US average gas price falls 21 cents to $4.08 a gallon
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The gist
The U.S. average gas price fell 21 cents in a week to $4.08 a gallon, AAA says.
Oil back above $100 could push pump prices up again.
Background
GasBuddy is a national fuel monitoring service that surveys stations, and AAA is a motor club whose data is cited for national and state average prices. Prices peaked in May, declined in June and surged in September after the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran, constricting global oil supply. The national average is now more than $4 a gallon, up more than 40% since the war began, though it has slipped about 20 cents since mid-May.
How it unfolded
- Oct 19, 2026GasBuddy surveys show Texas prices down 5.4 cents to $3.73/g and Pennsylvania up 1.3 cents to $4.47/g; Idaho falls 1.6 cents to $4.85/g.
- Oct 19, 2026AAA puts the U.S. average at $4.08 a gallon, down 21 cents from a week earlier, while Florida's average rises 2 cents to $4.08.
- Oct 19, 2026TCO fixes the leak on the Mountaineer XPress pipeline and lifts force majeure a day early; a second outage on Texas Eastern in Kentucky won't be fixed until early November.
- Oct 20, 2026Nebraska gas prices rise above the national average, a rare shift, with local fuel supply shortages reported.
- Oct 22, 2026National average stays above $4 a gallon; California, Hawaii, Nevada and Washington average at least $5, while Georgia, North Carolina and Texas pay the least.
Who’s saying what
- Analysts
- GasBuddy's Patrick De Haan says prices fell in most states on state fuel tax suspensions and price-cycling markets, but the outlook remains tied to geopolitical developments and some states could see upward swings if oil firms.
- Caution
- AAA spokesman Mark Jenkins says oil prices went back above $100 a barrel last week, which could trigger another round of rising pump prices this week.
- Analysts
- AAA says oil rose last week because of Middle East tensions and attacks on Russian energy sites.