Origin
Summerville, SC
Late night in Summerville on Tuesday
Local time
5:02 AM
EDT
Current temp
86°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Trip from Summerville, SC to Charleston, SC
Pin this tripCompiled and reviewed by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 21, 2026 · Editorial standards
Drive Time
34m
Distance
25.5 mi
41 km
Drive Score
6/10
Good drive
Same Day?
Yes, doable
Fuel Cost
$4
one way
EV Charging
Unknown
Best Time to Leave
4 AM
0h 32m
★
6 AM
0h 34m
8 AM
0h 40m
10 AM
0h 37m
12 PM
0h 36m
3 PM
0h 37m
5 PM
0h 40m
8 PM
0h 33m
Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.
Summerville, SC
Wikimedia Commons
Trip Overview
If you are looking to travel from Summerville to Charleston, you are in for a quick 25.5-mile journey that typically takes about 34 minutes. This route is perfectly suited for a single-day trip, as the distance is short enough that you will not need to plan for overnight stays. You will primarily navigate via East Richardson Avenue, North Main Street, and I-26 East to reach your destination within the Southeast region. Budgeting for fuel is straightforward here, with an estimated cost of just $4 for the trip. Since this is a local transit between two South Carolina hubs, you can focus your energy on your time in the city rather than the commute itself.
Main Roads
| Road | Distance | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| I 26 | 21.2 mi | 25m |
| North Main Street | 2 mi | 3m |
| Meeting Street | 1.6 mi | 3m |
| East Richardson Avenue | <0.1 mi | <1m |
| Broad Street | <0.1 mi | <1m |
Longest stretch:
I 26
— 21.2 mi, about 25m
Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions
Step-by-step road directions between Summerville, SC and Charleston, SC.
1
Start on this road
92 ft
·
11 sec
·
this road
2
Turn left onto East Richardson Avenue
116 ft
·
7 sec
·
East Richardson Avenue
3
Turn right onto US 17 Alternate
2.0 mi
·
3 min
·
North Main Street
Use the right lane.
4
Take the ramp
0.4 mi
·
46 sec
Toward I-26 East
5
Merge onto I 26
21 mi
·
25 min
·
I 26
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
6
Take the exit
0.4 mi
·
52 sec
Exit 221B
Toward Meeting Street, Visitor Center, Downtown
7
Turn right onto US 52
1.6 mi
·
3 min
·
Meeting Street
Use the right lane.
8
Turn left onto Broad Street
40 ft
·
1 sec
·
Broad Street
9
Arrive at destination
Broad Street
Heads-up: tricky spots
5 of 75 decision points cluster between mile 0 and 23.9 — 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
|
East Richardson Avenue
Turn left onto East Richardson Avenue
Navigation decision point
5
0 mi into trip
|
~0m in
|
US 17 Alternate / North Main Street
Turn right onto US 17 Alternate / North Main Street
Lane positioning matters here
Use the right lane.
5
2.4 mi into trip
|
~4m in
|
I 26
Merge onto I 26
Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
6
23.5 mi into trip
|
~30m in
Take the exit toward Meeting Street, Visitor Center, Downtown
Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Multiple destination signs - pick the right one
Exit 221B
Toward Meeting Street, Visitor Center, Downtown
6
23.9 mi into trip
|
~31m in
|
US 52 / Meeting Street
Turn right onto US 52 / Meeting Street
Lane positioning matters here
Use the right lane.
Fuel & Cost
Regular Gas
$3.99 one way
$7.98 round trip
$3.97/gal
25.4 MPG avg
9 kg CO2
| Fuel Type | $/gal | One Way | Round Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| midgrade | $4.34 | $4.36 | $8.72 |
| premium | $4.70 | $4.72 | $9.44 |
| diesel | $5.61 | $5.63 | $11.26 |
No toll roads detected on this route.
Drive Cost (one way)
Fuel
$4
Estimated CO2 emission: 8.9 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.
