Planning a long road trip across the US? If so, it is quite likely that you will run into a toll road along the way. Most states in the US have toll roads and sometimes it is difficult to know how to calculate tolls for a trip. New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, Florida, and Oklahoma rack the most miles of paid pavement. Very often, drivers wonder how much they will spend paying on tolls and don’t know how to calculate toll fees for a trip. In this article, we will explain how to get a heads-up on your road trip costs with a toll trip calculator.

How to calculate tolls for a trip – use the best toll trip calculators

There are many handy tools that can make your US road trip more pleasant and predictable. If you are asking yourself ‘How many tolls on my trip?’ or ‘How to calculate toll costs for my destination on a trip?’, the answer is quite simple – use one of the handy online, toll calculators or trip calculators. Below you will find the most popular ones available on the net:

• Toll Calculator GPS Navigation. The most often used app available for both iOS and Android devices. This application shows all tolls on US and Canadian toll roads. It includes various payment options.
• TollGuru toll trip calculator. It calculates toll and gas prices no matter if you pay in cash, E-ZPass, or other options. This calculator covers all of North America.
• Tollsmart Toll Calculator is available as both a website and an application. It’s a very user-friendly tool with an interface that looks like Google Maps. It enables drivers to calculate tolls across North America.

How to use online toll trip calculators?

Let’s start with a quick explanation of how toll trip calculators work. Simply speaking, they estimate costs (tolls and gas) for all logical routes between the origin and destination. They usually show you the cheapest routes and the fastest routes on the map. Thus, you can choose between them, based on cost, time, distance, and other relevant data for each route. Of course, the times, routes, and costs vary. They depend on traffic congestion, road closures, accidents, and many others. The estimates are dynamic as conditions keep changing.

How to use a toll trip calculator step by step?

1. Launch your online toll rate calculator.
2. Select the road you want to drive – enter your entry point and your exit point.
3. Choose the method of payment and enter the number of axles on your vehicle.
4. See the estimates your online calculator displays. Tolls are calculated based on the distance traveled, vehicle type, and payment method.

Be careful when you rent a car!

If you are looking for the cheapest way to pay tolls, you should obviously do whatever possible to avoid rental toll charges. Car rental agencies very often charge toll rates to their clients using electronic billing programs such as FasTrak or E-ZPass. They rent you transponders and often charge per day for the rental. For example, Hertz charges a $5.95 fee. In addition, they charge you the toll for every day you use a toll road. Another rental agency – Avis – charges a $3.95 fee for every rental day plus the tolls. There are also all-inclusive options for approximately $10 per rental day that include all tolls. So, how to avoid paying such high charges? Here are the best tips:

1. Close the transponder in the car. Transponders are usually installed in a lead-lined box that opens and closes. When you close it, the toll plaza will not be able to see it. Then, you can just pay in cash if the lane accepts it (while renting a car, always try to use cash toll lanes).
2. Use your own car’s toll transponder if possible. If you don’t have one, it’s pretty cheap and easy to get, even if you don’t live in a state with toll roads.

No matter which of the two methods you choose, remember that you always have to pay tolls. Unpaid tools can land you on a rental company’s Don’t Rent list, and you won't be able to rent a vehicle.

Are there many toll roads in the US?

Florida is the US state with the most toll roads. It has over 719 miles of toll roads crisscrossing the state. Most US states do have toll roads but there are also fifteen states that don’t have a tolling system. These are Arizona, Arkansas, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Mississippi, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

Are toll roads in the US expensive?

When it comes to fees, the toll rate usually depends on the type of road. Interstate toll roads usually cost around 6 cents per mile. Non-interstate tolls cost approximately 13 cents per mile. The most expensive toll roads in the US cost around 50 cents per mile and the cheapest tolls cost approximately 2 cents per mile. Most toll roads have a fixed rate throughout the day. Some of the prices on them vary based on a set schedule and others vary based on current traffic conditions. The most expensive toll road in the United Stated is the Pennsylvania Turnpike – if you are driving a truck, it can cost you more than $200 in tolls, depending on prices at entry and exit points. Then, the next most expensive toll roads are Whiteface Mountain Memorial Highway in New York, Ronald Reagan Turnpike, James W. Shocknessy Ohio Turnpike, and Fort Bend Parkway in Texas.