The short answer Top up about €15 of fuel. Do not fill the tank. That is the whole verdict, and it runs against the standard Greek car-rental advice to "return it full." Here is why. All six Folegandros agencies whose written terms we could read — cars, quads and scooters alike — use a "return as received" fuel policy, not full-to-full. You get the vehicle with whatever is in the tank at pickup, and you hand it back with the same amount. If you return it with less, the agency charges you the difference. If you return it with more, as Kountouris Car Rentals states in its own published terms, "no refund is given if the vehicle is returned with more fuel than the starting fuel." Filling a 35-litre tank you only needed a third of does not buy you peace of mind — it buys the agency free fuel. On top of that, fuel on Folegandros is expensive: unleaded 95 at ELIN was recorded at €2.300 per litre by the Greek Ministry of Development's Fuel Price Observatory on 27 July 2026, against a national average of €1.999 per litre in the same period — roughly 15% higher. Every litre you overbuy costs more here than almost anywhere else in Greece. The two tables below give you the numbers: how much fuel your actual driving needs, and how every island agency's policy handles the difference. Table A — How much fuel you actually need Itinerary — Distance — Fuel used (at 8 l/100 km) — Approx. cost at €2.300/l Karavostasis port → Chora (uphill, one-way) — 3.5 km — 0.28 l — €0.64 Chora → Agali beach (round trip) — 8.0 km — 0.64 l — €1.47 Chora → Ano Meria (round trip) — 10.0–13.0 km — 0.80–1.04 l — €1.84–2.39 Chora → Ampeli / Agios Georgios, far NW (round trip) — 17.0 km — 1.36 l — €3.13 Whole island end to end and back — under 30 km — under 2.4 l — under €5.52 Typical 3-day rental, total driving — under 70 km — about 5.6 l — about €13 That last row is the one that matters: a normal three-day stay burns around €13 of fuel. A full 35-litre tank costs about €80 at the same price. The gap between those two numbers is what you lose if you fill up "to be safe." Table B — The fuel policy at the six agencies whose terms we could read Agency — Vehicles — Fuel policy — Refunded if returned with more fuel? Kountouris Car Rentals — Cars — Return with same fuel as received; charged for shortfall — No Evo Rent a Car — Cars, Smart Electric Fortwo — Fuel checked jointly with customer, recorded on contract — No My Car in Folegandros (Folegandros Tours) — Cars — Return with same quantity received — No Faros Rent a Car — Cars — Return with same quantity received — No Donkey Scooters — Scooters — Return with same quantity received — No Folegandros Moto / RoadRunner — Quads, scooters — Return with same quantity received — No If you're still deciding which vehicle and agency to book, the general Folegandros car rental FAQ covers deposits, insurance and paperwork that this page does not. The two petrol stations on Folegandros There are exactly two petrol stations on the island, and both are in or immediately beside Chora — there are none in Karavostasis or Ano Meria, so plan your fuel stops around Chora, not around where you're staying. ELIN, operated by Dekavalla Eirini, sits in the centre of Chora (postcode 84011), phone +30 22860 41432 or mobile +30 697 260 0453. It is open every day, all year round, according to both municipal and commercial directories — the only one of the two with confirmed winter hours. Beyond car fuel, ELIN also sells marine fuel and heating oil, has a car wash, a mini-market and an ATM, which makes it a useful stop even if you don't need petrol. Shell, operated by Argo — Marinaki Polyxeni N., is on the Peripheral Road (the ring road) of Chora, same postcode 84011. Phone +30 22860 41475, mobiles +30 694 221 9336 and +30 693 670 2151. Listed hours are Monday to Sunday, 07:30-18:00. Winter operation is assumed rather than confirmed, and no operator publishes separate shoulder-season hours, so treat 18:00 as the latest you can count on and call ahead outside peak summer. Worth knowing before you go looking for it: the Folegandros municipality's own list of useful phone numbers gives this second station as "ARGO Petrol Station," while commercial directories list the same forecourt as "Shell." It's one station with two names in circulation — if a local or a map gives you one name and a sign shows the other, you're not lost. Both stations are full-service, as at every station in Greece: an attendant dispenses the fuel, there is no self-service and no pay-at-pump. Both take cash and international Visa/Mastercard through wireless POS terminals. Neither operator publishes shoulder-season hours for April, May or October — if you're travelling outside peak summer, confirm by phone rather than assuming the listed hours apply. Since Chora itself is closed to most traffic, check where to park in Chora before you drive in for fuel. Why fuel costs 15% more here than on the mainland Folegandros unleaded 95 runs at roughly 15% above the Greek national average, and the Fuel Price Observatory numbers show it precisely, in its daily bulletin of 27 July 2026: ELIN's unleaded 95 was €2.300 per litre on 27 July 2026, against a national average of €1.999 per litre over the same late-July period. Shell's diesel was €2.070 per litre on 21 July 2026. The wider Cyclades regional average for unleaded sits around €2.25 per litre, so Folegandros is expensive even by island standards, not just against the mainland. The reason is logistical, not opportunistic. Folegandros has no deep-water commercial port, so fuel arrives on small coastal tankers that serve several minor islands on a multi-day "Agoni