Driving Electric?
About $3 in charging · 0 stops · 67% less CO2
| Vehicle Type | kWh | Stops | DC Fast | Home Charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average EV | 7.6 | 0 | $2.68 | $1.22 |
| Efficient EV | 6.4 | 0 | $2.23 | $1.02 |
| EV Truck/SUV | 10.2 | 0 | $3.57 | $1.63 |
Gas CO2
9 kg
EV CO2
3 kg (67% 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.
Destination
Charleston, SC
Late night in Charleston on Tuesday
Local time
5:02 AM
EDT
Current temp
82°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
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
4 degrees cooler at arrival
A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.
Road read
34m on the road
Use the two city cards together: check the sky where you start, then compare it with the local time and temperature at arrival.
Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.
What kind of drive is this?
Expect a turn-heavy local drive as you transition from the residential streets of Summerville toward the interstate. While you will utilize I-26 East, the route maintains a 0% highway share in terms of long-distance cruising, meaning you will spend much of your time navigating local infrastructure. The road changes personality as you move from the initial local streets onto the faster-paced interstate segments. Because there are no designated stops along the way, you should prepare for a direct, uninterrupted pull from start to finish. It is a practical, functional drive that requires your full attention on local navigation rather than scenic highway cruising.
83% highway — fuel and pacing are the main things to plan.
9 navigation steps total — most of the decisions cluster near the start and finish.
Longest single stretch: 21.2 mi on I 26.
How Hard Is This Drive?
4/10
This is a straightforward highway drive that stays mostly on I 26 and North Main Street. There are only a few real navigation decisions along the way. The trickiest moment comes early in the drive near East Richardson Avenue.
Driving Effort
4/10
Easy - simple navigation with a manageable amount of wheel time
Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.
This is a straightforward 34m 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 (East Richardson Avenue): Navigation decision point; near the start (US 17 Alternate / North Main Street): Lane positioning matters here; at 2.4 miles (I 26): Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here.
Towns Mentioned on Route Signs
Based on OSRM destination-sign hints, not a full list of every settlement the road passes.
Towns Mentioned on Route Signs
Based on OSRM destination-sign hints, not a full list of every settlement the road passes.
Between Summerville, SC and Charleston, SC, road signs point toward Visitor Center and Downtown.
Visitor Center
23.5 mi in
|
~30m
Downtown
23.5 mi in
|
~30m
About the Cities
Arriving in Charleston, SC
Full guide →Charleston is the largest and oldest city in the state of South Carolina in the United States of America. Its historic downtown is on a peninsula formed by two rivers, the Ashley and the Cooper, flowing into the Atlantic, and protected from the open ocean by surrounding islands. Charleston was captured in the American Civil War without much property damage, so the historic part of town has buildings that are hundreds of years old. The current downtown skyline, with practically no tall buildings due to the city's height restriction ordinance, is dominated by church steeples and the stunning Arthur Ravenel cable-stay bridge over the Cooper River. The city is a major port on the eastern seaboard of the U.S. and a popular destination for domestic and international tourists.
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 34m. Total distance: 25.5 miles.
Family Friendly
Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.
Solo Traveler
34m drive, comfortable solo distance.
EV Driver
0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.
First-Time Driver
Mostly highway driving (83%). Straightforward navigation.
Frequently Asked Questions
The longest stretch is about 21.2 miles on I 26. 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 (East Richardson Avenue): Navigation decision point; near the start (US 17 Alternate / North Main Street): Lane positioning matters here; at 2.4 miles (I 26): Merge point - match speed before joining. Lane positioning matters here.
Yes — Fort Sumter and Fort Moultrie National Historical Park. See the National Parks section for detour distances and tips on detours.
Yes. A round trip is manageable in a single day if you plan a break at Charleston, SC 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, EIA for fuel prices, and NPS for national parks. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.
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