Diesel Prices Price History
1994–2025 · EIA
The average retail price of a gallon of diesel fuel in the United States, tracked annually from 1994 through 2025. Diesel doesn't get the same attention as regular gasoline, but it quietly powers the backbone of the American economy — every truck, train, and cargo ship burning it adds cost to the goods sitting on store shelves. When diesel spiked past $5.00 in 2022, it wasn't just truckers who felt the pain; it rippled through grocery bills, construction budgets, and shipping rates nationwide.
Price in 1994
$1.11
Price in 2025
$3.72
Total Change
+235.1%
Years Tracked
31
Diesel Prices Over Time
Compare to inflation: The chart above shows nominal (not inflation-adjusted) prices. Use the toggle to switch to inflation-adjusted values when available, or try the inflation calculator to convert any amount between years.
Key Insights
- Diesel cracked $5.00 per gallon for the first time in 2022, peaking at a national average of $5.11 — a price nobody in the trucking industry thought they'd ever see.
- Between 1994 and 2008, diesel nearly quadrupled from $1.11 to $3.80, with the steepest climb happening in the final three years as Chinese demand supercharged the global crude market.
- Diesel has consistently cost more than regular gasoline since the mid-2000s, reversing a historical pattern where it was the cheaper fuel — a shift driven by tighter sulfur regulations and surging freight demand.
- The pandemic knocked diesel down to $2.55 in 2020, but the rebound was ferocious: prices doubled in barely two years as supply chains scrambled to rebuild inventory worldwide.
Year-by-Year Data
| Year | Price (USD per gallon) | YoY Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | $1.11 | — |
| 1995 | $1.10 | -0.9% |
| 1996 | $1.23 | +11.8% |
| 1997 | $1.16 | -5.7% |
| 1998 | $1.04 | -10.3% |
| 1999 | $1.12 | +7.7% |
| 2000 | $1.49 | +33.0% |
| 2001 | $1.40 | -6.0% |
| 2002 | $1.32 | -5.7% |
| 2003 | $1.51 | +14.4% |
| 2004 | $1.81 | +19.9% |
| 2005 | $2.40 | +32.6% |
| 2006 | $2.70 | +12.5% |
| 2007 | $2.88 | +6.7% |
| 2008 | $3.80 | +31.9% |
| 2009 | $2.46 | -35.3% |
| 2010 | $2.99 | +21.5% |
| 2011 | $3.84 | +28.4% |
| 2012 | $3.97 | +3.4% |
| 2013 | $3.92 | -1.3% |
| 2014 | $3.83 | -2.3% |
| 2015 | $2.71 | -29.2% |
| 2016 | $2.30 | -15.1% |
| 2017 | $2.65 | +15.2% |
| 2018 | $3.18 | +20.0% |
| 2019 | $3.06 | -3.8% |
| 2020 | $2.55 | -16.7% |
| 2021 | $3.28 | +28.6% |
| 2022 | $5.11 | +55.8% |
| 2023 | $4.21 | -17.6% |
| 2024 | $3.85 | -8.6% |
| 2025 | $3.72 | -3.4% |
Sources & Methodology
National average retail diesel price per gallon from EIA weekly survey data, averaged to annual figures. Includes federal and state taxes.
Primary source: EIA
For a full explanation of how we collect and adjust data, see our methodology page.