California Gas Pain — Week of 2026-05-18
Source: EIA CA state weekly retail.
For the week of 2026-05-18, drivers in California paid $5.96/gal — ranked #1 of 50 by price.
Week-over-week
Week of 2026-05-18 vs the prior week: +4.58% (+$0.26/gal).
Prices in California jumped notably this week. Possible drivers: regional refinery maintenance, demand spikes, or PADD-level supply shifts.
Vs national average
National average that week: $4.49/gal. California was +32.7% above that benchmark.
What a fill-up cost
At $5.96/gal:
- 15-gal tank: $89.36
- 20-gal tank: $119.14
- 100-mile drive in a 25 MPG car: $23.83
Compare across all 50 states
See the full state-by-state ranking →
Use the Gas Pain Calculator to see your own fill-up cost based on your ZIP and vehicle.
Methodology: weekly EIA retail series — state-level where EIA publishes it, otherwise the PADD regional average mapped to state via U.S. Census state→PADD lookup. Crowdsource data (where available) layers on top via the per-ZIP local report.