15 Free Gas Hacks You Need To Try

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If you are like many people, your eyes glaze over as you fill up your gas tank.

Even when gas prices are low, it still costs and arm and a leg to fill up your gas tank.

You’ve probably wished you could get free gasoline, but thought that was impossible.

But the reality is, it isn’t impossible.

There are many free gas hacks you can use to save money on fuel ups.

In this post, I share with you 15 ways to lower the cost of gasoline, and in effect, get free gas.

15 Free Gas Hacks You Need To Try

#1. GetUpside

free gas hacks

My favorite way to get free gasoline is to use the GetUpside app.

It’s a free app to download on Android and iOS.

Simply create a free account and you earn a discount off every gallon of gas you buy at participating stations.

I average a savings between $0.15 and $0.30 per gallon.

So for a 15 gallon fill up, that comes to between $2.25 to $4.50 in cash back I earn.

But here is a trick I use to boost my earnings.

I pay with a credit card I earn $0.03 cash back on every gallon I buy.

On that 15 gallon purchase, I earn another $0.45 discount.

GetUpside also partners with restaurants and grocery stores to offer you even more places to earn cash back.

You can click the link below to join for free and get a bonus $0.20 off per gallon on your first fill up.

This means you will be saving between $0.35 and $0.50 off every gallon the first time you use the app.

Upside | Save Money On Gas & Restuarants

Upside is the #1 app for saving money on gas. Save $0.15 per gallon on every fill up. Use promo code AFF25 and get an extra $0.20 bonus per gallon on your first fill up. And when you dine out, be sure to use Upside and get up to 25% cash back on your bill.

Start Saving
We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.

#2. Join Gas Station Rewards Programs

If you are loyal to a certain brand of gas, then it makes sense to sign up for their rewards program.

Most gas stations have a mobile app that you download and get discounts on your fuel purchases.

For example, I use the Sunoco Go Rewards app.

With it I earn $0.03 off every gallon of gas I buy as long as I fill up my tank at least twice a month.

I like it because it also allows me to pay right from the app, so I don’t have to use my credit card and risk becoming a victim of identity theft.

And it’s just not Sunoco that offers discounts like this.

Here are a handful of other popular rewards programs:

  • Circle K Easy Rewards
  • Pilot MyRewards
  • Shell Fuel Rewards
  • Speedway Speedy Rewards
  • BPme Rewards
  • Exxon Mobile Rewards+
  • Maverick’s Adventure Club
  • QuikTripQT Rewards

If you fuel up elsewhere, be sure to ask if there is a rewards program.

Many times you will find signs about this around the gas pumps.

#3. Earn Free Gas Gift Cards

Another great gas hack is to earn free gas gift cards.

You can do this a couple different ways.

First, you can take online surveys.

You will earn either points or cash that you can redeem for free gas cards, like Exxon Mobil gift cards or Shell gift cards.

If you aren’t interested in taking surveys, you can still earn free gas gift cards by playing games online, watching ads, shopping online, and more.

My favorite is Swagbucks, which offers many ways to earn points that you can redeem for gift cards.

In fact, you can redeem your points for free gift cards from many other retailers as well.

#4. Free Gas USA

Free Gas USA is a non-profit organization that helps families in need of financial assistance.

They offer grants for free gas monthly on fuel cards with various values.

The number of grants are limited and are based on the amount of donations the organization receives.

In order to be considered, you need to apply by visiting their website.

#5. Sign Up For A Gas Station Credit Card

credit cards

Gas credit cards are an easy way to save money if you are brand loyal.

Many gas brands offer a credit card that earns you up to $0.15 off per gallon of gas when you pay with your card.

And to sweeten the deal, most offer cash back or rewards on non-gas purchases as well.

However, most times the rewards for non-gas purchases aren’t as good as credit cards that are not loyal to one particular brand of gasoline.

#6. Use Grocery Rewards

More and more grocery stores are partnering with local gas stations.

When you sign up for the grocery store rewards programs, you earn fuel points based on the amount of money you spend.

These points can be redeemed for gas discounts at participating gas stations.

Other stores will simply give a discount based on how much you spend.

For example, if you spend $100 on groceries, you earn $0.10 off per gallon of gas.

This is a great way to lower the cost of gas.

But there are a few things you need to be aware of.

First, not all gas stations participate.

For instance, in my area we have a couple Sunoco gas stations and the grocery store that offers gas discounts only partners with one of these stations.

Also, your gas reward points typically expire after a certain amount of time, usually 30 days.

Another option is BJ’s Wholesale Club.

Many of their locations offer gas, and while the price of gas is typically lower than traditional gas stations, you can lower the cost of fuel even more.

