Economic News
GasBuddy Predicts Average Cost Per Gallon to Remain Under $3 in 2020
Whether you’re a frequent road tripper or a long commuter, there may be good news for the year ahead. According to the gas station-finding app GasBuddy, the national year average for gasoline is expected to stay below $3 a gallon once again in 2020.
For transparency GasBuddy heads off their report with a look at some of their past predictions compared to the actual national average. For example their 2018 estimate of $2.57 ended up short of the $2.73 that year actually held. However, for 2019, GasBuddy’s prediction was a mere 8¢ off, with the app just slightly overshooting the $2.62 average.
With that out of the way, GasBuddy says it expects the nationwide average to land at $2.60 for 2020. Of course prices are sure to fluctuate throughout the year and so the app lists their specific guesses for each month as well. This reveals that December is likely to see the lowest prices of the year, with an anticipated average of $2.39. Meanwhile May might be the priciest time to fill up your tank as GasBuddy predicts an average of $2.84 for that month.
Although the national, yearly average for gasoline is expected to stay below $3 for 2020, that’s not exactly the case for every state or city. Take for example San Fransisco where the highest daily average could reach between $4.05 and $4.50 per gallon. Similarly other Californian cities such as Los Angeles and Sacramento could see prices over $4 as well. Additional cities where the prices are anticipated to climb above $3.01 for a daily high include Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Miami, New York, Philidelphia, Phoenix, Seattle, and Washington D.C.
In a press release about this year’s report, GasBuddy’s head of petroleum analysis Patrick De Haan proclaimed, “Hit the road, America! It will be another year where gasoline prices will be relatively affordable- but don’t close your eyes- the price variation between stations and states will approach record levels.” De Haan continued, “Never has there been a bigger opportunity to spend less, or to spend more, if you aren’t checking prices before filling up.”
It should be noted that GasBuddy’s annual report was published a day before the United States ordered a drone strike that killed Iranian commander Qasem Soleimani. This event, which escalated tensions between the U.S. and the Middle Eastern country, is expected to lead to an increase in gas prices, with oil already spiking 4%. In a tweet GasBuddy noted that an adjustment of around 5¢ per gallon could arrive “over the next 1-2 weeks.” However they go on to note that future impacts on pricing will depend on what type of retaliation the U.S. sees from Iran.
As this development shows, there are several factors that go into gas prices that make it hard to predict what the price will be when you pull into the station. Still, with any luck, GasBuddy’s sub-$3 suggestion will remain intact for many areas of the country. If so, it’ll be great news for many Americans — at least the ones who don’t yet own Teslas.
