The 2026 Ford Maverick hybrid gets 38 mpg combined, 13 mpg more than the best fuel-burning truck from any other brand. So if you’re asking what pickup gets the best gas mileage, the answer isn’t close. The harder call is among full-size trucks, where the diesel Silverado posts the best mpg but the F-150 hybrid costs less to fuel.
Quick answer: The 2026 Ford Maverick hybrid with front-wheel drive gets the best gas mileage of any pickup: 42 mpg city, 35 highway and 38 combined, per the EPA. Among full-size trucks, the two-wheel-drive Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra 3.0 Duramax diesels lead at 25 mpg combined, and the Ford F-150 hybrid leads gas models at 24.
Last updated: November 3, 2026
What pickup gets the best gas mileage? The 2026 EPA ranking
We pulled every rating below from the EPA’s fueleconomy.gov database on November 2, 2026, and kept the most efficient version of each truck. Combined mpg is the number to compare, since it blends city and highway driving into one figure.
| 2026 pickup (best version) | EPA city/hwy | Combined | EPA annual fuel cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ford Maverick Hybrid FWD | 42/35 mpg | 38 mpg | $1,700 |
| Ford Maverick Hybrid AWD | 40/34 mpg | 37 mpg | $1,750 |
| Chevrolet Silverado 1500 3.0L diesel 2WD | 23/28 mpg | 25 mpg | $3,750 |
| Hyundai Santa Cruz 2.5L FWD | 22/30 mpg | 25 mpg | $2,550 |
| Ford F-150 PowerBoost hybrid 2WD | 23/25 mpg | 24 mpg | $2,700 |
| Ford Ranger 2.3L 2WD | 21/25 mpg | 23 mpg | $2,800 |
| Toyota Tacoma 2.4L 2WD | 20/26 mpg | 23 mpg | $2,800 |
| Toyota Tacoma Hybrid 4WD | 22/24 mpg | 23 mpg | $2,800 |
| Toyota Tundra Hybrid 2WD | 20/24 mpg | 22 mpg | $2,900 |
Read the last column as closely as the mpg column. The Silverado diesel ties the Santa Cruz at 25 mpg combined, yet EPA expects it to cost $1,200 more a year to fuel. Diesel is priced higher than regular gas in EPA’s math, so the most efficient full-size truck isn’t the cheapest one to run.
Why does the Maverick hybrid get such good mileage?
Size and the hybrid system. The Maverick is a compact unibody truck about 200 inches long, Jalopnik notes, so there’s less mass to accelerate and less frontal area to push through the air. Its 2.5-liter four works with two electric motors for 184 hp combined.
In stop-and-go driving, the motors move the truck at low speed and recover energy when you brake. That’s why the Maverick’s city rating of 42 mpg beats its highway rating of 35. Every non-Maverick truck in our table does the opposite, including the Ford and Toyota hybrids.
Buyers have noticed. Ford sold a record 27,793 Maverick hybrids in the third quarter of 2026, up 59.6%, according to Ford’s October 2, 2026 sales release. It starts at $28,145, the lowest price of any truck here, per the EPA’s 2026 Maverick listing.
The Maverick trim trap that costs you towing
The mileage champ is the front-wheel-drive hybrid, and Jalopnik’s September 5, 2026 breakdown notes its standard tow rating is 2,000 pounds. Getting to 4,000 pounds takes all-wheel drive plus the $745 4K Tow Package. On XL and XLT trims, Ford also requires the $795 Co-Pilot360 package to get it.
That AWD hybrid costs you 1 mpg combined, a fair trade if you tow a small camper. Skip the Lariat hybrid AWD if mileage is the goal, since it drops to 36 mpg combined. Also skip the off-road Tremor and street-tuned Lobo, which only come with the 2.0-liter EcoBoost and rate 23 and 24 mpg combined.
