# Why do we round off gasoline purchases, even when paying by debit or credit? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 2, 2008, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673 "2008-11-02T03:39:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 3:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/1 "2008-11-02T03:39:42Z")
Really. Why should it matter if I put in $60.00 or $60.13 if I’m not paying cash? Yet I’m willing to bet we all do it, right? Slow the pump down…squeeze and un-squeeze…over and over…until…AH! The magic number is reached. And then we pay electronically, where it doesn’t matter at all how many exact cents were pumped. Why is that? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 3:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/2 "2008-11-02T03:41:46Z")
> [@Leaffan](#): > > Yet I’m willing to bet we all do it, right? Not really. Although I’ll admit to squeezing a few times when I was driving the Jeep so that I’d take 10.66 gallons. ---
**Author:** ![Leaffan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/leaffan/32/299_2.png) [@Leaffan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaffan)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/3 "2008-11-02T03:43:55Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > Not really. > > Although I’ll admit to squeezing a few times when I was driving the Jeep so that I’d take 10.66 gallons. OK. I’ll bite. Why? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/4 "2008-11-02T03:47:59Z")
1. Battle of Hastings. It’s just one of those dates that’s always stuck in my head since I was a kid. You know, ‘This will be important for you to know when you grow up.’ Well, it hasn’t been. But it’s always stuck. And since the Jeep would take just about that much fuel every day… :shrug: ---
**Author:** ![Student\_Driver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3da27b/32.png) [@Student\_Driver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Student_Driver)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/5 "2008-11-02T04:01:58Z")
I only round off if I’m not filling my tank completely. (Like if I am running dangerously low on fuel and find it necessary to stop at a station which seems too expensive… then, I’ll round-off at $5 or $10 to tide me over until I get to somewhere cheaper.) Cash or credit, if I want to fill my tank up, I just let it stop at whatever price. Maybe if I am given cash by a friend who’s paying for a trip, or a stipend from work for an exact amount, I’d round… ---
**Author:** ![Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Skald\_the\_Rhymer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skald_the_Rhymer)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/6 "2008-11-02T04:13:28Z")
I don’t round gas purchases. Not doing so is the last bastion of my meagre sanity. ---
**Author:** ![Tamex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ccd318/32.png) [@Tamex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamex)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/7 "2008-11-02T04:35:11Z")
Don’t do it anymore since pay-at-the-pump became common. Even if I’m not filling it completely, I’ll just try to get close to my target amount. Too much of a hassle otherwise. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/8 "2008-11-02T04:42:30Z")
I don’t do it either, simply because there’s no reason to. ---
**Author:** ![j666](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de0a6/32.png) [@j666](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/j666)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 4:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/9 "2008-11-02T04:49:59Z")
> [@Johnny\_L.A](#): > > 1. Battle of Hastings. It’s just one of those dates that’s always stuck in my head since I was a kid. You know, ‘This will be important for you to know when you grow up.’ Well, it hasn’t been. But it’s always stuck. And since the Jeep would take just about that much fuel every day… :shrug: [Hijack]Why does everyone remember that date? Everyone I know seems to have dragged that one date from junior high into adulthood.[/Hijack] ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/10 "2008-11-02T04:53:06Z")
I do this, for no other reason than because I like to see if I can do it (it’s easier on some pumps than on others, but I’m generally pretty good at getting the number I want). The funny thing is that if I’m at a Petro-Canada station, it doesn’t really matter, because I get 2cents/litre off, so my perfect pump of 40.00$ or whatever turns out to be less than that anyways. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/11 "2008-11-02T04:55:50Z")
> [@j666](#): > > [Hijack]Why does everyone remember that date? Everyone I know seems to have dragged that one date from junior high into adulthood.[/Hijack] Because it’s one of those Dates That Will Be Important For You To Know. Like 1492 or 1776. ETA: I guess it’s because at one time it was thought important that well-rounded individuals knew of the significant events in History, and their dates. ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/12 "2008-11-02T05:14:04Z")
I’m not a rounder-offer either. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/13 "2008-11-02T05:32:49Z")
I don’t do it. I never understood why my dad does. He also computes the tip so it makes a round number. I mean, the rest of your purchases won’t be round numbers, so it’s not like that helps you or anything, right? It’s just the way he’s always done it. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/14 "2008-11-02T06:15:56Z")
I used to do it when I was poorer, paying in cash, and couldn’t always afford to fill the tank. Now I pay with plastic and let 'er rip. ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 9:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/15 "2008-11-02T09:45:14Z")
I don’t round off. I just pump until it is full and then leave. ---
**Author:** ![Fugazi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f08c70/32.png) [@Fugazi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fugazi)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 2:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/16 "2008-11-02T14:17:31Z")
I always fill the tank all the way. That way I can calculate how many MPG I’m getting. ---
**Author:** ![Renee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/renee/32/287_2.png) [@Renee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renee)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/17 "2008-11-02T14:38:54Z")
I don’t do that, either. And I can’t remember what the battle of Hastings was. ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/18 "2008-11-02T15:21:35Z")
No, we all don’t do it. I’ve not done it in years. ---
**Author:** ![Larry\_Mudd](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f14d63/32.png) [@Larry\_Mudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Larry_Mudd)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 3:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/19 "2008-11-02T15:35:49Z")
I do it because the pay-at-the-pump debit thing authorizes for the amount before you pump the gas. Maybe the pump automatically cuts off when it gets to the amount you’ve keyed in – I don’t know, I’ve never been experimental enough to let it go a penny over. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [November 2, 2008, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673/20 "2008-11-02T15:37:27Z")
On the rare occasions I pump my gas, I just fill the tank. I never worry about rounding off as I am paying with a card. However, I am in Jersey and I have seen most pump jockeys fill the tank to even dollar amounts or at least to the .50. I cannot figure out why they bother. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-we-round-off-gasoline-purchases-even-when-paying-by-debit-or-credit/470673.md?page=2)