In February 2022, we bought a campervan in Canada and traveled the United States with it for 6 months (177 days to be exact). We get asked a lot how much it costs to do this, and so here’s the complete breakdown.
We diligently tracked every dollar we spent on the road in a giant spreadsheet, per state, per spending category, and per day. Finally, we get to share these costs in as much detail as we can.
Contents
Our expenses per category
Here’s how we spent $22,138.41 in our 6 months in the United States, and how much we managed to see of this beautiful country before our money ran out!
| Category | Amount spent |
|---|---|
| Accommodation | $6,389.99 |
| Food & Drinks | $7,645.71 |
| Activities | $1,335.90 |
| Transport | $6,766.81 |
| Total Spent | $22,138.41 |
| Total Days in the USA | 177 |
| Cost per Day | $125.08 |
There are a couple of things you should know:
- We bought our campervan in Canada. The costs of purchasing, insuring, owning, fixing, towing (😔), and selling this campervan are not included in this post. For more details, check this page.
- We were in the USA for two separate periods. We spent 4 months traveling Canada between these two periods. If you’re wondering how much we spent in Canada, check this article.
Here’s a more detailed breakdown per month for our first period spent in the United States:
| Month | March 2022 | April 2022 | May 2022 | June 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accommodation | $1,031.49 | $2,152.00 | $135.00 | $324.00 |
| Food & Drinks | $784.00 | $1,169.00 | $1,175.00 | $426.50 |
| Activities | $325.00 | $217.00 | $20.00 | $0.00 |
| Transport | $718.00 | $1,266.15 | $1,662.50 | $371.74 |
| Total Spent | $2,858.49 | $4,804.15 | $2,992.50 | $1,122.24 |
| Total Days in the USA | 17 | 30 | 31 | 10 |
| Cost per Day | $168.15 | $160.14 | $96.53 | $112.22 |
And here’s the same data for our second period in the United States:
| Month | October 2022 | November 2022 | December 2022 | January 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Accommodation | $341.00 | $1,253.50 | $1,153.00 | $0.00 |
| Food & Drinks | $1,063.21 | $1,418.00 | $1,592.00 | $18.00 |
| Activities | $22.00 | $363.90 | $388.00 | $0.00 |
| Transport | $1,190.67 | $788.75 | $714.00 | $55.00 |
| Total Spent | $2,616.88 | $3,824.15 | $3,847.00 | $73.00 |
| Total Days in the USA | 25 | 30 | 31 | 3 |
| Cost per Day | $104.68 | $127.47 | $124.10 | $24.33 |
There’s a complete table further down this post (here), which shows our expenses per day, including which state we were in at the time!
Could we have done this cheaper?
Can you budget less for your trip?
Probably, yes.
We had been saving for years for this trip, so naturally, we tried to make the most of it. As a result, we probably spent more than we could have as we decided on a bit more luxury. For example, we occasionally went to nice restaurants, visited Disneyland in Florida and spent 5 nights in Las Vegas.
You could definitely do this cheaper if you cook your own food and sleep at (free) rest stops, boondock sites or public parks instead of paid campgrounds.
What exactly did we spend our money on?
There are 4 main categories for our spending:
- Accommodation
- Food & drinks
- Activities
- Transport
Here’s a bit more context for each of these!
Disclaimer: This is by no means a brag of how much/little we spent. People are often quick to compare these cost breakdowns to see who is the most frugal or glamorous. We’re not sharing this data to participate in these leaderboards (it’s not like we’re winning anyway). Instead, we’re trying to help other travellers who are planning similar trips of their own. It can be really overwhelming to plan an adventure like this, and having first-hand data like this could have really helped us before we embarked on our trip!
Accommodation
- Total spent: $6,389.99
- Average per day: $36.10
This was our first time traveling in a campervan, so we wanted to be more comfortable. Also, we had to work on our businesses during our travels. As a result, we often chose to stay at (paid) campgrounds that offered hookups and wi-fi.
This also includes the occasional hotel/motel. We stayed in a nice hotel in Las Vegas during Christmas, and we booked a week in an Airbnb in Fresno, California when we both caught a fever! This impacted our average costs!
