Fuel Types & Quality
E5 vs E10
Is E10 petrol or diesel?
CheckFuelPrices Editorial
Expert Written • 4 industry sources
E10 is petrol, not diesel. It is the standard grade of unleaded petrol sold at UK forecourts and contains up to 10% renewable bioethanol blended with regular unleaded petrol — diesel fuel is an entirely separate product and is unaffected by E10.
What E10 Actually Is
A petrol blend, not diesel:
E10 is a petrol fuel where the 'E' stands for ethanol and '10' refers to the maximum 10% bioethanol content by volume. It has nothing to do with diesel.
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The UK standard since September 2021:
E10 replaced E5 as the default unleaded petrol grade at UK filling stations in September 2021. If you fill up with standard unleaded, you are already using E10.
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Bioethanol from renewable sources:
The ethanol in E10 is produced from plant materials such as sugars and grains, making it partially renewable and lower in net carbon emissions than pure fossil-fuel petrol.
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How E10 Differs from Diesel
Completely separate fuel types:
Diesel is a distillate fuel derived differently from crude oil and is used in compression-ignition engines. Petrol, including E10, is used in spark-ignition engines — the two must never be mixed.
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No ethanol equivalent in diesel:
Diesel sold in the UK is blended with up to 7% biodiesel (labelled B7), not ethanol. The E10 designation applies exclusively to the petrol product range.
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Is Your Car Compatible with E10?
Most modern petrol cars are compatible:
Petrol vehicles built after 2011 are almost universally compatible with E10. Older or classic cars, and some small engines, may not be — check the GOV.UK E10 compatibility checker.
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E5 super-unleaded remains available:
If your petrol car is not E10 compatible, E5 super-unleaded (97+ octane) must remain on sale at larger stations by law, providing a protected grade alternative.
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Finding the Right Fuel at the Right Price
Prices vary between stations:
E10 unleaded and E5 super-unleaded prices differ significantly across petrol stations in the same area — sometimes by more than 10p per litre.
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Compare live prices before you fill up:
CheckFuelPrices shows live petrol prices at 4,000+ UK stations, updated every 30 minutes, so you can quickly find the cheapest E10 or E5 near you.
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Sources
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