Italians spend 168 billion on their cars. Road tax accounts for the smallest share (3.9 per cent)

It is “one of the taxes most hated by Italians”, as Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, but it is also the smallest item among the total costs a motorist must bear in order to own a car: of the 168.29 billion in running costs, just 3.9 per cent is accounted for by the road tax, which the Government has decided to abolish by 2027 for small and medium-sized cars (with power output up to 80 kW) and for all motorcycles.

According to the figures contained in the Statistical Yearbook of the ACI, the largest expenditure is, of course, that relating to purchases and interest in the case of instalment payments: 57.51 billion in 2025.

Next comes fuel, on which Italian motorists spent 40.511 billion. This figure is inevitably set to rise in 2026, given the trend in petrol and diesel prices, which have forced the government to intervene with a series of decrees.

A further 26.797 billion was spent on the maintenance and repair of the vehicles. The top three items (purchase, fuel and maintenance) account for almost 75 per cent of expenditure.

There are also two other items of expenditure just above and just below the 10 billion threshold: compulsory insurance cover (10.91 billion) and hospitalisation and parking (8.933). Tyres accounted for 7.762 billion and motorway tolls a further 6.65 billion. The eighth and final item taken into account by the ACI is the one on which the Government has intervened with a decree: road tax. In 2025, road tax cost motorists 6.53 billion, less than 4 per cent of total expenditure. However, its cost has risen more significantly over time than the other items: +12% since 2000. Only motorway tolls have risen more sharply over the last 25 years: +54%.