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Trip from Mead, CO to Fort Collins, CO

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Compiled and reviewed by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 21, 2026 · Editorial standards

Drive Time

37m

Distance

30 mi

48 km

Drive Score

6/10

Good drive

Same Day?

Yes, doable

Fuel Cost

$5

one way

EV Charging

Good

8 stations

Best Time to Leave

Save up to 9 min
4 AM
0h 34m ★
6 AM
0h 37m
8 AM
0h 43m
10 AM
0h 39m
12 PM
0h 39m
3 PM
0h 40m
5 PM
0h 43m
8 PM
0h 35m

Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.

Best Time Drive vs Fly
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Downtown Mead, CO, CO

Mead, CO

Mikhail Nilov

city and county seat of Larimer County, Colorado, United States

Fort Collins, CO

Wikimedia Commons

Trip Overview

Mead to Fort Collins is 30 miles and takes about 37 minutes via Dwight D. Eisenhower Highway, with a fuel budget near $5 and enough daylight to finish in a day. This short drive stays within Colorado's Mountain West region, offering a straightforward local transit feel. It's a good option if you're looking for a quick hop between two points without a significant time commitment. Expect a fairly direct journey that won't eat up much of your day.

Main Roads

Road Distance Duration
Dwight D. Eisenhower Highway 24 mi 23m
East Mulberry Street 4 mi 7m
Welker Avenue 1 mi 2m
West Mulberry Street 0.3 mi <1m
South Sherwood Street 0.2 mi <1m
South Meldrum Street <0.1 mi <1m
West Magnolia Street <0.1 mi <1m
3rd Street <0.1 mi <1m
Longest stretch: Dwight D. Eisenhower Highway — 24 mi, about 23m

Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions

Step-by-step road directions between Mead, CO and Fort Collins, CO.

1

Start on 3rd Street

27 ft · 6 sec · 3rd Street
2

Turn left onto Welker Avenue

1.0 mi · 2 min · Welker Avenue
3

Take the ramp

0.2 mi · 25 sec
4

Merge onto I 25

24 mi · 23 min · Dwight D. Eisenhower Highway
5

Take the exit

0.2 mi · 23 sec
Exit 269B Toward CO 14 West: Fort Collins
6

Merge onto CO 14

4.0 mi · 7 min · East Mulberry Street
Use the straight lane.
7

Continue on West Mulberry Street

0.3 mi · 45 sec · West Mulberry Street
Use the left / straight lanes.
8

Turn right onto South Meldrum Street

499 ft · 29 sec · South Meldrum Street
9

Turn left onto West Magnolia Street

476 ft · 18 sec · West Magnolia Street
10

Continue on South Sherwood Street

0.2 mi · 39 sec · South Sherwood Street
11

Arrive at destination

South Sherwood Street

Heads-up: tricky spots

5 of 7

5 decision points cluster between mile 0 and 29.8 — GPS handles the exact turns, but know they're coming. Your lane choice matters more than the turn itself.

4
0 mi into trip | ~0m in | Welker Avenue

Turn left onto Welker Avenue

Navigation decision point

5
25.2 mi into trip | ~27m in

Take the exit toward CO 14 West: Fort Collins

Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early

Exit 269B Toward CO 14 West: Fort Collins
5
25.4 mi into trip | ~27m in | CO 14 / East Mulberry Street

Merge onto CO 14 / East Mulberry Street

Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here

Use the straight lane.
5
29.7 mi into trip | ~35m in | South Meldrum Street

Turn right onto South Meldrum Street

Navigation decision point

5
29.8 mi into trip | ~36m in | West Magnolia Street

Turn left onto West Magnolia Street

Navigation decision point

Fuel & Cost

Regular Gas

$4.52 one way

$9.04 round trip

$3.83/gal 25.4 MPG avg 11 kg CO2
Fuel Type $/gal One Way Round Trip
midgrade $4.05 $4.79 $9.57
premium $4.39 $5.19 $10.38
diesel $5.61 $6.62 $13.25

No toll roads detected on this route.

Drive Cost (one way)

Fuel

$5

Estimated CO2 emission: 10.5 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.

Driving Electric?

