How To Get Cheaper Gas By Simply Sending A Text Message From Your Phone With Murphy Murpay

If you have been following a few of my previous articles about saving money, I have something that should be of real interest to you. While I was doing my gas experiment for my car, one of the gas stations had an interesting sign. I was at a Murphy USA station, which in our area usually has very low gas prices as it is, but they promised a way to help reduce expenses even more, at no cost to the user! And I get to use my cell phone in the process.

I'll admit I was skeptical, as I'm the type of guy that thinks "There is no such thing as a free lunch!" but this one actually pans out. It will only work at a Murphy USA gas station, but according to the website it will work at all of their US locations. You first visit their website murpay.com, and setup a free account. You then signup for a free account, putting a credit card on file along with your cell number (BONUS TIP: USE A CREDIT CARD WITH CASH BACK FOR GREATER SAVINGS!). When you arrive at the gas station you send a text message to a particular number with the amount you intend on spending. You then get an authorization code sent back to you that you can punch into the pump, or even at the counter if you want to buy snacks.

So where does the savings come in? Well let's say you request a pre authorization of $30, but you only pump $24.95. You're only being charged the $24.95 price tag, not the $30, so don't worry about getting an exact amount. Generally folks have an idea about how much their gas bill will be. As you may or may not know, gas stations often times change their prices on fuel, even sometimes more than once a day. By using this service, you will get the best price on gas over the last 24 hour period. So lets say you missed the really good deal on gas yesterday, don't worry about it, you can still get it. If the gas prices have stayed stable over the past 24 hours you'll at least get an additional $.03 off per gallon. Ok so it's not much, but it's something.. Their website states that you'll get which ever is cheaper.. It's unclear if it's whatever is cheaper for you or them...

I thought this was a pretty nifty way of making a gas payment, and if you have a teenager that you don't want to give a credit card to, this is a great way to track expenses. Murpay offers individual, family, and even commercial account setups, do you have flexibility. At the very least you'll get a few cents off per gallon. Now lets just hope you have unlimited text messaging!