Why Are Gas Prices High Right Now?
Pump prices for the week of August 10, 2026 · Updated August 13, 2026
The U.S. average price of regular gasoline is $4.01/gallon as of August 10, 2026, 27.6% higher than the $3.14 it cost a year earlier, per EIA. The reason is crude oil, which makes up about 48% of what you pay at the pump. Crude ran from $60 a barrel in January 2026 to $102 in May 2026, and EIA attributes that increase to reduced oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. Taxes and state fuel rules explain why your state differs from the national average, but they are not why the national average moved.
What you are actually paying for
A gallon of gasoline is four costs stacked on top of each other. Only one of them moves much from week to week.
| Component | Share of the pump price | What sets it |
|---|---|---|
| Crude oil | 52% | A single world market price. Every state pays roughly the same. |
| Refining | 22% | Refinery capacity, outages, and the fuel blend a region requires. |
| Distribution & marketing | 15% | Pipelines, trucking, and station margins. Rises with distance from a refinery. |
| Taxes | 12% | Federal 18.4¢/gal plus state taxes and fees, which vary widely. |
Component shares: EIA, "What we pay for in a gallon of regular gasoline," May 2026 (retail price $4.48/gal that month). Our own live calculation puts crude at $1.92 of a $4.01 gallon, about 48%, using EIA's WTI spot average for July 2026 divided by 42 gallons per barrel.
What actually moved this year: crude oil
West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark, averaged $60/barrel in January 2026 and $102/barrel in May 2026, a swing of about 70%. It was $80 in July 2026. Because crude is roughly half the pump price, a move of that size shows up at the station within a few weeks.
EIA's Short-Term Energy Outlook attributes the increase to supply disruption rather than demand. In its August 2026 edition, EIA reported that crude oil and petroleum liquids moving through the Strait of Hormuz fell to 4.9 million barrels per day in the second quarter of 2026, down from an average of 21.6 million b/d in the fourth quarter of 2025, and that production shut-ins averaged 5.5 million b/d in July.
The U.S. average since 2020
View recent weeks as a table
| Week | Regular ($/gal) | Diesel ($/gal) |
|---|---|---|
| August 10, 2026 | 4.01 | 5.26 |
| August 3, 2026 | 4.08 | 5.35 |
| July 27, 2026 | 4.1 | 5.31 |
| July 20, 2026 | 4.0 | 5.13 |
| July 13, 2026 | 3.85 | 4.8 |
| July 6, 2026 | 3.78 | 4.58 |
| June 29, 2026 | 3.83 | 4.67 |
| June 22, 2026 | 3.91 | 4.83 |
| June 15, 2026 | 4.05 | 5.06 |
| June 8, 2026 | 4.15 | 5.21 |
| June 1, 2026 | 4.3 | 5.35 |
| May 25, 2026 | 4.47 | 5.52 |
| May 18, 2026 | 4.49 | 5.6 |
| Year | Average | Low | High |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | $2.17 | $1.77 | $2.58 |
| 2021 | $3.01 | $2.25 | $3.41 |
| 2022 | $3.95 | $3.09 | $5.01 |
| 2023 | $3.52 | $3.05 | $3.88 |
| 2024 | $3.30 | $3.01 | $3.67 |
| 2025 | $3.10 | $2.81 | $3.24 |
| 2026 (through August 10, 2026) | $3.73 | $2.78 | $4.50 |
Weekly U.S. regular all-formulations retail price, EIA. 2026 figures cover the year so far.
Why your state is different
Crude trades on a world market, so it is not why one state costs more than another. The spread comes from taxes, fuel-blend requirements, and how far fuel has to travel from a refinery. This week California averages $5.58 against $3.57 in Louisiana, a gap of $2.01 a gallon on the same barrel of oil.
See all 50 states ranked, each with its price broken into crude, taxes, and everything else. State averages are from AAA as of August 13, 2026.
Will gas prices go down?
EIA projects they will. Its Short-Term Energy Outlook, as of August 13, 2026, has the U.S. average falling from $3.78/gallon in 2026 to $3.29/gallon in 2027, with Brent crude easing from $87 to $69 a barrel as shut-in production is restored and inventories rebuild.
This is EIA's projection, not ours. EIA reissues the outlook every month and the numbers move between editions, so treat it as a current official estimate rather than a settled fact. We pull it straight from EIA's API on our weekly refresh, so this page cannot keep quoting a superseded edition. Everything else on this page is measured data, not a forecast.
Frequently asked questions
Why are gas prices going up right now?
The dominant driver is crude oil, which EIA's price breakdown puts at about half the cost of a gallon. West Texas Intermediate crude ran from $60/barrel in January 2026 to $102/barrel in May 2026, a swing of about 70%. EIA attributes the 2026 increase to reduced oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz and the resulting production shut-ins. The U.S. average is $4.01/gallon as of August 10, 2026.
How much of the price of gas is crude oil?
About 48% right now. Crude averaged $1.92/gallon-equivalent in July 2026 against a pump price of $4.01. EIA's own component breakdown for May 2026 put crude at 52% of the retail price (EIA), refining at 22%, distribution and marketing at 15%, and taxes at 12%.
Will gas prices go down?
EIA's Short-Term Energy Outlook projects the U.S. average will fall from $3.78/gallon in 2026 to $3.29/gallon in 2027, as shut-in production is restored and global inventories rebuild. That is EIA's forecast, not ours, and forecasts move with every monthly edition.
Why is gas so much more expensive in California than in Texas?
State taxes, fuel-blend rules, and refinery and pipeline access, not different crude prices. Crude trades on a world market, so every state pays about the same for it. California averages $5.58 against $3.57 in Louisiana, a spread of $2.01. Our gas-prices hub decomposes every state's price into crude, taxes, and everything else.
Do gas prices fall as fast as they rise?
Compare the two series rather than trusting an impression. The weekly pump prices on this page run alongside the monthly crude figures above, so you can line up a given run-up or decline in crude against what happened at the station in the weeks that followed. EIA publishes both series.
Related
Sources: EIA Gasoline and Diesel Fuel Update (weekly retail prices, price components), EIA Short-Term Energy Outlook (crude and gasoline projections), EIA WTI Cushing spot price, AAA (state averages), and the Tax Foundation (state fuel taxes). See methodology.