Gas prices in Colorado Springs: verify the grade before using a low posted number

The cheapest number on a Colorado Springs gas map is often for 85 octane, a grade most drivers from other states have never seen. Whether that’s a bargain or a mistake depends on your owner’s manual. We don’t show live prices here; instead, this page explains what sits behind the posted number in Colorado Springs and how to compare stations fairly.

Why “regular” can mean 85 octane here

In Colorado, as in Wyoming and Utah, pumps commonly offer 85 octane, while most states start at 87. AAA’s Skyler McKinley told FOX31 Denver that above roughly 3,500 feet you can run a vehicle on it without engine knock, and that drivers should still use whatever their manual recommends, often 87. Colorado Springs sits at 6,035 feet, according to the City of Colorado Springs, well above that line.

For price comparisons, that matters more than it sounds. If one station’s lowest price is for 85 and another’s is for 87, the gap isn’t a saving. It’s two different products. If your manual calls for 87, compare 87 with 87. If you drive a car that needs premium, compare the premium prices, which are usually listed separately.

What’s in the price at a Colorado Springs pump

As of November 2026, a gallon of gasoline here includes:

18.4 cents federal tax, the same in every state (U.S. Energy Information Administration).
22 cents Colorado gasoline excise tax (C.R.S. 39-27-102).
6 cents road usage fee for state fiscal year 2026–27. The fee is set in law to rise to 7 cents in 2027–28 and 8 cents from 2028–29 (C.R.S. 43-4-217).

Those three items alone come to 46.4 cents a gallon. Because they’re per-gallon amounts charged statewide, they don’t explain price gaps between two Colorado Springs stations. They do mean the state’s per-gallon charge is scheduled to rise by a cent on July 1, 2027 and again on July 1, 2028, so a price you remember from last summer isn’t a fair benchmark.

Where Colorado Springs drivers usually fill up

I-25 runs north–south through the city, and CDOT has just finished most of a project adding acceleration and deceleration lanes in both directions between Fillmore Street and Garden of the Gods Road (CDOT, September 2026). If you’re on I-25, a station near your exit costs you almost nothing extra to reach. A station that means leaving the interstate and crossing town can easily swallow a cents-per-gallon advantage, as the example below shows.

Club fuel centers show up in local searches too. Sam’s Club lists a Colorado Springs fuel-center page (checked 4 November 2026; recheck before relying on it). Confirm membership access and the grade before counting a club price.

Using GasBuddy Colorado Springs results

Pick the grade your manual specifies before you look at prices, then filter or read listings for that grade only.
Read the octane, not the label. A listing called “regular” may be 85. Check the number on the pump before you buy.
Compare report times. A low price from yesterday morning may already be gone.
Check club access. For a Sam’s Club or Costco listing, make sure you can actually fill up there and note how you’ll pay.
Start with current reports on the official GasBuddy website, then confirm at the pump.

Colorado Springs worked example: is the extra drive worth it?

This is a hypothetical comparison, not a quoted Colorado Springs price. You need 87 octane and you’re buying 13 US gallons. A station across town posts 87 for 18 cents per gallon less than the one at your exit, but getting there adds 10 miles.

Item	Calculation	Result
Gross saving	13 × 18/100	US$2.34
Extra driving fuel cost	10 extra miles ÷ 25 mpg × US$3.50 per gallon	US$1.40
Net saving before time and other costs	Gross saving − extra fuel	US$0.94

The detour uses up 60% of the saving, leaving 94 cents. Now suppose that 18-cent gap was really 85 at one station against 87 at the other. Then the table doesn’t apply at all: you’d be comparing a fuel your car shouldn’t use with one it should. Rerun the real numbers in the trip fuel cost calculator.

Can I put 85 octane in my car?

Follow your owner’s manual. AAA’s advice, as reported by FOX31, is to use whatever the manual recommends, which is often 87. If the manual allows 85, the lower price is a genuine saving. If it doesn’t, the cheaper grade isn’t a deal.

Is premium priced the same way?

No. Premium is a separate product with its own posted price at each station, so a cheap regular price tells you nothing about that station’s premium. Compare premium with premium, and check the octane printed on the pump rather than assuming two “premium” listings are the same fuel.

Are Costco or Sam’s Club cheaper in Colorado Springs?

Sometimes, but it depends on the station, the day and whether you have the membership. Our Costco guide and Sam’s Club guide explain the membership and payment rules and how to count the drive.

More Colorado Springs fuel planning

Fuel Route Guide is an independent publication and is not affiliated with GasBuddy or the fuel retailers mentioned here. Illustrative calculations were prepared for this guide; no station visit or live-price verification is claimed.