London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone charges £12.50 a day, every day of the year except Christmas Day, for cars that do not meet the emissions standard: broadly petrol cars registered before 2006 and diesel cars registered before September 2015. The Congestion Charge is a separate £18 a day for driving in central London between 07:00 and 18:00 on weekdays and 12:00 to 18:00 at weekends, payable by compliant and non-compliant cars alike. A non-compliant car driven into the centre five days a week costs about £7,300 a year in the two charges. Missing a payment brings a £180 penalty, halved if paid within 14 days.
The two charges
| ULEZ | Congestion Charge | |
|---|---|---|
| Daily charge | £12.50 | £18 paid in advance or on the day; £21 by midnight of the third day after |
| Where | Almost all of Greater London, inside the M25 | Central London only |
| When | 24 hours a day, every day except Christmas Day | 07:00 to 18:00 Monday to Friday, 12:00 to 18:00 weekends and bank holidays; no charge between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day |
| Who pays | Vehicles that fail the emissions standard | Every vehicle without an exemption or discount |
| Penalty for non-payment | £180, reduced to £90 if paid within 14 days | £180, reduced to £90 if paid within 14 days |
A daily charge covers midnight to midnight, so a journey that starts before midnight and ends after it incurs two ULEZ charges. Both charges are paid through Transport for London’s website or app, and Auto Pay bills them automatically for registered vehicles, which is the simplest way to avoid penalties. The ULEZ cost calculator works the annual cost for your driving pattern.
Which cars are compliant
| Fuel | Standard required | Cars that generally meet it |
|---|---|---|
| Petrol | Euro 4 for nitrogen oxides | First registered as new after 2005 |
| Diesel | Euro 6 for nitrogen oxides and particulates | First registered as new after September 2015 |
| Electric and hydrogen | Zero emission | All |
Registration dates are a guide rather than a rule: some petrol cars from 2001 onwards met Euro 4 early and some diesels registered in 2015 and 2016 did not meet Euro 6, so the only reliable answer is TfL’s vehicle checker using the registration number. Motorcycles need Euro 3, vans up to 3.5 tonnes the same standards as cars. Historic vehicles over 40 years old and vehicles registered with the DVLA as having a disabled tax class are exempt. There is no exemption for residents, hybrids or low mileage.
What it adds up to
| Driving pattern in a non-compliant car | ULEZ a year | With the Congestion Charge in central London on weekdays | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 days a week, 48 weeks | £3,000 | £4,320 | £7,320 |
| 2 days a week, 52 weeks | £1,300 | £1,872 | £3,172 |
| One day a month | £150 | £216 | £366 |
At £3,000 a year the ULEZ alone exceeds the annual running costs of tax, insurance and servicing for many older cars, which is why non-compliant cars have largely left London’s daily traffic. Replacing a pre-2006 petrol car with a compliant one from 2006 or later removes the charge entirely; the Congestion Charge remains unless the replacement qualifies for the Cleaner Vehicle Discount, which is being phased out and now applies only to electric vehicles registered for it. The electric versus petrol calculator and cost of ownership calculator set the charges against a car’s other costs, and the road trip cost calculator adds them to the fuel for a specific journey.
Other clean air zones
Birmingham, Bristol, Bath, Portsmouth, Bradford, Sheffield, Tyneside and Greater Manchester operate or have planned Clean Air Zones under a national framework, each with its own class of zone, standards and daily charges, and several charge only buses, taxis and lorries rather than private cars. Scotland’s Low Emission Zones in Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Dundee use penalty notices rather than daily charges, with the penalty doubling for repeat offences. Anyone driving an older car into a city centre should check the local scheme before travelling, because the standards for diesels in particular catch cars that are less than a decade old.
Common questions
How much is the ULEZ charge? £12.50 a day for cars, vans and motorcycles that do not meet the emissions standard, 24 hours a day every day except Christmas Day.
Is my car ULEZ compliant? Usually yes for petrol cars registered from 2006 and diesel cars registered from September 2015, but check the registration number on TfL’s vehicle checker, as the standard depends on the engine, not the age.
How much is the Congestion Charge? £18 a day paid in advance or on the day, £21 if paid by midnight of the third day after driving, between 07:00 and 18:00 on weekdays and 12:00 to 18:00 at weekends and bank holidays.
What is the penalty for not paying? £180 for either charge, reduced to £90 if paid within 14 days. Auto Pay avoids the risk.
Do I pay the ULEZ every time I drive? Once per day, however many journeys. A trip that crosses midnight counts as two days.
Do electric cars pay the Congestion Charge? Electric vehicles can register for the Cleaner Vehicle Discount, which is being phased out; check TfL’s current terms. All cars, including electric ones, pay the Congestion Charge without a discount.
Information, not financial advice. Charges, hours and standards are as published by Transport for London at the time of writing; annual figures are from the site’s calculator. Check the vehicle checker and current charges before driving, as TfL revises them.