Average car mileage per year in the UK
Around 7,000 to 7,500 miles a year, on Department for Transport figures, and well below what most people assume. The average matters because it is the yardstick a buyer, a seller and an insurer all reach for.
Updated 14 October 2026
The number, and how much to trust it
Department for Transport statistics put average annual car mileage in the region of 7,000 to 7,500 miles. The figure moves year to year and fell sharply during 2020 and 2021, which still pulls some multi-year averages down.
It is a mean across every car in the country, from a city runabout doing 2,000 miles to a motorway commuter doing 25,000. Very few individual cars sit at the average, which is exactly why comparing against it is informative.
What counts as high mileage
As a rough guide, over about 12,000 miles a year reads as high, and over 20,000 as very high. Under about 5,000 a year is low.
High mileage is not automatically bad. A car that does 20,000 motorway miles a year is often in better mechanical condition than one doing 3,000 miles of cold, short urban trips, which is the hardest use an engine gets.
What high mileage does affect is value. It is one of the largest single factors in what a car is worth, which is precisely why clocking exists.
Why suspiciously low is the bigger warning
A car well below average for its age deserves a look at the MOT record rather than a nod of approval.
Genuine low mileage leaves a trail: consistent small increases at each test, and an interior that matches. A car claiming 30,000 miles at ten years old with a worn steering wheel and shiny pedals is telling you two different stories.
Long flat stretches in the MOT mileage history (a car that covered 11,000 miles a year and then 800) are the pattern worth asking about.
Comparing a specific car
Every MOT since 2005 records the odometer reading, and those readings are public. Odomint plots them, works out the annual average and says how far above or below the UK average that car actually sits, free, from the registration.
That turns an abstract statistic into something about the car in front of you, which is the only version of it that helps.
Common questions
What is the average mileage per year in the UK?
Roughly 7,000 to 7,500 miles a year, based on Department for Transport figures. The exact number varies by year and by how the average is calculated.
Is 100,000 miles a lot for a car?
Less than it used to be. A well-maintained modern car with a full history can pass 150,000 miles. How the miles were covered, motorway or short urban trips, matters more than the total.
Is low mileage always better?
No. Very low mileage can mean long periods standing, which is hard on batteries, tyres, brakes and seals, and unusually low mileage is worth verifying against the MOT record.
Check any car before you buy it
MOT history, every advisory and the full mileage record are free for any UK registration. An Odomint Check adds outstanding finance, insurance write-offs, stolen markers and salvage history, with a £10,000 data guarantee.