You do this by purchasing items in store that are marked as a “High Octane Item”.

These items will get you a $0.10 savings per gallon when you fill up.

#7. Use A Cash Back Credit Card

I briefly mentioned this earlier when I talked about GetUpside.

There are many rewards credit cards and cash back credit cards you can use when you buy gas.

Depending on the card you choose, you could earn 3% or more cash back or multiple points for travel discounts.

For example, if you get 5% cash back and gas costs you $3.00 per gallon, you are saving $0.15 per gallon.

And here is another trick to consider.

You can use this rewards credit card to buy gas gifts cards at the grocery store.

For me, my credit card offers 6% cash back on grocery purchases.

When I buy a gas gift card for $50, I get $3 in cash back.

This is a better deal than the 3% cash back I get when I buy fuel at the gas station.

Of course, this only works if you earn a higher percent cash back or more points at the grocery store than at the gas station.

Click on the link below to research the best cash back cards you can use to save money on gas.

#8. Buy Discount Gift Cards

Another option to get free gasoline is to be on the lookout for discounted gas gift cards.

Every now and then, retailers like Walgreen’s and CVS will offer gift cards for 5% or 10% off the face value.

For example, a $50 gift card might only cost you $47.50.

You should also check out Sam’s Club, Costco, and BJ’s as these retailers tend to regularly offer gift cards at a discount.

Finally, you could check out eBay or online sites that resell gift cards.

Going this route will usually score you the biggest discounts.

But if you buy off eBay, use caution as you want to make sure you are getting what you pay for.

#9. Enter Sweepstakes

There are a handful of sweepstakes you can enter to earn free fuel.

Of course, you need to win in order to get free fuel.

If you go this route, just be sure the sweepstakes doesn’t ask you to pay to take part or asks for any sensitive information, like your Social Security Number.

To find these sites, type “win free gas” or “free gas sweepstakes” on your favorite search engine.

#10. Use Gas Buddy

Most people are familiar with the Gas Buddy app to find the lowest fuel prices in your area.

Now Gas Buddy offers savings on your fuel ups with Pay With GasBuddy.

Simply sign up and link your checking account to your Pay With GasBuddy card and you unlock savings of up to $0.25 at 95% of the gas stations.

The program is free to join and they run station specific promotions all the time, helping you to save even more money on gas.

#11. Salvation Army

If you are a low income family, consider reaching out the Salvation Army.

They sometimes offer free gas vouchers to those in need.

Just understand these gasoline vouchers tend to be in limited quantity and are reserved for those who are truly struggling financially.

#12. United Way

If the Salvation Army can’t help you, maybe the United Way can.

While most chapters don’t directly offer gas assistance, when you dial 211, you get connected to a specialist in your community.

They will know about the various charities and organizations that might be able to offer support.

#13. Local Churches And Charities

helping others

Another option for low-income families is to reach out to local churches, charities, and other religious organizations.

These organizations are always offering help to their local community.

For example, in my town, the local Lions Club offers gas discounts as well as medical supplies for people in need.

Some people have reported great success when reaching out to catholic charities as well.

So make it a point to take some time to reach out to these organizations to see what kind of help they can offer you.

#14. Carpool

Here is an outside the box idea for you to save money on gas.

If you live near co-workers, you can set up a car pool service.

Depending on how you want to do it, you have a few options for making it work.

  • You always drive and have your co-workers pay you a small amount of gas money
  • Alternate who drives and no money is exchanged since you both drive

There are more options too, just make sure whatever you choose is fair for everyone involved.

No matter which way you go, you will be driving less or earning some cash for the driving you already do, making the cost of fuel more manageable.

#15. Advertise On Your Car

The final idea is to advertise on your car.

Companies will pay you depending on where you live and how often you drive.

Once you partner with a company, you take your car to a service shop that will wrap it in the agreed upon advertisement.

All that is left for you to do is drive around and collect your money.

Use the money to pay for fuel costs and you have essentially earned free gasoline.

Wrapping your car doesn’t harm the paint of your car and can actually keep your car in better condition as the film will protect your car from paint chips due to rocks.

Frequently Asked Questions

frequently asked questions

A lot of people want to know about getting free fuel.

Because of this, I get asked a lot of questions on this topic.

Here are the most common ones and their answers.

Final Thoughts

There are 15 legit ways of free gas hacks to try.

If you take a little bit of time, you can figure out a strategy that works best for you.

Ideally, you can combine a couple ideas like I do to maximize your savings.

Whatever you do, don’t pay full price for gas.

You can easily reduce this cost and save money.

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