dearest nearby usually means a good day to fill up.

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