Here’s the price-per-mpg view. Ford’s 2026 order changes made the front-drive EcoBoost $1,000 cheaper than the front-drive hybrid on XL and XLT, but it rates 26 mpg combined against 38. EPA’s annual fuel cost estimates are $2,450 against $1,700, so the hybrid earns back its $1,000 premium in about 16 months.
Which full-size truck gets the best gas mileage?
On paper, the diesel Chevrolet Silverado 1500. The EPA rates the 2026 two-wheel-drive 3.0 Duramax at 23 city, 28 highway and 25 combined, and SlashGear’s June 10, 2026 ranking found the GMC Sierra diesel identical. Four-wheel drive drops it to 23 combined, and the ZR2 falls to 21.
Count dollars and the F-150 PowerBoost hybrid wins. It’s rated 23/25/24 with two-wheel drive and 22/24/23 with 4WD, and EPA puts its annual fuel cost at $2,700, against $3,750 for the two-wheel-drive diesel Silverado. Ford sold 34,527 F-150 hybrids through September 2026.
Toyota’s Tundra hybrid trails at 22 combined in two-wheel drive and 20 with 4WD. Don’t expect the redesign to lift the Silverado either. Chevrolet’s own estimate for the 2027 two-wheel-drive diesel is 27 mpg highway, one less than the 2026’s EPA rating.
Will you get the truck mpg on the window sticker?
Close to it when the bed is empty. PickupTruckTalk’s Tim Esterdahl wrote on June 30, 2026 that his 2023 Silverado High Country diesel averaged mid-20s mpg in daily driving and high 20s on highway trips, which tracks the EPA label. Towing is another matter, because a trailer adds weight and a large frontal area the engine has to push.
Two equipment choices quietly cut your truck mpg. Four-wheel drive costs the Silverado diesel 2 mpg combined and the gas Tacoma 2, from 23 to 21. Mud-terrain tires take another bite: the Silverado 2.7-liter TurboMax 4WD drops from 19 to 17 combined on them. If mileage matters, order all-terrain or highway tires.
Which fuel-efficient pickup should you buy?
Buy the Maverick hybrid if your trailer weighs under 4,000 pounds and your loads fit a compact bed. Midsize shoppers can compare the next step up in our Tacoma vs Ranger comparison, and our Toyota small pickup report covers the Maverick rival on the way.
Need full-size towing? The F-150 PowerBoost costs less to run than the diesel Silverado by EPA’s estimate. Pick the Silverado diesel for heavy towing and range, since GM says its optional 34-gallon tank gives the 2027 diesel more than 900 miles of highway range. Before buying one, read our Silverado engine problems guide, and see our ICE vs hybrid explainer for how hybrids save fuel.
Pickup fuel economy questions buyers ask
What truck gets the best gas mileage?
The 2026 Ford Maverick hybrid with front-wheel drive is rated by the EPA at 42 mpg city, 35 highway and 38 combined, the best of any pickup sold in the US. The all-wheel-drive hybrid follows at 37 combined. The next-best trucks, the two-wheel-drive Silverado and Sierra diesels and the Hyundai Santa Cruz, manage 25.
Which full-size truck gets the best gas mileage?
The two-wheel-drive 2026 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 with the 3.0-liter Duramax diesel lead at 25 mpg combined. The best gas option is the Ford F-150 PowerBoost hybrid at 24 combined with two-wheel drive. By EPA’s annual fuel cost estimate, the F-150 hybrid is about $1,050 a year cheaper to fuel.
Is a hybrid truck worth it?
It depends on the truck. The Maverick hybrid’s 38 mpg combined against 26 for the front-drive EcoBoost saves about $750 a year by EPA’s estimate, so its $1,000 premium pays back in under two years. The Tacoma hybrid rates 23 combined, the same as the two-wheel-drive gas Tacoma, so its appeal is 465 lb-ft of torque.
So what pickup gets the best gas mileage? The Maverick hybrid, by 13 mpg over the next-best trucks, and at EPA’s estimated $1,700 a year it costs less than half as much to fuel as a diesel Silverado.