Evolution of the cost of fuel since the 1980's

An average car has a capacity of 15 gallons, how much did it cost to fill up a tank a few decades ago?

Walkmans, arcades, and video rental stores—these are just a few of the things that have largely disappeared since the 1980s, now condensed into a single device, a symbol of one of the major technological changes of the 2010s. As technology and society have evolved, so too has the cost of living. In recent decades, the prices of essentials such as housing, food, transportation, and gasoline have experienced significant changes. If you’re curious about how these costs have evolved, let’s take a look at the price of filling up a tank in the 80s, 90s, 00s, and today.

In 1980, the national average price of gasoline per gallon was $1.19. The week of August 19, 2024, the average price of gasoline was $3.38 per gallon. Despite the noticeable increase, various factors determine the true value of filling up a tank in the 1980s, so $1.19 in 1980 would be approximately equivalent to $4.54 in today’s terms. However, this does not mean that filling up the tank is cheap today.

David Poulnot, Vice President of Multivertical Sales at Upside, states that gasoline prices are rising due to factors such as supply chain issues and global conflicts. So, what are the differences between current prices and those from the past? GoBankingRates has published an article showing the main differences.

Current gasoline prices vs. prices in past decades

The average car has a capacity of between 12 and 15 gallons. Assuming your tank is 15 gallons and empty, these are the approximate costs to fill it currently:

Regular gasoline: $50.81
Mid-grade gasoline: $57.80
Premium gasoline: $63.05
Diesel: $55.92

And how much did it cost in the past? The data collected mainly comes from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) as well as TitleMax. The EIA has published data on fuel costs from the early 1990s to today, including gasoline prices for all types of fuel. Here’s the list by decade:

2020 — $2.25 per gallon
2010 — $2.83 per gallon
2000 — $1.52 per gallon
1990 — $1.16 per gallon
1980 — $1.19 per gallon

Regarding the cost to fill up a full tank, assuming a typical vehicle capacity of 15 gallons, the prices look like this:

2020 — $33.87 per tank
2010 — $42.53 per tank
2000 — $22.85 per tank
1990 — $17.37 per tank
1980 — $17.85 per tank

The price per gallon in the 1990s would be approximately $2.29 in today’s terms. On the other hand, in 2008, one of the highest prices per gallon was recorded at $3.27, which is equivalent to about $4.40 today due to the onset of the recession. In 1929, the price was just $0.29 per gallon, a figure that seems very low today but is equivalent to about $3.59 in current dollars. These comparisons show that gasoline prices are intrinsically linked to the economy; what seems low or high depends on the economic context and wages of the time. So, do we have low prices today?