Food & drinks
- Total spent: $7,645.71
- Average per day: $43.20
These are our costs for 2 persons, and your mileage may vary a lot! We often tried to cook all our food inside our campervan. We mostly shopped at Walmart and tried to keep a budget.
But, since life on the road can get a little unpredictable – which is an understatement – we occasionally opted for the easy way out and ordered takeout or a pizza or something!
Activities
- Total spent: $1,335.90
- Average per day: $7.55
We’re extremely envious of folks from the US because of the National Parks and the way that they’re managed. There is so much beautiful and accessible nature in these parks, that most of our activities on this trip were connected to the National Parks. We bought a yearly National Park pass (America the Beautiful) for just $80 and visited every park we could.
Other costs that are included here are paid parking, visits to hot springs, the slot canyons in Arizona, renting a jeep to visit White Pocket, and our tickets for Disneyland.
Transportation
- Total spent: $6,766.81
- Average per day: $38.23
This cost mostly consists of the gasoline we poured in our ’91 Chevy campervan. This van took us to all the beautiful places in North America, but it burned quite some fuel in the process!
Here are some gasoline-related statistics for our trip:
- Distance traveled: 17,506 miles (or 28,173 kilometers)
- Fuel tanked: 1,460 gallons (or 5,528 liters)
- Average fuel consumption: 11.99 miles per gallon (or 5.10 kilometers per liter)
- Money spent on gas: $6,613
- Average price of gas: $4.53 per gallon (or $1.20 per liter)
- Average cost per 100 miles: $37.78 (or $23.47 per 100 kilometers)
Fuel costs were a massive portion of our budget. That’s caused by two reasons:
- We drove a colossal distance, covering every corner of the USA. We started in Maine and traveled the entire east coast down south down to the Miami Keys. We then crossed the country from east to west, traversing the Rocky Mountains up and down, before traveling the west coast down from Seattle to the Mexican border in California!
- The other reason is simple: Our campervan contained a massive 5.7 liter V8 engine. It contained plenty of power to take us over several mountain passes, but… it sure loved burning gasoline!
Here’s a map that contains our route:
Before you ask, the money spent and distance driven in our 4 months in Canada are not included in this post. If you want to know how much we spent in Canada, here’s the article you’re looking for!
Our complete breakdown of costs
Here’s the most detailed cost breakdown of how much it costs to road trip through the entire USA with a campervan.
Here’s the data for the first 88-day period of our stay in the United States:
| Date | Accommodation | Food & Drinks | Activities | Transportation | State(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3/15/2022 | $80.00 | $62.00 | – | $160.00 | Maine |
| 3/16/2022 | $75.00 | $57.00 | – | $75.00 | New Hampshire, Massachusetts |
| 3/17/2022 | $60.00 | $60.00 | – | $86.00 | Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Delaware |
| 3/18/2022 | $60.00 | $60.00 | $20.00 | – | Maryland, Washington D.C. |
| 3/19/2022 | $103.00 | $70.00 | – | $190.00 | Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina |
| 3/20/2022 | $130.00 | $19.00 | – | – | Georgia, Florida |
| 3/21/2022 | – | $180.00 | – | – | Florida |
| 3/22/2022 | $70.00 | – | – | – | Florida |
