How much does hydrogen fuel cost? In California, where nearly all U.S. retail hydrogen is sold, the pump price is about $30 to $36 per kilogram. The U.S. Department of Energy's April 2026 price report put the national average at $28.46 per gasoline-gallon-equivalent, which is close to one kilogram. Filling a Toyota Mirai's 5.6 kg tank costs about $160 to $200, and real-world driving works out to roughly 55 to 70 cents per mile, around four to five times the cost of gasoline.
Hydrogen price per kg at the pump
| Source | Price | As of |
|---|---|---|
| DOE Alternative Fuel Price Report, national average | $28.46 / GGE | April 2026 |
| True Zero (largest California network), posted price | $36.00 / kg | early 2025 |
| Iwatani and Air Products stations, posted price | about $30 / kg | early 2025 |
| Typical California price, for comparison | about $13 to $16 / kg | 2021 |
Sources: U.S. DOE Clean Cities Alternative Fuel Price Report (its hydrogen figure comes from a small sample of stations); operator posted prices as reported by station operators and owners. No agency publishes a live, per-station hydrogen price, so treat any single number, including ours, as a snapshot.
Prices roughly doubled between 2021 and 2024. The main reasons were higher costs for delivered hydrogen, a fall in the value of California's Low Carbon Fuel Standard credits that had been subsidizing the pump price, and stations selling far less fuel than they were built for.
What it costs to fill up
| Vehicle | Tank | At $30/kg | At $36/kg | EPA range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Toyota Mirai | 5.6 kg | $168 | $202 | up to 402 mi |
| Hyundai Nexo | 6.3 kg | $190 | $228 | up to 380 mi |
| Honda CR-V e:FCEV | 4.3 kg | $129 | $155 | 270 mi total (29 on battery) |
A completely empty-to-full fill is rare. Stations stop at a set pressure, and on a hot day or a busy station you may get less than a full tank, so a typical transaction is 4 to 5 kg. Use the calculator to put in your own price and mileage.
Hydrogen cost per mile
A Mirai that achieved its full EPA rating would travel about 72 miles per kilogram. Owners generally report 50 to 60 miles per kilogram in mixed driving. That gives:
| Fuel | Assumption | Cost per mile | 12,000 miles a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hydrogen, real-world | 55 mi/kg at $30 to $36/kg | $0.55 to $0.65 | $6,500 to $7,900 |
| Hydrogen, at EPA rating | 72 mi/kg at $30 to $36/kg | $0.42 to $0.50 | $5,000 to $6,000 |
| Gasoline sedan | 30 mpg at $4.09/gal (U.S. average, April 2026) | $0.14 | $1,640 |
| Hybrid | 45 mpg at $4.09/gal | $0.09 | $1,090 |
| EV, home charging | 0.30 kWh/mi at $0.17/kWh | $0.05 | $610 |
| EV, DC fast charging | 0.30 kWh/mi at $0.45/kWh | $0.14 | $1,620 |
Per-mile figures are our arithmetic from the stated inputs. California gasoline and electricity both cost more than the national averages used here, which narrows the gap slightly but does not close it.
Hydrogen cost per gallon
Hydrogen isn't sold by the gallon, but the comparison people want is simple. One kilogram of hydrogen holds almost exactly the same energy as one gallon of gasoline, which is why DOE reports prices per “gasoline gallon equivalent.” On energy alone, $30 to $36 per kilogram is $30 to $36 per gallon.
That overstates it, because a fuel cell car uses energy about twice as efficiently as a gasoline engine. The fairer comparison is cost per mile: at 55 cents a mile, driving on hydrogen costs what gasoline would cost a 30 mpg car at about $16 a gallon.
Fuel cards: why most owners haven't paid these prices yet
Toyota, Hyundai and Honda include prepaid fuel with new fuel-cell cars, typically $15,000 of hydrogen over up to six years on a purchase or three on a lease. At $36 per kilogram that buys about 417 kg, which is roughly 21,000 to 25,000 miles. For a driver covering 12,000 miles a year, the card runs out in about two years, well before the six-year window ends. After that the full pump price applies. The card generally stays with the original buyer, so a used car usually comes with none. The calculator has a fuel card module that shows when yours would run out.
Why hydrogen costs this much
Making hydrogen from natural gas is cheap, a couple of dollars a kilogram. Most of the pump price comes after that:
- Delivery. Most stations are supplied by tube trailers that carry only a few hundred kilograms per trip, or by liquid hydrogen tankers that need cryogenic handling.
- Compression and cooling. Cars fill at 700 bar (about 10,000 psi), and the gas must be chilled to around −40° so the tank doesn't overheat. The equipment is expensive to buy, run and repair.
- Low volume. A station costs several million dollars to build. With roughly 14,000 fuel-cell cars in California, many stations sell a fraction of what they were designed for, so fixed costs are spread over few kilograms.
- Shrinking subsidy. Station operators earn Low Carbon Fuel Standard credits. When credit prices fell, pump prices rose to make up the difference.
DOE's long-term target is clean hydrogen produced at $1 per kilogram. Even if production got there, delivery and dispensing would keep retail prices well above that unless stations sell far more fuel than they do today.
FAQ
How much is hydrogen fuel per kg?
About $30 to $36 per kilogram at California retail stations. The U.S. DOE's April 2026 price report put the national average at $28.46 per gasoline-gallon-equivalent, and one kilogram is approximately one gallon-equivalent.
How much does hydrogen fuel cost per gallon?
Hydrogen is sold by the kilogram, and one kilogram has about the same energy as a gallon of gasoline, so the price per gallon-equivalent is roughly $28 to $36. Because fuel cell cars are about twice as efficient as gasoline cars, the cost per mile is similar to paying around $16 a gallon in a 30 mpg car.
How much does it cost to fill a Toyota Mirai?
The Mirai holds 5.6 kg of hydrogen, so a full fill costs about $168 at $30 per kg and about $202 at $36 per kg.
Is hydrogen fuel cheaper than gas?
No. At current U.S. pump prices hydrogen costs roughly 55 to 65 cents per mile in real-world driving, compared with about 14 cents per mile for a 30 mpg gasoline car at $4.09 a gallon.
Why did hydrogen prices go up so much?
California pump prices rose from about $13 to $16 per kg in 2021 to $30 to $36 by 2024 because delivered hydrogen became more expensive, Low Carbon Fuel Standard credit values fell, and stations sold too little fuel to cover their fixed costs.