The national average price for regular gas fell to under $3 per gallon on Tuesday, with a cost of $2.998.
It is the first time regular gas has averaged under $3 per gallon since 2021, according to AAA. It is a price threshold that the Trump administration has touted for several months, as the national average gas price has hovered near this point since October. With Tuesday’s price of $2.998 per gallon, the national average cost for a gallon of regular gas is at its lowest point since May 2021, when it was $2.985, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Gas prices had been trending toward under $3 per gallon since the end of last week, during the Thanksgiving holiday. On Wednesday, the day before the holiday, the national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline was $3.042; on Thanksgiving, fuel costs dropped to slightly over $3.02 per gallon. By Sunday, the national average price for a gallon of regular gas was $3.005, and on Monday, it settled at $3.001 per gallon.
Previously, the petroleum analysis company GasBuddy claimed that gas prices had dropped below the $3-per-gallon threshold on Oct. 20. However, they were primarily alone in their projections as other gas analyses continued to show national average prices above $3 per gallon, including AAA.
Cheaper gas prices and an overall improvement in affordability for Americans were a campaign promise of then-candidate Donald Trump in 2024. And as the Trump administration has regularly touted falling gas prices in recent months, so far, it has been a promise kept.
Gas price affordability has been a staple since President Donald Trump began his second term in January (as well as his first term). After setting record-high prices during the Joe Biden presidential administration in 2022, gas prices have gradually decreased over the past two years, particularly in the second half of 2024. Gas prices have remained steady this year, fluctuating within a price range of $3.02 to $3.21. During the summer months, there was no customary surge in gas prices, and fuel costs began to decline as autumn arrived.
Despite the current national average price for gas being under $3 per gallon, prices vary throughout the U.S., depending on the region of the country. The West Coast has the most expensive gas prices in the country, while states in the Gulf of America region and those adjacent to it have the most affordable gas prices. As of Monday, 31 states had average gas prices under $3 per gallon.
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Oklahoma is the state with the cheapest gas prices in the country, with an average price of $2.404 per gallon, according to AAA. Texas has the next lowest gas prices at $2.554. This is followed by Arkansas at $2.573 per gallon and Mississippi at $2.579 per gallon. Louisiana is next with a statewide average price of $2.592.
California has the most expensive gas prices in the country, significantly higher than the national average, with a cost of $4.578 per gallon. Some of the counties in the Golden State have averages over $5 per gallon, with Mono County approaching $6 per gallon. The following two states, with the highest prices in the U.S., are the last two to have statewide averages above $4 per gallon. Hawaii is next with a statewide average of $4.454. Next is the state of Washington at $4.16 per gallon. This is followed by Oregon at $3.785 per gallon and Nevada at $3.717 per gallon.