South African app shows which petrol stations to use for best rewards and cheapest diesel
A recently-launched online app in South Africa shows motorists which fuel stations they should use for the cheapest refills and best cash-back rewards from their banking and other fuel rewards programmes.
The tool — called MyTank — was developed by Capetonian Rob Gardner and is available on a browser at mytank.co.za or as an Android app.
Gardner describes himself as an entrepreneur interested in tech and product design.
MyTank is his first app and was initially just a loose idea, but he decided to run with it as he thought it could add a lot of value to the average user.
He initially created the app focusing on the diesel price because this could vary significantly from station to station within a small area.
By adding the rewards section, the app has also become relevant to petrol buyers that pay the same, regulated retail price for their fuel within the same areas, but might get wildly varying cash-back rewards depending on the stations they use.
“Some of the rewards programmes are notoriously hard to decode, so I wanted to provide a simple ‘apples-for-apples’ comparison and keep it super easy and intuitive with just enough info to allow users to make informed decisions,” Gardner explained.
“I worked out I was sometimes getting less back in rewards than what it cost in fuel driving to a specific fuel station.”
“The app does all the sums for you and just tells you where to go and what rewards programme to use if you have several.”
By default, the free website-based tool and app have a map that shows where the user can find fuel stations and allows users to see the price of filling up a 55-litre tank at each of these outlets.
That includes the cost of fuel for driving to the station from the user’s location.
To search for available stations, you must either agree to provide your location or enter it manually in a search bar.
This screenshot from the mytank.co.za website shows the fuel stations available within a 50km radius from a location in Centurion. We could also scroll through and see how much it would cost to fill up a 55-litre tank at each of the stations.
Registering for an account lets you adjust your fuel tank size for your specific vehicle and add their fuel rewards programmes with applicable levels/tiers for personalised results.
To register an account, you must enter a name, surname, and email address, which can be done on the web or the mobile app.
MyTank then calculates and ranks the fuel stations you should use for the cheapest refills, showing how much value you would earn from rewards programmes at each station.
Users can choose to see the petrol or diesel price per litre or the price to fill up an entire tank and can also have the app deduct the value they earn from their rewards programme from refuelling costs.
MyBroadband did a quick test of the app and found that it was calculating the correct prices for an eBucks Rewards Level 5 and Clicks Club Card member.
For those still unsure about how the app functions, Gardner posted a short video on YouTube to explain.
The account section (left) allows for personalising results based on your car’s tank size and applicable rewards programmes, shown for each station (right) within your vicinity.
Gardner believes the potential deregulation of retail unleaded 93 petrol prices will grow the app’s value further.
The change could see fuel stations charging different prices for this grade of petrol, and more South Africans would be interested in knowing what the petrol stations in their areas charge for fuel.
He told MyBroadband he was negotiating with oil companies to get their fuel stations listed.
“Fuel stations — should they wish to subscribe — can set all their details, such as amenities, facilities and ATMs, restaurants, load-shedding status, and diesel price, as well as advertise their specials and promotions,” Gardner said.
At the time of MyBroadband’s test, we found numerous stations from prominent fuel companies — including BP, Caltex, Engen, MBT, Puma, Shell, and Total — mapped on the app in Gauteng.
We also checked various other smaller cities and towns around the country and found they had plenty of stations mapped.
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