E10 is petrol with up to 10% ethanol. In most of northern and central Europe it is now the ordinary 95-octane petrol, and the older E5 survives mainly as a dearer premium grade. Nearly every petrol car on the road can use E10, but not all, and the change happened on different dates in different countries. This guide gives the date for each country we could source, the name of the E5 alternative at the pump, and how to check your car before you fill up abroad.
What E10 is
E10 is unleaded petrol that contains up to 10% ethanol by volume. E5 contains up to 5%. Both meet the same European petrol standard, and in the EU the nozzle and the car’s filler carry the same round label with E5 or E10 inside it, so the label means the same thing in every country even when the grade has a local name. The labels are explained in what the labels on a fuel pump mean.
When each country switched
| Country | Since | What changed | E5 alternative |
|---|---|---|---|
| France | 2009 | SP95-E10 on sale alongside SP95 and SP98 (E5); now the best-selling petrol | SP95 or SP98 |
| Finland | 1 January 2011 | The 95 grade contains up to 10% ethanol | 98 E5 |
| Germany | 2011 | Super E10 on sale alongside Super (E5) and Super Plus | Super or Super Plus |
| Belgium | 1 January 2017 | 95 E10 replaced the old 95 | 98 E5 |
| Netherlands | 1 October 2019 | Euro 95 became E10 | Super 98 (E5) |
| Sweden | 1 August 2021 | Bensin 95 became E10 | An E5 grade, usually 98 |
| United Kingdom | Summer 2021 | Standard unleaded became E10 | Super unleaded (E5) |
| Austria | From April 2023 | Super 95 switched to E10 station by station | Premium grades, most of them E5 |
| Ireland | 1 July 2023 | Unleaded became E10 | E5 where it is sold |
| Poland | 1 January 2024 | Pb95 became E10 | Pb98 (E5) |
| Czechia | 1 January 2024 | Natural 95 became E10 at almost every station | Natural 98 (E5) at most networks |
| Spain | Not the standard | Gasolina 95 is still E5; E10 is a separate product at some stations | Gasolina 95 or 98 |
The European ethanol industry association ePURE listed nine EU countries already selling E10 in November 2019, Belgium, Bulgaria, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Romania, with Slovakia, Hungary and Lithuania planning to follow at the start of 2020. We have not found a national source for the exact dates in those last countries, so they are not in the table.
Can your car take it?
Most can. The French bioethanol industry puts it at 99% of petrol vehicles on the road, and the ADAC says almost every petrol car in Germany is suitable. The exceptions are mainly older and classic cars, and some small engines such as mopeds, boats and garden machinery.
Check before the first fill-up, not after:
- The filler flap or the handbook. A car approved for E10 often says so on the inside of the flap.
- The manufacturer’s list. The European carmakers’ association ACEA publishes a list of which models can use E10, including Japanese makes that are not its members.
- A national checker. Germany has the DAT list, Poland the government checker at e10.klimat.gov.pl, and the United Kingdom a vehicle checker on its government website.
If you are not sure, use E5. Every car that can use E10 can also use E5, and it is safe to mix the two in one tank. The reverse is not true.
If you put E10 in a car that cannot take it
Do not panic, and do not keep doing it. The AA in Britain says an engine that is not compatible will not be damaged by short-term use, and that you should go back to E5 at the next fill-up. The ADAC in Germany is more careful: it advises topping up promptly with a low-ethanol grade, preferably Super Plus, and, if the whole tank was filled with E10, following the manufacturer’s instructions, which may mean draining it. The difference is between a part-tank and a full one. If it was a full tank, ask the manufacturer or a garage before driving far.
Is E10 worth it?
Where it is the standard grade it is usually the cheapest petrol on the board. The ADAC put the gap in Germany at about six cents a litre below Super E5. In its own test a car used about 1.5% more fuel on E10, less than the price difference: on petrol at around €2 a litre, six cents is about 3%. So for a car that can take it, E10 costs a little less per kilometre, not more.
Driving across a border
The name on the price board changes at the border; the label on the nozzle does not. Look for E5 or E10 in the circle, not the grade name. When you compare prices between countries, compare the same grade: a neighbour’s E10 against your E5 makes a saving look bigger or smaller than it is. Where to fill up before a border lists the price gaps, and each country page lists the names on its pumps.