L/100 km
Fuel consumption as liters used per 100 kilometers. Lower is better. Canadian and Australian labels use it, and UK labels show it alongside mpg.
L/100 km states how many liters of fuel a car needs to cover 100 kilometers. Unlike mpg, where bigger is better, here lower is better: a car rated at 6 L/100 km uses less fuel than one rated at 9.
The format has a practical advantage: it scales linearly with cost. Double the consumption figure and you have doubled your fuel bill for the same distance, so multiplying L/100 km by the local fuel price gives cost per 100 km directly. This is the form CarPairly stores and uses in total cost of ownership calculations.
Conversions are simple divisions. US mpg and UK mpg each equal a fixed constant divided by the L/100 km figure, and the UK constant is larger because the imperial gallon is larger. The constants are given in the mpg (US) and mpg (UK) entries. So 8 L/100 km is about 29 mpg (US) or 35 mpg (UK). Official figures always come from a named test cycle — WLTP, EPA or, in some markets and for older cars, NEDC — and real-world consumption can differ.
Differs by market
Canada's EnerGuide label and Australia's Green Vehicle Guide label show fuel consumption in L/100 km, and UK labels show both L/100 km and mpg with the imperial gallon. The US label shows mpg with the US gallon, which is smaller.