Grammi" (barren line) route rather than a direct mainland delivery. With fewer than 800 year-round residents, the two stations can't hold large reserves — they buy small, frequent shipments at spot prices, and every one of those shipments costs more per litre than a bulk mainland delivery. Two stations also means no local competitive pressure to hold prices down. There's a subsidy that explains why locals don't feel this the way visitors do. Under the Greek "Metaforiko Isodynamo" (Transport Equivalent, A.NH.KO.) programme, run by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Insular Policy, permanent islanders holding a Unique Islander Number (MAN) get a rebate that brings their effective fuel cost down to the mainland average. Visitors have no MAN and no rebate — the entire island premium lands on the tourist at the pump. That's one more reason not to buy more fuel than you need. The fuel policy every Folegandros agency actually uses — and why it is not full-to-full If you've rented cars elsewhere in Greece, you may expect "full-to-full": collect it full, return it full, no charge either way. That is not how any agency on Folegandros works. Every one uses "return as received" — the vehicle is handed over with whatever is in the tank, you note the level, and you return it at the same level. Kountouris Car Rentals states the rule most explicitly, and it's worth quoting in full from its general terms because it removes any ambiguity: "The renter must return the vehicle with the same amount of fuel he received. In case of return of the vehicle with less fuel than the starting fuel, the company reserves the right to charge the customer with the fuel difference. No refund is given if the vehicle is returned with more fuel than the starting fuel." Kountouris also allows delivery and return anywhere on the island, at any time, by arrangement, at no extra charge. Evo Rent a Car's terms put it more simply: "Gasoline consumption is payable by the renter." Evo checks the fuel quantity jointly with the customer and writes it on the contract at handover — do the same yourself, verbally or in writing, so there's no dispute later. My Car in Folegandros (Folegandros Tours) and Faros Rent a Car apply the identical rule: return with the same quantity, pay the difference if short, no refund or credit if you bring back more. Two-wheel and four-wheel operators — Donkey Scooters and Folegandros Moto / RoadRunner for quads and scooters — follow the same logic; quads and scooters are typically handed over part-full rather than topped off, so note the gauge or fuel light position at pickup. What is not established is how the shortfall is priced: whether agencies charge it at the pump rate of the day or apply an unpublished flat administrative fee. Treat that as an open question and ask at pickup. The simplest protection either way: photograph the fuel gauge (or, on a quad, the fuel light and any sight-gauge) at both pickup and drop-off, with a timestamp. Faros is reported, though not formally confirmed, to apply a €10-15 surcharge for deliveries or collections between 22:00 and 08:00, agreed at booking — worth asking about directly if your ferry lands or leaves outside normal hours. Why does the whole island run this way instead of full-to-full? Two physical facts explain it. First, the Shell station's listed hours end at 18:00 and ELIN publishes no confirmed after-hours schedule, so demanding a full tank to match a 07:00 ferry departure would be logistically impossible for the renter. Second, Chora sits roughly 200 m above Karavostasis port — a tank filled to the brim in Chora is measurably lower by the time the car has rolled down to the port. Full-to-full simply doesn't map onto this island's geography. How far you will really drive Folegandros has one paved spine, about 12 km long, running from Karavostasis port up to Chora and northwest through Ano Meria; most of what branches off it is unpaved track. For a full picture of surface conditions and where the tarmac ends, see driving in Folegandros. Distances below follow the island’s published road data rather than our own odometer. The one climb you will almost certainly drive twice — arriving and leaving — is Karavostasis to Chora: 3.5 km, rising about 200 m, an average gradient of roughly 5.7% as a continuous ascent, not a series of flat stretches with one steep bit. From Chora, Agali beach is 4.0 km away, Ano Meria is roughly 5.0-6.5 km depending how far along the settlement you're headed (it's strung out along the road rather than a single point), and the far northwest end near Ampeli and Agios Georgios is about 8.5 km. Driving the island end to end and back comes to under 30 km. If beach access is your main reason for the car, which beaches you can reach by car lays out the options against these same distances. On consumption: the local rental fleet is mostly A- and B-segment hatchbacks — Fiat Panda, Kia Picanto, Hyundai i10, Peugeot 108 — plus light SUVs like the Suzuki Jimny, and quads such as the Kymco MXU 170-450cc or CFMoto models. Loaded with four adults, luggage and the air conditioning running, climbing the 5.7% gradient in first or second gear, instantaneous consumption can spike to 12-14 litres per 100 km. Table A above uses a deliberately conservative blended figure of 8 litres per 100 km for the island overall, which already accounts for the hills. A small hatchback's tank holds about 35 litres, so even a genuinely heavy few days of driving uses a fraction of it. Quads carry much less — roughly 12-14 litres on a Kymco MXU 300 — and are thirsty on steep unpaved tracks, so they can run through a tank faster