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In a report published recently, GasBuddy revealed its average U.S. gasoline price prediction for 2026.

According to this report, the company expects the U.S. gasoline price to come in at $2.97 per gallon this year and sees December as the month with the lowest average U.S. gasoline price in 2026, at $2.83 per gallon. GasBuddy expects May to see the highest average U.S. gasoline price in 2026, at $3.12 per gallon, the report outlined.

“GasBuddy’s forecast projects the national average price of gas to fall to $2.97 per gallon in 2026, marking the fourth consecutive annual decline and the lowest average since 2020,” Patrick De Haan, Head of Petroleum Analysis at GasBuddy, said in the report.

“This continued decrease reflects the unwinding of post-pandemic market distortions, expanding global refining capacity, and more stable supply chains,” he added.

“While the drop from 2025 is modest compared to previous years, it underscores a meaningful shift toward greater overall market stability,” he continued.

A statement accompanying the release of the report posted on GasBuddy’s website highlighted that the U.S. gasoline price averaged $3.102 per gallon in 2025. GasBuddy also pointed out in that statement that it is forecasting the yearly U.S. average price of gasoline to fall back below $3 per gallon for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic.

In the report, GasBuddy projected that average household spending on gasoline will come in at $2,083 in 2026. That’s the lowest figure since 2021, which saw an average household gasoline spend of $1,979, the report showed. 

De Haan went on to project in the report that gasoline prices “are expected to follow a traditional seasonal pattern in 2026, with imbalances left behind by Covid and geopolitical tensions balanced for the time being”.

“The national average is projected to briefly rise into the low $3.20 range in the spring, driven by the switch to summer gasoline and routine refinery maintenance,” De Haan said in the report.

“Unlike recent years, the 2026 spring peak is forecast to come in lower than in 2025, signaling a softening market,” De added.

“After June, prices are expected to decline steadily, with December averaging near $2.80 per gallon. This renewed seasonality – milder peaks and deeper winter troughs – suggests a market returning to normal rhythms rather than reacting to volatility,” he continued.

In the statement accompanying the report, De Haan noted that “the world has spent years recovering from the economic whiplash of the pandemic and the shock of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine” but said “the situation has been improving quietly since 2022”.

“As global central banks slammed the brakes on an overheated economy and new refining capacity came online, we’ve seen fuel prices ease year after year – a trend few would’ve bet on when chaos ruled the energy market,” he added.

“And 2026 keeps that momentum going. It’s not a return to ultra-cheap fuel, but for the first time in a long time, the wind is clearly behind drivers’ backs,” he went on to state.

“If the market avoids major surprises, sustained averages below $3 per gallon could become commonplace in the year ahead,” De Haan projected.

In a blog posted on GasBuddy’s website at the end of last year, De Haan defined 2025 as “a year of rare stability”.

“Prices still followed a seasonal pattern, but they stayed confined to one of the narrowest ranges drivers have seen in years,” he said in that blog.

“When drivers look back, 2025 will stand out as one of the calmest years at the pump in recent history … That level of stability is unusual, and it may not be fully appreciated until volatility returns,” De Haan added.

GasBuddy’s live ticking average for regular gasoline in the U.S. was $2.844 per gallon as of 7am EST on January 14. The figure was 0.7 cents up from yesterday’s average, 3.1 cents up from last week’s average, 1.1 cents down from last month’s average, and 23.9 cents down from last year’s average, GasBuddy’s website highlighted.

According to the AAA Fuel Prices website, the average regular gasoline price in the U.S. is $2.840 per gallon, as of January 14. Yesterday’s average was $2.820 per gallon, the week ago average was $2.819 per gallon, the month ago average was $2.910 per gallon, and the year ago average was $3.071 per gallon, the site showed.

To contact the author, email andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com