| 3/23/2022 | – | $70.00 | – | – | Florida |
| 3/24/2022 | – | – | – | – | Florida |
| 3/25/2022 | $76.00 | $8.00 | – | – | Florida |
| 3/26/2022 | – | $43.00 | – | $87.00 | Florida |
| 3/27/2022 | $100.00 | $140.00 | – | – | Florida |
| 3/28/2022 | $277.49 | – | $305.00 | – | Florida |
| 3/29/2022 | – | – | – | – | Florida |
| 3/30/2022 | – | – | – | – | Florida |
| 3/31/2022 | – | $15.00 | – | $120.00 | Florida |
| 4/1/2022 | – | $220.00 | – | $63.00 | Florida |
| 4/2/2022 | – | $26.00 | $88.00 | – | Florida |
| 4/3/2022 | – | $70.00 | $40.00 | $88.00 | Florida |
| 4/4/2022 | – | $4.50 | – | – | Florida |
| 4/5/2022 | – | $34.00 | – | – | Florida |
| 4/6/2022 | – | – | $9.00 | $94.00 | Florida |
| 4/7/2022 | – | $6.00 | – | $37.00 | Florida |
| 4/8/2022 | $125.00 | $72.00 | – | $71.00 | Florida |
| 4/9/2022 | – | $20.00 | $25.00 | – | Florida |
| 4/10/2022 | – | $76.00 | – | – | Florida |
| 4/11/2022 | – | $35.00 | – | – | Florida |
| 4/12/2022 | $40.00 | $20.00 | – | $85.00 | Florida |
| 4/13/2022 | – | $37.00 | – | $215.15 | Florida, Alabama, Mississippi |
| 4/14/2022 | – | $66.00 | – | $153.00 | Louisiana, Texas |
| 4/15/2022 | – | $18.00 | – | $185.00 | Texas, New Mexico |
| 4/16/2022 | – | $49.00 | – | – | New Mexico, Colorado |
| 4/17/2022 | – | – | – | – | Colorado |
| 4/18/2022 | $1987.00 | $5.50 | – | $87.00 | Colorado |
| 4/19/2022 | – | $44.00 | $55.00 | – | Colorado |
| 4/20/2022 | – | – | – | – | Colorado |
| 4/21/2022 | – | $30.00 | – | – | Colorado |
| 4/22/2022 | – | $130.00 | – | $73.00 | Colorado |
| 4/23/2022 | – | – | – | – | Colorado |
| 4/24/2022 | – | $42.00 | – | – | Colorado |
| 4/25/2022 | – | $21.00 | – | – | Colorado |
| 4/26/2022 | – | $31.00 | – | – | Colorado |
| 4/27/2022 | – | $60.00 | – | – | Colorado |
| 4/28/2022 | – | – | – | $70.00 | Colorado |
| 4/29/2022 | – | $52.00 | – | $45.00 | Colorado |
| 4/30/2022 | – | – | – | – | Colorado |
| 5/1/2022 | – | $31.00 | – | – | Colorado |
| 5/2/2022 | – | $6.00 | – | – | Colorado |
| 5/3/2022 | – | $177.00 | – | – | Colorado, Wyoming |
| 5/4/2022 | – | $25.00 | – | $116.32 | Wyoming, Utah |
| 5/5/2022 | – | $100.00 | – | $149.00 | Utah |
| 5/6/2022 | – | – | – | – | Utah |
| 5/7/2022 | – | $20.00 | – | – | Utah |
| 5/8/2022 | – | $40.00 | – | $95.00 | Utah |
| 5/9/2022 | – | $25.00 | – | – | Utah |
| 5/10/2022 | – | $30.00 | – | – | Utah |
| 5/11/2022 | – | $43.00 | – | $101.00 | Utah |
| 5/12/2022 | – | – | – | – | Utah |
| 5/13/2022 | – | $20.00 | – | $79.00 | Utah |
| 5/14/2022 | – | $27.00 | $20.00 | – | Utah |
| 5/15/2022 | – | $40.00 | – | $87.00 | Utah |
| 5/16/2022 | – | $10.00 | – | $69.00 | Utah, Colorado |
| 5/17/2022 | – | $6.00 | – | $270.00 | Utah, Colorado |
| 5/18/2022 | – | $5.00 | – | – | Utah, Colorado |
| 5/19/2022 | – | $139.00 | – | $114.00 | Utah, Colorado |
| 5/20/2022 | $55.00 | $12.00 | – | $75.00 | Utah, Colorado |
| 5/21/2022 | – | $10.00 | – | – | Utah, Colorado |
| 5/22/2022 | – | $98.00 | – | $100.00 | Wyoming |
| 5/23/2022 | – | $70.00 | – | – | Wyoming |
| 5/24/2022 | – | $16.00 | – | $106.00 | Wyoming |
| 5/25/2022 | – | – | – | – | Wyoming |
| 5/26/2022 | – | $30.00 | – | $90.17 | Wyoming |
| 5/27/2022 | – | $130.00 | – | $52.19 | Wyoming |
| 5/28/2022 | – | – | – | – | Wyoming |
| 5/29/2022 | – | $13.00 | – | – | Wyoming |
| 5/30/2022 | – | – | – | – | Wyoming |
| 5/31/2022 | $80.00 | $52.00 | – | $158.82 | Wyoming |
