Pump prices fall slightly in October, reversing September’s rise

Fuel prices fell in October reversing the previous month’s increases, data from RAC Fuel Watch shows.*

A litre of petrol fell 0.58p from an average of 135.55p at the start of the month to 134.97p by the close, while diesel came down by 0.81p from 143.38p to 142.57p. The cost of completely filling a 55-litre family car with unleaded therefore now stands at £74.23, and diesel at £78.41.

Average prices at the country’s big four supermarkets are now 3p cheaper at 131.99p for petrol and 139.44p for diesel, down 0.21p and 0.3p respectively over the month. This means a full tank of petrol is £72.59 and diesel £76.69 – around £1.65 cheaper than if bought at the UK average prices.

Drivers in Northern Ireland, however, are currently paying 7p less for their petrol (127.9p) and 9p less for diesel (133.9p) which equates to a saving of almost £4 on a tank of unleaded and nearly £5 on diesel compared to the UK average. 

Sainsbury’s is selling some of the cheapest petrol in the UK, with its Ipswich store on Hadleigh Road charging just 124.9p a litre. Morrisons meanwhile has some of the lowest-priced diesel outside Northern Ireland with a litre being sold for 134.7p in Bishop Auckland.

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RAC head of policy Simon Williams said: “It’s good to see prices at the pumps have fallen slightly in October, reversing the increase drivers experienced in September. 

“Our analysis shows that while it’s cheaper on average to fill up at supermarkets, it’s also worth seeking out low-priced independent forecourts that can offer great value petrol and diesel. The best advice is to keep a close eye out for low prices on your normal routes, or better still, use the myRAC app to search for the best prices in your area.”

The myRAC app, which can be downloaded for free from the App Store or Google Play, allows users to search over a two, five or 10-mile radius, with each search giving the five cheapest prices.  

The online RAC Fuel Watch resource has more information about the average price of petrol and diesel at the big four supermarkets and at motorway services. It also features graphs showing average prices since 2000.

^{* UK average pump prices quoted are based on Competition and Markets Authority data from 1-31 October 2025. Wholesale prices from 1-31 October.}