Traveling across the USA
on your own motorhome.
Budget 2022

This article was born thanks to several families who contacted us for advice on buying motorhomes in the USA.

As this trend is gaining momentum, we decided to calculate and show those who are just hatching this idea how much a trip will cost when you buy a motorhome at the beginning of the journey and sell it at the end.

If you like freedom, the road, nature and comfort at the same time, then discovering America in a motorhome is the best thing you can think of!
The scheme is simple:

Planning a route
We are going to the USA
Buying a motorhome
Making a dream come true!

Why buy when you can rent?

It’s cheaper to buy in the end
On average, the cost of renting a mobile home per day is $ 100-$ 250 per day, depending on the season. Within a month, you can find options for $ 3,000−5,000 (including mileage). If you do not want to return to the same place where you rented the house, then the one-way fee may amount to another $ 200-$ 700.

Read more about how to rent a motorhome in the USA and Europe here

If you have your own RV, then, with luck, you can sell it for the same money as you bought or even more expensive.
However, the process of searching, buying and selling at the end of the journey requires a lot of time and knowledge. Here we can help, even to the point that you arrive in the USA and you will be met at the airport already on your trailer.
See the details here

If you want to try what a mobile home is like in your homeland before coming to the USA, then you are here.

Planning an RV trip across the USA

Prices are current for 2022
1. Purchase of a motorhome.
from $15,000


For this amount, you can buy a reliable used trailer. I wrote detailed instructions on how to find and buy a mobile home in the USA here
2. Registration, insurance
from $30 to $3500
If you do everything yourself, you will meet the minimum amount. You can read how to register a car for a tourist in the USA here.

If you want a mobile home to be found for you, checked, bought, decorated and prepared for your arrival, the amount can be $2,500 - $3,500. You can order the purchase of a motorhome in the USA here
3. Overnight stays and parking
from $0

You can stay in free parking lots. There are quite a lot of them in any State.

If you want more comfort, paid campsites cost an average of $50 per day. Prices in popular tourist destinations can reach up to $120 per day.

Resources for finding overnight accommodation on a motorhome
  1. Website and application: http://ioverlander.com - camping sites, parking (paid/free), water, damp station and much more
  2. Website: https://freecampsites.net/ - free and paid camping sites
  3. Website and application: https://www.parkadvisor.com - camping sites
  4. Website and application: https://www.rvparky.com/ - camping sites, parking lots
  5. Search engine website: http://www.uscampgrounds.info/ - information about campsites
  6. Overnight stay at a private property https://www.boondockerswelcome.com/ (subscription is paid)
Hotels/airbnb average from $70 per night.
4. Supplies for mobile homes
$130 - $270
-Gas (used in stove, refrigerator and heater) - $50 - $60 per month
-Water (tank replenishment 2 times a week) $0 - $50
-Sewer drain $50-$100
-Oil change and maintenance. service from $100


5. Бензин
$400-$600
В США не особо заморачиваются за экономию топлива, поэтому автодом на базе самого популярного FORD с большим двигателем, будет расходовать 25-30 л на 100км. Стоимость бензина в зависимости от Штата колеблется в районе $0,7 - $1,2 за литр. Если вы будет проезжать 2000 км в месяц, то ваши траты на бензин составят $450-$600
6. Food.
$1500-$2000
If you cook in a trailer, you can cover from $1,500 per month for the whole family.
A list of the most budget-friendly retail chains.
  1. Aldi.
  2. WinCo.
  3. Fareway.
  4. Sprouts and Fresh Thyme. - our favorite
  5. Trader Joe's.
  6. Salvage grocery outlets.
7. Communication
$25-$70
Such prices)
8. Entertainment, National Parks
from $100 per person
In the USA, you will find a huge number of national parks of various sizes, many of which have campgrounds for trailers. It often costs money to enter the park itself.


Итого: $3000-$4000
A budget option for monthly expenses for a family of 4 traveling on their own motorhome.
(excluding expenses for the purchase and registration of trailers, paragraphs 1, 2 )
How long to travel
Traveling in your own mobile home will allow you to get to know America in a completely different way, because here an RV is a whole culture.

The recommended duration of the trip is from 1 month

A tourist visa allows you to stay in the United States for up to 180 days a year (however, you should not abuse American hospitality).

If you want to stay on the continent, then you can go to Mexico, where you will also be stamped for 6 months and life here is much cheaper, but this is a separate story (the idea of a road trip to Mexico).
What else are we writing about
show more
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