| 6/1/2022 | – | $75.00 | – | – | Wyoming |
| 6/2/2022 | $75.00 | $126.00 | – | $74.00 | Utah |
| 6/3/2022 | $40.00 | $25.00 | – | – | Idaho |
| 6/4/2022 | – | $7.50 | – | – | Idaho |
| 6/5/2022 | $39.00 | $109.00 | – | $65.00 | Idaho |
| 6/6/2022 | $170.00 | $13.00 | – | $103.49 | Montana |
| 6/7/2022 | – | $71.00 | – | – | Montana |
| 6/8/2022 | – | – | – | – | Montana |
| 6/9/2022 | – | – | – | $129.25 | Montana |
| 6/10/2022 | – | – | – | – | Montana |
And here’s the data for the second 87-day period of our stay:
| Date | Accommodation | Food & Drinks | Activities | Transportation | State(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10/7/2022 | – | $20.00 | – | $152.91 | Washington |
| 10/8/2022 | – | $123.21 | – | – | Washington |
| 10/9/2022 | – | $18.00 | – | $130.46 | Washington |
| 10/10/2022 | – | $17.00 | – | – | Washington |
| 10/11/2022 | – | $17.00 | – | – | Washington |
| 10/12/2022 | – | $56.00 | – | $125.00 | Washington |
| 10/13/2022 | – | $9.00 | – | – | Washington |
| 10/14/2022 | – | $135.00 | – | – | Washington |
| 10/15/2022 | – | $21.00 | – | $100.56 | Washington |
| 10/16/2022 | – | $25.00 | – | – | Washington |
| 10/17/2022 | – | $45.00 | – | $71.24 | Washington |
| 10/18/2022 | – | $17.00 | – | – | Washington |
| 10/19/2022 | – | $9.00 | – | $140.00 | Washington |
| 10/20/2022 | – | $33.00 | – | – | Washington |
| 10/21/2022 | – | $74.00 | – | – | Washington |
| 10/22/2022 | – | $62.00 | – | $128.00 | Oregon |
| 10/23/2022 | – | $10.00 | – | $63.50 | Oregon |
| 10/24/2022 | – | $39.00 | – | – | Oregon |
| 10/25/2022 | – | $48.00 | $22.00 | – | Oregon |
| 10/26/2022 | $42.00 | $133.00 | – | – | Oregon |
| 10/27/2022 | $233.00 | $58.00 | – | – | Oregon |
| 10/28/2022 | – | $36.00 | – | – | Oregon |
| 10/29/2022 | – | $31.00 | – | $139.00 | Oregon |
| 10/30/2022 | – | $24.00 | – | – | Oregon |
| 10/31/2022 | $66.00 | $3.00 | – | $140.00 | Oregon |
| 11/1/2022 | – | $19.00 | – | – | Oregon |
| 11/2/2022 | $18.00 | $41.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/3/2022 | $18.00 | $13.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/4/2022 | – | $26.00 | – | $153.75 | California |
| 11/5/2022 | – | $138.00 | $105.00 | – | California |
| 11/6/2022 | $317.00 | $44.00 | $77.90 | – | California |
| 11/7/2022 | – | $31.00 | $80.00 | $155.00 | California |
| 11/8/2022 | -$62.50 | $9.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/9/2022 | – | $65.00 | $22.00 | – | California |
| 11/10/2022 | – | $64.00 | $57.00 | $10.00 | California |
| 11/11/2022 | – | $61.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/12/2022 | – | $82.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/13/2022 | $23.00 | $70.00 | – | $125.00 | California |
| 11/14/2022 | $73.00 | $31.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/15/2022 | – | $33.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/16/2022 | $256.00 | $20.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/17/2022 | – | $65.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/18/2022 | $109.00 | $70.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/19/2022 | – | $70.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/20/2022 | $108.00 | $76.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/21/2022 | $124.00 | $45.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/22/2022 | – | $15.00 | – | $100.00 | California |
