We don’t usually expect to get great fuel economy from pickup trucks, especially when the truck in question is a full-sized, heavy-duty pickup truck like the Ford F-250 Super Duty. Chances are if you are looking for a vehicle that puts fuel-economy first, you’re going to be looking at a sedan or even a hybrid. Regardless of the purpose, the F-250 has a lot to offer, and the fuel economy can’t be that bad…right?

Practicality first, fuel economy last

It won’t surprise you to hear that the Ford F-250 isn’t going to be winning any awards for fuel economy, but it might not be as bad as you initially thought – actually, it’s probably worse. Some private studies have been done to test how the F-250 does with gas mileage under real-world conditions, and while the numbers varied, none of them were particularly great.

In a test done by Ford Authority, the F-250 Super Duty got as little as 14.6mpg in typical city traffic, and as much as 15.5mpg driving on the highway. Unlike other cars, a quick internet search doesn’t reveal many convincing numbers, probably because Ford is aware no one is looking to compare gas mileage for this truck.

In another study with data collected by Fuelly, the numbers were slightly worse. This study took reports from current owners and compiled the information to get real-world data. The conclusion gave the F-250 an overall average of 13.51mpg. With abysmally gas mileage, there seems to be an unspoken agreement that there are other reasons to buy this truck – just ignore the poor fuel economy.

There are many benefits to owning and F-250 Super Duty that make it reasonable to sacrifice gas mileage. For many people, the keynote is the truck’s towing capacity. The Ford F-250 has a towing capacity of up to 18,000 with the diesel option making it one of the best towing options available on the market.

In 2019 alone there are six trim levels

It’s not unusual to see a handful of trim levels available for many cars, trucks, and SUVs, but the Ford-250 Super Duty itself has six trim levels to choose from, all within a pretty wide range of prices.

The Super Duty XL, which was the lowest model you could buy, cost a modest $36,745 while the Limited would set you back as much as $80,240 – more than double the base model price.

The fuel economy varies between the different power trains slightly, especially when looking at the diesel option, but none of the numbers reported was anything to sneeze at. If you’re choosing between the different trim levels, it is probably not to compare fuel economy.

A 2019 Ford F-250 might not be your first option if you’re looking for something practical with a good fuel economy. In fact, it won’t be your second or third option either. Many owners seem to live with the knowledge that they drive giant, heavy-capacity pickup trucks, and the practicality appears to outweigh this slight flaw.