March 12, 2026 - WASHINGTON, DC – Spring Break season is here as the national average for a gallon of regular gasoline jumped nearly 35 cents since last week. Current prices are similar to the spring of 2024. Gasoline demand increases this time of year as the weather warms up and more drivers hit the road. Crude oil prices play a major role in what drivers pay at the pump, and prices have surpassed the $100/barrel mark multiple times in recent days. To help offset rising prices, the U.S. announced it will release 172 million barrels of oil from its strategic reserves over four months. The move is part of a broader effort by the International Energy Agency to release a total of 400 million barrels of oil, the largest emergency release in its history.
Today’s National Average: $3.598
One Week Ago: $3.251
One Month Ago: $2.944
One Year Ago: $3.080
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According to new data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), gasoline demand increased last week from 8.29 million b/d to 9.24 million. Total domestic gasoline supply decreased from 253.1 million barrels to 249.5 million. Gasoline production increased last week, averaging 9.9 million barrels per day.
Oil Market Dynamics
At the close of Wednesday’s formal trading session, WTI rose $3.80 to settle at $87.25 a barrel. The EIA reports crude oil inventories increased by 3.8 million barrels from the previous week. At 443.1 million barrels, U.S. crude oil inventories are about 2% below the five-year average for this time of year.
EV Charging
The national average per kilowatt hour of electricity at a public EV charging station went up by 2 cents this past week to 41 cents.
State Stats
Gas
The nation’s top 10 most expensive gasoline markets are California ($5.36), Hawaii ($4.76), Washington ($4.74), Nevada ($4.39), Oregon ($4.30), Arizona ($4.06), Alaska ($3.96), Florida ($3.71), Pennsylvania ($3.66), and Illinois ($3.66).
The nation’s top 10 least expensive gasoline markets are Kansas ($3.04), Oklahoma ($3.05), North Dakota ($3.09), Arkansas ($3.11), Missouri ($3.12), Mississippi ($3.16), South Dakota ($3.18), Kentucky ($3.19), Wisconsin ($3.21), and Iowa ($3.22).
Electric
The nation’s top 10 most expensive states for public charging per kilowatt hour are West Virginia (54 cents), Hawaii (51 cents), Alaska (50 cents), New Hampshire (47 cents), Louisiana (47 cents), South Carolina (46 cents), California (45 cents), New Jersey (45 cents), Arkansas (44 cents), and North Dakota (43 cents).
The nation’s top 10 least expensive states for public charging per kilowatt hour are Kansas (29 cents), Missouri (31 cents), Nebraska (33 cents), Iowa (33 cents), Maryland (33 cents), Utah (34 cents), Vermont (34 cents), South Dakota (34 cents), Delaware (36 cents), and Colorado (38 cents).
Drivers can find current gas and electric charging prices along their route using the AAA TripTik Travel planner.
Source: AAA