| 11/23/2022 | – | $63.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/24/2022 | – | $37.00 | – | $100.00 | California |
| 11/25/2022 | – | $50.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/26/2022 | $157.00 | – | – | – | California |
| 11/27/2022 | $113.00 | $70.00 | – | – | California |
| 11/28/2022 | – | $13.00 | $12.00 | – | California |
| 11/29/2022 | – | $38.00 | $10.00 | – | California |
| 11/30/2022 | – | $59.00 | – | $145.00 | California |
| 12/1/2022 | $105.00 | $112.00 | – | – | California |
| 12/2/2022 | – | $15.00 | – | – | California |
| 12/3/2022 | – | $59.00 | – | – | California |
| 12/4/2022 | $100.00 | $36.00 | – | – | California |
| 12/5/2022 | – | $85.00 | $101.00 | $91.00 | California |
| 12/6/2022 | – | $18.00 | $32.00 | – | California |
| 12/7/2022 | – | $115.00 | – | $87.00 | California |
| 12/8/2022 | – | – | $78.00 | $51.00 | California |
| 12/9/2022 | – | $60.00 | – | – | California |
| 12/10/2022 | – | $145.00 | – | $93.00 | Arizona |
| 12/11/2022 | $210.00 | $34.00 | -$275.00 | – | Arizona |
| 12/12/2022 | – | $47.00 | – | – | Arizona |
| 12/13/2022 | $420.00 | $53.00 | – | – | Arizona |
| 12/14/2022 | $51.00 | $43.00 | $103.00 | – | Arizona |
| 12/15/2022 | – | $65.00 | $9.00 | $82.00 | Arizona |
| 12/16/2022 | – | $7.00 | $19.00 | – | Arizona |
| 12/17/2022 | – | $63.00 | $10.00 | – | Arizona |
| 12/18/2022 | – | $16.00 | $268.00 | $40.00 | Arizona |
| 12/19/2022 | – | $81.00 | $18.00 | – | Arizona |
| 12/20/2022 | – | $30.00 | – | – | Arizona |
| 12/21/2022 | – | $6.00 | – | $76.00 | Arizona |
| 12/22/2022 | – | $40.00 | – | – | Arizona |
| 12/23/2022 | $95.00 | $250.00 | – | – | Arizona |
| 12/24/2022 | $42.00 | $55.00 | – | – | Las Vegas |
| 12/25/2022 | – | $7.00 | – | – | Las Vegas |
| 12/26/2022 | – | – | – | – | Las Vegas |
| 12/27/2022 | – | $20.00 | – | – | Las Vegas |
| 12/28/2022 | – | $20.00 | $25.00 | $10.00 | Las Vegas |
| 12/29/2022 | – | $37.00 | – | $55.00 | Las Vegas |
| 12/30/2022 | – | $28.00 | – | $129.00 | California |
| 12/31/2022 | $130.00 | $45.00 | – | – | California |
| 1/1/2023 | – | $18.00 | – | $55.00 | California |
| 1/2/2023 | – | – | – | – | California |
| 1/3/2023 | – | – | – | – | California |
Our expenses per state
As you can see in the complete breakdown, we traveled to lots of states. Here are our total expenses for each state where we spent a significant amount of time:
| State | Total spent | Number of full days in state | Cost per day |
|---|---|---|---|
| Florida | $2,839.99 | 23 | $123.48 |
| Colorado | $2,769.50 | 16 | $173.09 |
| Utah | $1,151.00 | 12 | $95.92 |
| Wyoming | $1,071.18 | 11 | $97.38 |
| Montana | $486.74 | 5 | $97.35 |
| Washington | $1,339.38 | 15 | $89.29 |
| Oregon | $1,296.50 | 11 | $117.86 |
| California | $5,355.15 | 43 | $124.54 |
| Arizona | $2,099.00 | 14 | $149.93 |
Wrapping up
This must be the most detailed cost breakdown of how much it costs to road trip through the entire USA with a campervan. However, if I still forgot to include something that you want to know about, please let me know in the comments below and I’ll get back to you!
Hi,are from Belgium ( live in Bali)and kinda looking to do the samr thing with my eife and wondering if u had problems regarding entering USA tje 2nd time around.Know u get 90 days with ESTA I assume but was it a problem 2nd time ?
Hi Gunther,
That sounds awesome. Lucky for you, we published an article that answers your question (and more) here!