With average U.S. gas prices hitting $4.25 per gallon this week, it’s got consumers unsettled. Still, some perspective is in order.
During the Great Recession, the last time prices went over $4 a gallon, they hit a high of $4.10 in July 2008. If adjusted for inflation, that would be the equivalent of $5.24 today. So, as rough as current prices seem, they’ve been worse in real terms.
Still, Americans have largely gotten used to remarkably stable energy prices. From 1978 to 2020, the 12-month average price of gas, when adjusted for inflation, varied less than 9% between the most expensive year and the least expensive one.
If the past is any guide, this current spike will be temporary and the price will settle back toward the norm.
