There are three energy categories within Shell Eco-marathon: battery-electric, hydrogen fuel cell, and internal combustion engine (gasoline, ethanol, or diesel).

The pinnacle of the competition is the Shell Eco-marathon Drivers' World Championship, where the most energy-efficient UrbanConcept vehicles compete in a race with a limited amount of energy.

The 2018 competition season includes events held in Singapore, California, Paris, London, Istanbul, Johannesburg, Rio de Janeiro, India, and China.

In 1939, a group of Shell scientists based in a research laboratory in Wood River, Illinois, USA, had a friendly bet to see who could drive their own car furthest on one gallon of fuel.

[13] The current European Shell Eco-marathon[14] record for a combustion engine entry was set in 2004 by the team from Lycée La Joliverie (France) at 3,410 km on the equivalent of a single litre of fuel.

In 2005, a hydrogen-powered vehicle built by Swiss team ETH Zurich achieved a projected 3,836 km on the equivalent of a single litre of fuel.

During the competition, cars must attain an average speed of at least 15 mph (23 km/h) over a distance of 10 miles (16 km).