Is this car's mileage normal for its age?
Enter a car's age, fuel type and mileage. We'll show how it compares with the mileage recorded at real MOT tests in 2025, using DVSA's open MOT data: about 29 million vehicles aged 3 to 20 years. It runs in your browser. There's no number plate box, and nothing you type is sent anywhere.
When is its next MOT due?
In Great Britain, a car needs its first MOT by the third anniversary of its registration. After that, it needs one every year by the anniversary of its last MOT.
Some vehicles, such as taxis, need an MOT from one year old. Northern Ireland has different rules. You can be fined up to £1,000 for driving without a valid MOT (GOV.UK).
Buying? Ask the seller when the MOT runs out, and look at the MOT history for advisories and the mileage recorded at each test.
Will it be charged in London's ULEZ or a Clean Air Zone?
Choose a fuel type to see a hint.
This is a guide based on the fuel type and first registration date only. TfL charges on the car's declared emissions, not its age. Check the exact car with TfL's vehicle checker before you buy, and with GOV.UK's Clean Air Zone checker if you drive in Birmingham or Bristol, the two English zones that charge cars.
Buying in or near London? A car that doesn't meet the standard can cost you a daily charge every day you drive it in the zone.
Buying this car?
Mileage for its age is one clue. Check the car's finance markers, write-off marker and category, stolen marker, mileage readings and keeper history in one report, where our connected UK sources return them. The vehicle match is free, so you can confirm you've got the right car before you pay for anything.
How to read your result
- "Higher than about N in 100" means that, of the cars of the same age (and fuel, if you chose one) that had an MOT in 2025, roughly N in every 100 had a lower mileage recorded at that test.
- The middle half is the range between the 25th and 75th percentiles. Half of all cars in the group fall inside it. Being outside it is common: by definition, half of all cars are.
- Low mileage isn't automatically good. A car that's done very few miles may have sat unused, and low mileage on its own doesn't prove the reading is genuine.
- High mileage isn't automatically bad. Motorway miles are often easier on a car than short trips. Service history and condition matter more than the number.
- Check the readings over time. The free GOV.UK MOT history shows the mileage recorded at each test. Readings should normally go up. Our study of MOT readings that went down explains the common recording slips.
Method and data
- Source: DVSA "MOT Anonymised Data", test result extracts for 2025 (normal tests, class 4).
- Who's included: one test per vehicle: its latest normal MOT test in 2025, of any result (pass, fail or pass after rectification). 28,987,229 vehicles aged 3 to 20 years. Class 4 covers cars with up to 8 passenger seats, and also taxis, private hire vehicles, motor caravans and goods vehicles up to 3,000kg, according to GOV.UK's MOT classes.
- Age: whole years between the vehicle's first use date and the test date.
- Mileage: the reading recorded at that test, as entered by the tester. Readings of 0 or over 500,000 were removed. Recording mistakes in the source data (for example kilometres entered as miles) are not corrected.
- Fuel groups: petrol; diesel; hybrid (DVSA codes "Hybrid Electric (Clean)" and "Electric Diesel"); electric. "Any fuel" includes all fuel types.
- Small groups: any age and fuel group with fewer than 1,000 vehicles isn't shown. For those, the tool compares with all fuels and says so. Figures are shown rounded to the nearest 100 miles.
- Download: the full table by age and fuel, with n for every group, is available as a CSV download (same licence and credit as below).
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), MOT Anonymised Data. Analysis by CarCheckHQ. This tool is not endorsed by DVSA.
Common questions
What is a good mileage for a used car?
There's no single good number. It depends on age. In 2025 MOT data, the typical (median) recorded mileage was about 29,400 for a 3-year-old car, 48,700 for a 6-year-old car and 77,700 for a 10-year-old car (all fuels). Condition and service history matter more than where a car sits in the range.
What is the average mileage per year for a car in the UK?
This tool doesn't use a flat "miles per year" rule. It compares a car with others of the same age, because the typical mileage for each age comes straight from MOT readings. Dividing the median by the age gives a rough guide: about 9,800 a year at 3 years old and about 7,800 a year at 10 years old in 2025 data.
Is high mileage bad on a used car?
Not on its own. A higher-mileage car with a full service history can be a better buy than a low-mileage car that's been neglected. Use the mileage as a reason to ask questions, not as the answer.
Can this tell me if a car has been clocked?
No. A mileage that's low for the car's age is not evidence that it's been tampered with. Check the readings recorded at each MOT on GOV.UK, and ask the seller about anything that doesn't add up.
Why do electric cars stop at 14 years?
Older electric cars are rare in the MOT data. For ages with fewer than 1,000 electric vehicles tested in 2025, the tool compares with all fuels instead and tells you so.
Do you store what I type?
No. The data is built into the page, and the comparison runs in your browser. There's no number plate box, nothing is sent to us, and the result image is made on your device.
When is a car's first MOT due?
In Great Britain, by the third anniversary of its registration. Some vehicles, such as taxis, need one at a year old. Northern Ireland has different rules.
How early can I get an MOT?
Up to a month (minus a day) before it runs out, and you keep the same renewal date. GOV.UK's example: if it runs out on 15 May, the earliest is 16 April.
Is a 2010 diesel ULEZ compliant?
Generally not. TfL says diesel cars that meet the standard are generally those first registered as new after September 2015. Check the exact car with TfL's vehicle checker.
Which Clean Air Zones charge cars?
Birmingham and Bristol, which are Class D zones, according to GOV.UK. The other English zones charge some other vehicle types only.
What this tool can't tell you
- It doesn't look up any vehicle, and it can't tell you whether a car's mileage is genuine.
- It compares with 2025 MOT tests only. Cars that didn't have an MOT in 2025 (for example ones kept off the road) aren't in the data.
- The data includes vans, taxis and private hire vehicles in the same MOT class as cars, which can push the higher mileages up, especially for some hybrids.
- Mileages are as recorded by testers and may include recording mistakes.
- CarCheckHQ is an independent vehicle history service. It isn't affiliated with or endorsed by HPI, DVLA or DVSA.
- The MOT panel uses Great Britain's rules only. The clean air panel covers London's ULEZ and England's Clean Air Zones only. Scottish low emission zones and other schemes aren't covered.
- The clean air hint uses fuel and registration date, not the car's actual Euro standard, so it isn't a decision on any charge.
- Rules and zones change. We recheck these sources every month and before each release.
Sources
- DVSA: MOT Anonymised Data (test result extracts 2025, downloaded 23 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Getting an MOT: MOT costs (vehicle classes, read 23 October 2026)
- GOV.UK: Check the MOT history of a vehicle
- GOV.UK: Getting an MOT: when to get an MOT (rechecked 23 October 2026, 16:25 UK)
- GOV.UK: Clean Air Zones (read 23 October 2026)
- TfL: ULEZ: cars (read 23 October 2026)