Murray Bridge Unleaded Holds at 244.9 While Every Mount Barker Servo Cuts Up to 5 Cents
All 12 servos between Mount Barker and Balhannah have cut their unleaded price since Tuesday. About 40 km further down the South Eastern Freeway, none of the six servos in Murray Bridge has lodged a price change since 10th Oct.
All figures here come from official South Australia fuel price data, as at 8:15am AEDT on 16th Oct 2026.
Where the two towns sit today
- Mount Barker area (12 servos across Mount Barker, Newenham, Littlehampton, Nairne, Hahndorf and Balhannah): median 238.9, range 237.5 to 239.4
- Murray Bridge (6 servos): median 244.9, range 243.9 to 248.9
- Adelaide metro (228 servos): median 237.9
That leaves Murray Bridge 6.0 cents above the Mount Barker median and 7.0 cents above Adelaide.
How the gap moved
Through the latest cycle, the two medians looked like this:
- 4th Oct, the low: Mount Barker 235.7 and Murray Bridge 240.8, a gap of 5.1 cents
- 10th Oct, the peak: Mount Barker 242.4 and Murray Bridge 244.9, a gap of 2.5 cents
- 16th Oct: Mount Barker 238.9 and Murray Bridge 244.9, a gap of 6.0 cents
Mount Barker rose 6.7 cents into the peak, against 4.1 for Murray Bridge, which narrowed the gap. Then, between Tuesday 13th and Thursday 15th Oct, every Mount Barker area servo cut by 2.0 to 5.0 cents. Murray Bridge has not moved at all.
Same brand, different town
The comparison that caught my eye is the same brand in both towns, because it takes brand pricing out of the picture. Today's unleaded gaps:
- Ampol Murray Bridge is on 248.9 and Ampol Foodary Mount Barker on 238.9, a gap of 10.0 cents
- X Convenience charges 244.9 in Murray Bridge and 237.5 in Mount Barker, a gap of 7.4 cents
- BP Murray Bridge East is on 244.9 and BP Littlehampton on 237.5, also 7.4 cents apart
- EG Ampol charges 244.9 in Murray Bridge and 238.9 in Mt Barker, a gap of 6.0 cents
- OTR on Swanport Road, Murray Bridge is on 244.9 and Knott Street, Mount Barker on 239.4, a gap of 5.5 cents
On 9th Oct, four of those five pairs were within 2.4 cents of each other. Ampol was the only one to keep a wide gap through the peak, at 5.0 cents.
Diesel shows a similar pattern. Regular diesel at Ampol, BP and United in Murray Bridge is 287.9 to 289.9, compared with 283.4 at Ampm Mount Barker and 282.5 at BP Littlehampton. No servo in either town lists E10.
Around Murray Bridge
United Tailem Bend, about 25 km south east, has held 238.9 since 8th Oct, 6 cents under the Murray Bridge median. Ampol Tailem Bend cut 3 cents to 242.9 on Thursday night, and Astron Mannum cut 1 cent to the same price. Callington General Store went the other way, lifting 5 cents to 248.9 on 12th Oct. Up in the Adelaide Hills, Stirling and Crafers are on 239.9.
Will Murray Bridge follow?
It did last cycle. On 29th and 30th Sep, X Convenience and Ampm Mount Barker cut 2.4 and 3.4 cents, and Murray Bridge followed within a day, with BP Murray Bridge East cutting 3.0 cents and OTR Swanport Road 2.2 cents.
This time, three days after Mount Barker's first cut, Murray Bridge prices have not changed. They may yet follow in the coming days, but for now the gap is 6.0 cents, more than double the 2.5 cents it reached at the peak.
What this means for motorists
If you commute between Murray Bridge and Mount Barker or Adelaide, filling at the Mount Barker end saves about 6 cents a litre. On a 60 litre tank that is $3.60, or $6.00 between the two Ampol sites. The savings calculator will work it out for your own car.
The cheapest unleaded in the corridor this morning is 237.5, at BP Littlehampton, both X Convenience sites (Mount Barker and Newenham) and Shell Get & Go Hahndorf. If you are heading south east instead, United Tailem Bend at 238.9 is the cheaper option.
Petrolmate's unleaded petrol prices page and price trends tool will show whether Murray Bridge follows the Hills down.
The numbers are clear: for now, the 40 km between Murray Bridge and Mount Barker is worth about 6 cents a litre.