Gas Prices Near $3 in California

The national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline rose 2.7 cents in the past week to $2.324. The most common price was unchanged at $2.099, and the average difference between the highest 5% of prices and the lowest 5% prices is $0.999. One year ago, a gallon of regular gas averaged $2.754 in the United States.

Of the 20 U.S. cities where gas prices are highest, 17 are in California. The 10 cities where a gallon of gas costs more than $2.80 are all in California:

1. San Francisco: $2.976; about 840,000 population
2. Santa Barbara: $2.886; about 90,000
3. San Jose: $2.872; about 999,000
4. Salinas: $2.868; about 156,000
5. Oakland: $2.845; about 406,000
6. Los Angeles: $2.837; about 3.884 million
7. Ventura: $2.826; about 109,000
8. Bakersfield: $2.826; about 364,000
9. San Diego: $2.818; about 3.211 million
10. Orange County: $2.816; about 3.114 million

That’s a total of over 13 million people who can expect to be among the first in the country to $3 for a gallon of gas this driving season.

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The five metro areas where gas is cheapest are Lubbock, Texas, ($1.955 a gallon); Tucson, Ariz., ($2.018); Corpus Christi, Texas, ($2.038); Albuquerque, N.M., ($2.041); and San Antonio, Texas ($2.053).

The five states with the lowest average prices are Mississippi ($2.085), South Carolina ($2.089), Texas ($2.093), Louisiana ($2.097) and Oklahoma ($2.100). On the other hand, California ($2.814), Hawaii ($2.728), Washington ($2.602), Alaska ($2.572) and Washington, D.C., ($2.517) are the five states with posted average prices above $2.50 a gallon.

Among U.S. gas stations, nearly 95% are selling gas for $2.00 or more, while 57% are selling gas for $2.25 to $2.49 a gallon and 100% are selling gas for more than $1.75 a gallon.

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