How much does a St. Louis Metro pass cost?

A St. Louis Metro monthly transit pass costs about $70, giving unlimited rides on MetroBus and MetroLink. The calculator treats it as a flat monthly figure to compare against driving.

What does the driving estimate include?

Driving cost combines fuel (gas price divided by your MPG) with roughly $0.37 per mile for maintenance and depreciation, plus your monthly parking. That captures the true cost, not just gas.

Why include depreciation in commute cost?

Every mile you drive wears the vehicle and adds maintenance over time, so a real comparison must count more than fuel. The $0.37 per mile figure follows AAA-style ownership cost estimates.

When does driving beat transit in St. Louis?

Driving usually wins for very short commutes with free parking. Transit tends to win for longer commutes or any route where you would pay for downtown parking, since the pass is a fixed cost.

Is my commute data private?

Yes. All calculations happen in your browser. None of the values you enter are uploaded or stored.

St. Louis Commute Cost Calculator

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Is it cheaper to drive to work in St. Louis or buy a Metro pass? Gas alone tells only part of the story — the honest comparison has to include parking, maintenance, and depreciation. This calculator pits your real driving cost against the $70 Metro monthly pass so you can see the true monthly difference.

How it works

The transit side is simple: a flat $70/month Metro pass for unlimited MetroBus and MetroLink rides. The driving side is built per mile:

fuel per mile      = gas price / MPG
non-fuel per mile  ≈ $0.37   (maintenance + depreciation)
driving per mile   = fuel per mile + 0.37
monthly driving    = (round-trip miles × commute days) × driving per mile + parking

The tool multiplies your round-trip distance by your commute days to get monthly miles, prices each mile, adds parking, and compares the total to the transit pass — reporting which option is cheaper and the monthly savings.

Example and notes

A 20-mile round trip, 21 days a month, at 27 MPG and $3.10 gas costs about $0.115 per mile for fuel plus $0.37 for upkeep, so 420 miles runs roughly $203 plus $85 parking — about $288/month to drive. Against the $70 Metro pass, transit saves over $200/month here. Shorten the commute or remove paid parking and driving can pull ahead; the calculator updates instantly as you change the inputs.