Current average gas price in California for regular, midgrade, premium and diesel, based on official EIA data. Updated every week, so you can see where prices are heading before you fill up.
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). Updated weekly, last data October 19, 2026.
The average price for regular gasoline in California is $6.03 per gallon as of October 19, 2026, which is $1.75 above the U.S. average. Compared with last week, the California average is down.
California gas prices by fuel type
| Fuel | California average / gal | Change vs. last week |
|---|---|---|
| Regular | $6.03 | ▼ $0.07 (-1.2%) |
| Midgrade | $6.34 | ▼ $0.06 (-1.0%) |
| Premium | $6.50 | ▼ $0.07 (-1.1%) |
| Diesel | $8.24 | ▲ $0.15 (+1.9%) |
California vs. U.S. gas prices: last 52 weeks
How much does gas cost you in California?
Enter your monthly miles and your car’s fuel economy to estimate your monthly and yearly fuel cost at the current California average.
Monthly fuel cost: $0 (yearly: $0)
Why gas costs more in California
California almost always has some of the highest gas prices in the country, and the reasons are built into how the state works.
The state requires its own cleaner-burning gasoline blend, and not every refinery outside California makes it. It also charges some of the highest taxes and fees per gallon, and its environmental fuel programs add cost to every gallon. On top of that, the West Coast is relatively isolated from other gasoline markets, so California cannot easily bring in fuel from the Gulf Coast when something goes wrong.
That last point matters most when a refinery in the state stops production for repairs or after an outage. There are few places to get replacement supply, so prices can jump within days.
California gas prices in 2022
2022 shows how far California prices can swing in one year. According to EIA weekly data, the California average for regular gasoline was $6.27 in the week of June 13, 2022. The U.S. average that same week was $5.01, so Californians paid $1.26 more per gallon than the national average.
By the week of December 26, 2022, the California average had fallen to $4.16, a drop of $2.11 in about six months. The average for the full year was $5.31.
For a longer view, the California average was $1.10 in the week of December 31, 2001. The June 2022 price was more than five times higher.
AAA and GasBuddy publish different numbers because their surveys work differently. The numbers on this page are EIA’s.
What a swing in price costs you
Take 1,000 miles a month in a car that gets 28 mpg. That is about 36 gallons. At the June 2022 average of $6.27, the fuel costs $223.93 a month. At the December 2022 average of $4.16, it costs $148.57. The difference is $75.36 a month, or about $900 a year.
On a 15-gallon tank, the same difference is $31.65 per fill-up.
What moves the price in California
Four things move the price most: the cost of crude oil, how much fuel the refineries are producing, demand, and the blend of gasoline sold. Switches between summer and winter blends change the price during the year, and summer driving pushes demand up.
Taxes and fees are charged per gallon, so they do not move with the weekly price. Refinery problems matter more in California than in most states, because the state has few other sources of fuel.
Diesel follows its own market, so it can move differently from regular gasoline.
How to read the numbers on this page
The California figure is a statewide weekly average, not the price at a specific station. Prices in Los Angeles, the Bay Area and rural counties often differ, and stations on the same street can price differently, so use the average to follow the trend. The table shows each fuel type, the chart compares California with the U.S. average over 52 weeks, and the calculator turns the current price into your own monthly cost.
FAQ
The current California average for regular gasoline is shown at the top of this page, together with midgrade, premium and diesel. The numbers come from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) and are updated once a week.
Several things add up: higher taxes and fees, a special gasoline blend that not every refinery makes, and a location that is isolated from other fuel markets. When a California refinery has a problem, there are few backup sources.
Usually, yes. The chart on this page compares California with the U.S. average over the last 52 weeks. In the week of June 13, 2022, California averaged $6.27 while the U.S. averaged $5.01.
In EIA’s weekly data, the California average for regular gasoline peaked at $6.27 in the week of June 13, 2022. It fell to $4.16 by the week of December 26, 2022, and the full-year average was $5.31.
The dashboard at the top shows whether the price rose or fell this week. Increases usually come from higher crude oil prices, a refinery outage or maintenance, a change in gasoline blend, or higher demand. Taxes do not change with the weekly price.
Once a week. EIA publishes new retail prices weekly, and this page refreshes with the new data within a few hours.