About $3 in charging · 0 stops · 60% less CO2

Vehicle Type kWh Stops DC Fast Home Charge
Average EV 9 0 $3.15 $1.44
Efficient EV 7.5 0 $2.63 $1.20
EV Truck/SUV 12 0 $4.20 $1.92

Gas CO2

10 kg

EV CO2

4 kg (60% less)

This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.

DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.

Travel Intel

Current conditions at both ends of the drive.

Forecast as of Apr 17, 2026

Origin

Mead, CO

Morning in Mead on Tuesday

Local time

9:19 AM

MDT

Current temp

41°F

Chance Snow Showers

N 16 mph 36% chance Live forecast

Red Flag Warning

Red Flag Warning issued April 17 at 3:42PM MDT until April 17 at 6:00PM MDT by NWS Pueblo CO

Freeze Warning

Freeze Warning issued April 17 at 2:46PM MDT until April 18 at 8:00AM MDT by NWS Denver CO

Destination

Fort Collins, CO

Morning in Fort Collins on Tuesday

Local time

9:19 AM

MDT

Current temp

42°F

Chance Snow Showers

NNW 17 mph 36% chance Live forecast

Red Flag Warning

Red Flag Warning issued April 17 at 3:42PM MDT until April 17 at 6:00PM MDT by NWS Pueblo CO

Freeze Warning

Freeze Warning issued April 17 at 2:46PM MDT until April 18 at 8:00AM MDT by NWS Denver CO

Time zone

Same local time

Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.

Temperature spread

1 degrees warmer at arrival

A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.

Road read

37m on the road

The weather snapshot is not static. If you are leaving later, give both cities one more quick forecast check before departure.

Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.

What kind of drive is this?

This route is characterized as a 'turn-heavy local drive,' with no highway driving percentage. The longest uninterrupted stretch you'll encounter is 24 miles on the Dwight D. Eisenhower Highway. You'll navigate through local roads, so be prepared for more frequent turns and changes in speed limits as you transition between different areas. The road's personality is less about open highway cruising and more about connecting local points efficiently.

Only 0% highway — the rest is turn-by-turn surface driving.
11 navigation steps total — most of the decisions cluster near the start and finish.
Longest single stretch: 24 mi on Dwight D. Eisenhower Highway.

How Hard Is This Drive?

3/10

Expect a hands-on drive with frequent turns and local roads rather than long highway stretches. There are only a few real navigation decisions along the way. The trickiest moment comes early in the drive near Welker Avenue.

Driving Effort 3/10

Easy - simple navigation with a manageable amount of wheel time

Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.

This is a straightforward 37m drive. You will face about 7 decision points, but nothing that requires special attention if you follow navigation.

Where does it get tricky?

The main spots that need attention: near the start (Welker Avenue): Navigation decision point; at 25.2 miles: Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early; at 25.4 miles (CO 14 / East Mulberry Street): Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here.

About the Cities

Arriving in Fort Collins, CO

Full guide →

Fort Collins is a city of about 170,000 in north central region of the western U.S. state of Colorado. The seat of Larimer County, the city lies 59 miles (95 km) north of Denver on the Cache La Poudre River at the eastern edge of the Front Range foothills. Fort Collins is the home of Colorado State University and is a major research center.

City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).

Who Is This Route For?

Weekend Trip

Doable as a same-day drive at 37m. Total distance: 30 miles.

Family Friendly

Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.

Solo Traveler

37m drive, comfortable solo distance.

EV Driver

0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.

First-Time Driver

Mostly highway driving (0%). Straightforward navigation.

Scenic Drive

Mostly surface roads route profile.

Frequently Asked Questions

The longest stretch is about 24 miles on Dwight D. Eisenhower Highway. The full list of main roads is in the Roads section above.

Yes. At under 2 hours behind the wheel, this works well for families — plan one quick stop if you have younger kids.

The main spots that need attention: near the start (Welker Avenue): Navigation decision point; at 25.2 miles: Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early; at 25.4 miles (CO 14 / East Mulberry Street): Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here.

Yes. A round trip is manageable in a single day if you plan a break at Fort Collins, CO before heading back.

How this page is built

Compiled by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, and EIA for fuel prices. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.

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