The national average price for a gallon of gasoline is at $3.50, according to AAA as of Jan. 26, 2023. While the amount of pain at the pump people feel is more or less acute depending on their region, overall, everywhere in the U.S. was hit hard by inflated gas prices last year.
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Using data from the Department of Energy, GOBankingRates mapped out a chronology of average gas prices for more than 90 years dating back to 1929, giving all but the very oldest Americans a peek at how 2022 stacked up to the year they were born. Then, the team used a calculator from the Bureau of Labor statistics to account for inflation to reveal each year’s price per gallon in 2022 money.
Keep reading to learn the cost of gas the year you were born.
1929
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.21
- In 2022 dollars: $3.53
1930
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.20
- In 2022 dollars: $3.42
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1931
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.17
- In 2022 dollars: $3.24
1932
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.18
- In 2022 dollars: $3.81
1933
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.18
- In 2022 dollars: $4.07
1934
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.19
- In 2022 dollars: $4.08
1935
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.19
- In 2022 dollars: $3.99
1936
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.19
- In 2022 dollars: $3.96
1937
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.20
- In 2022 dollars: $3.99
1938
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.20
- In 2022 dollars: $4.08
1939
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.19
- In 2022 dollars: $3.96
1940
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.18
- In 2022 dollars: $3.67
1941
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.19
- In 2022 dollars: $3.72
1942
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.20
- In 2022 dollars: $3.53
1943
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.21
- In 2022 dollars: $3.45
1944
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.21
- In 2022 dollars: $3.43
1945
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.21
- In 2022 dollars: $3.34
1946
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.21
- In 2022 dollars: $3.23
1947
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.23
- In 2022 dollars: $3.01
1948
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.26
- In 2022 dollars: $3.10
1949
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.27
- In 2022 dollars: $3.25
1950
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.27
- In 2022 dollars: $3.26
1951
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.27
- In 2022 dollars: $3.00
1952
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.27
- In 2022 dollars: $2.93
1953
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.29
- In 2022 dollars: $3.11
1954
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.29
- In 2022 dollars: $3.10
1955
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.29
- In 2022 dollars: $3.12
1956
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.30
- In 2022 dollars: $3.17
1957
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.31
- In 2022 dollars: $3.17
1958
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.30
- In 2022 dollars: $2.98
1959
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.31
- In 2022 dollars: $3.06
1960
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.31
- In 2022 dollars: $3.01
1961
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.31
- In 2022 dollars: $2.99
1962
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.31
- In 2022 dollars: $2.95
1963
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.30
- In 2022 dollars: $2.82
1964
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.30
- In 2022 dollars: $2.78
1965
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.31
- In 2022 dollars: $2.82
1966
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.32
- In 2022 dollars: $2.84
1967
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.33
- In 2022 dollars: $2.85
1968
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.34
- In 2022 dollars: $2.82
1969
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.35
- In 2022 dollars: $2.75
1970
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.36
- In 2022 dollars: $2.67
1971
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.36
- In 2022 dollars: $2.55
1972
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.36
- In 2022 dollars: $2.48
1973
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.39
- In 2022 dollars: $2.54
1974
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.53
- In 2022 dollars: $3.11
1975
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.57
- In 2022 dollars: $3.06
1976
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.59
- In 2022 dollars: $2.99
1977
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.62
- In 2022 dollars: $2.94
1978
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.63
- In 2022 dollars: $2.78
1979
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.86
- In 2022 dollars: $3.42
1980
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.19
- In 2022 dollars: $4.14
1981
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.31
- In 2022 dollars: $4.16
1982
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.22
- In 2022 dollars: $3.62
1983
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.16
- In 2022 dollars: $3.35
1984
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.13
- In 2022 dollars: $3.13
1985
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.12
- In 2022 dollars: $2.99
1986
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.86
- In 2022 dollars: $2.26
1987
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.90
- In 2022 dollars: $2.28
1988
- Price of a gallon of gas: $0.90
- In 2022 dollars: $2.19
1989
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.00
- In 2022 dollars: $2.32
1990
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.15
- In 2022 dollars: $2.55
1991
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.14
- In 2022 dollars: $2.41
1992
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.13
- In 2022 dollars: $2.32
1993
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.11
- In 2022 dollars: $2.21
1994
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.11
- In 2022 dollars: $2.16
1995
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.15
- In 2022 dollars: $2.17
1996
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.23
- In 2022 dollars: $2.26
1997
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.23
- In 2022 dollars: $2.21
1998
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.06
- In 2022 dollars: $1.87
1999
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.17
- In 2022 dollars: $2.02
2000
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.51
- In 2022 dollars: $2.52
2001
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.46
- In 2022 dollars: $2.36
2002
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.36
- In 2022 dollars: $2.17
2003
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.59
- In 2022 dollars: $2.49
2004
- Price of a gallon of gas: $1.88
- In 2022 dollars: $2.85
2005
- Price of a gallon of gas: $2.30
- In 2022 dollars: $3.40
2006
- Price of a gallon of gas: $2.59
- In 2022 dollars: $3.67
2007
- Price of a gallon of gas: $2.80
- In 2022 dollars: $3.86
2008
- Price of a gallon of gas: $3.27
- In 2022 dollars: $4.30
2009
- Price of a gallon of gas: $2.35
- In 2022 dollars: $3.13
2010
- Price of a gallon of gas: $2.79
- In 2022 dollars: $3.68
2011
- Price of a gallon of gas: $3.53
- In 2022 dollars: $4.50
2012
- Price of a gallon of gas: $3.64
- In 2022 dollars: $4.56
2013
- Price of a gallon of gas: $3.53
- In 2022 dollars: $4.35
2014
- Price of a gallon of gas: $3.37
- In 2022 dollars: $4.07
2015
- Price of a gallon of gas: $2.45
- In 2022 dollars: $2.95
2016
- Price of a gallon of gas: $2.14
- In 2022 dollars: $2.55
2017
- Price of a gallon of gas: $2.53
- In 2022 dollars: $2.97
2018
- Price of a gallon of gas: $2.82
- In 2022 dollars: $3.22
2019
- Price of a gallon of gas: $2.69
- In 2022 dollars: $3.02
2020
- Price of a gallon of gas: $2.26
- In 2022 dollars: $2.52
2021
- Price of a gallon of gas: $3.09
- In 2022 dollars: $3.27
2022
- Price of a gallon of gas: $3.55 (as of Nov. 28, 2022)
- In 2022 dollars: $3.55
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Methodology: For this piece, GOBankingRates used the United States Department of Energy’s “Average Historical Annual Gasoline Pump Price, 1929-2016” dataset as well as the United States Department of Energy Information Administration’s Retail Gasoline Prices dataset. With gas prices sourced for 1929 through the present day, GOBankingRates also used the Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI inflation calculator to adjust all figures to 2022 dollars. All data was collected and is up to date as of April 18, 2022.