A couple of Via Motors employees decided to have a little fun and see how the two compared on a long commute. They drove 43.3 miles to work, 86.6 miles round trip.

While the Volt driver could have plugged in at work, he decided to treat the trip more like it would be at a normal workplace and wait until he returned home to recharge. That meant he had to use a bit of gas on the way back. You can see the results in the video below, or in text after the video.

Prius Challenge Part 1. Versus Chevy Volt from VIA Motors on Vimeo.

The Volt got 104.3 MPG. So, the Volt’s cost for the trip equaled $3.24 for gas + $1 for electricity. That would come to $600 per year .

. The Prius got 55.5 MPG, better than the car’s fuel economy rating. The cost for the trip came to $5.75, which would equal $1050 per year.

If the Volt driver had plugged in at work, as he could have, the cost would have just come to $1.80, which equals $300 per year. So, a savings of $750 per year compared to a Toyota Prius, and that’s just for the commute.

Of course, the average commute isn’t 43.3 miles. It’s much shorter, 25 miles. The average person could drive a greater portion of their commute on electricity, which costs a few times less. The electric range of a Chevy Volt is rated at 38 miles.

Of course, if your normal commute is 25 miles, you can easily get by with a Nissan LEAF or practically any other electric car. The Nissan LEAF has a range of 84 miles, enough to go to work, get home, and even drive another 34 miles. And that’s assuming you can’t charge up at work. Many LEAF owners actually planned to recharge every night but ended up doing so every other night.

And if you have the money, there’s always the Tesla Model S, which has a minimum range of 208 miles.