than a car covering the same distance. Refuelling around an early or late ferry Cyclades ferry schedules routinely put departures or arrivals at 07:00 or 23:30. Because Greek fuel stations are staffed rather than automated — no pay-at-pump anywhere on Folegandros — buying fuel at dawn or late at night is not an inconvenience, it's structurally impossible. If a station isn't open, there is no workaround. Work backwards from your ferry time: calculate what driving you have left, and refuel before 18:00 on the day before you leave, since 18:00 is the Shell station's stated closing time and ELIN publishes no separate seasonal hours to rely on. Given the "return as received" policy explained above, you're not trying to hit "full" — you're trying to match whatever level you'd normally return at, so there's no reason to rush a last-minute top-up. Agencies generally accept out-of-hours drop-offs at Karavostasis port for early ferries. Renters typically leave the vehicle in the municipal parking near the port bus station and hand over keys via a lockbox or however the agency instructs. This isn't standardised across operators, so confirm the exact handover protocol with your agency at pickup, not on the morning you leave. For the reverse trip — arriving and needing the car waiting — see Karavostasi port pickup. Electric vehicles on Folegandros There is exactly one public charging point on the island, hosted at the Evo Rent a Car facility in Chora (84011), on the DEI Blue (PPC Blue) network. You'll need the DEI Blue app and an account to use it, and it's listed on PlugShare. Evo's own fleet includes a Smart Electric Fortwo Cabrio. The point sits on Evo's own premises, so access is at their discretion — coordinate with them directly if you plan to rely on it. Range anxiety is close to irrelevant on a 12 km paved network, but there's a hard rule to know before you book an EV ferry crossing. Greek maritime regulations require fully electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles to board with a state of charge no higher than 40% of capacity, and LPG or natural-gas vehicles with tanks no more than 50% full; operators including Fast Ferries and Blue Star Ferries enforce this in their conditions of carriage. That means any EV disembarking at Karavostasis arrives with less than 40% charge by regulation, and on Folegandros that single Chora charger is the only place to top back up — see DEI Blue's charging guide for how the network and app work, and arrange access with Evo before you arrive. FAQ Should I fill the tank before returning a Folegandros rental car? No. Every agency on the island — Kountouris, Evo, My Car in Folegandros, Faros, Donkey Scooters, Folegandros Moto / RoadRunner — uses "return as received," not full-to-full, and none of them refunds fuel returned above the starting level. A full tank you didn't need is money left with the agency. How much fuel does a typical Folegandros rental actually use? For a typical three-day rental driving under 70 km total, expect about 5.6 litres at a conservative 8 l/100 km, which comes to roughly €13 at ELIN's €2.300-per-litre price recorded 27 July 2026. A full 35-litre tank, by contrast, costs about €80. Why is petrol so much more expensive on Folegandros than on the mainland? Roughly 15%, per the Greek Fuel Price Observatory: €2.300/litre unleaded on Folegandros versus a €1.999 national average. The island has no deep-water port, so fuel arrives by small coastal tanker on a multi-island "Agoni Grammi" route, and with only 765 year-round residents, operators can't buy in the bulk quantities that would bring the price down. Two stations also means no local price competition. Are ELIN and Shell/ARGO the only petrol stations on the island? Yes. Both are in or beside Chora — ELIN in the town centre, Shell (also listed as "ARGO" by the municipality) on Chora's Peripheral Road. There are none in Karavostasis or Ano Meria, so factor a stop in Chora into your route regardless of where you're staying. Can I pay by card at Folegandros petrol stations? Yes, both ELIN and Shell/ARGO accept cash and international Visa/Mastercard via wireless POS terminals. Both are full-service — an attendant pumps the fuel, as at every station in Greece — so there's no self-service or pay-at-pump option to plan around. What if I return the rental car with less fuel than I received it? The agency charges you for the shortfall. Kountouris Car Rentals' terms state this directly: the customer is charged the fuel difference if the vehicle comes back with less than the starting amount. How that difference is priced is not established — at the pump rate of the day, or as an unpublished flat administrative fee — so ask at pickup and photograph the fuel gauge both ways to avoid disputes. Can I charge an electric rental car on Folegandros? There is one public charger, at Evo Rent a Car's facility in Chora, on the DEI Blue network, requiring their app. If you're bringing or renting an EV, note that Greek ferry rules cap boarding charge at 40% of capacity for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, so you'll arrive at Karavostasis already below that level and will depend on the single Chora charger — arrange access with Evo in advance. Do I need to worry about running out of fuel driving around the island? Not for distance — the whole paved network is about 12 km end to end, and driving it end to end and back is under 30 km. The bigger risk is timing: since both stations are staffed with no after-hours option, refuel before 18:00 on your last full day rather than relying on being able to buy fuel right before an early or late ferry.