Why the premium gas premium is always heading up
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The price of gas is coming down — on average it's now just $3.07 per gallon, down from a high of $5.01 in June 2022. But the extra amount you have to pay to put premium high-octane gas in your vehicle only seems to ever go up.
Why it matters: Many cars these days, including pretty accessible vehicles like the Mini Cooper or the Subaru BRZ, require premium fuel.
- That's partly because requiring premium fuel makes it easier for cars with certain engines to meet CAFE fuel-economy standards, says Patrick De Haan, GasBuddy's head of petroleum analysis. (Those standards don't measure how economical it is to drive the car, just how much gas it requires to drive a mile.)
- It's also because gasoline has increasingly become branded over the past decade or so. Branding, of course, is a way for companies to charge a premium for even a commodity product.
Be smart: If your car doesn't require premium gas — and many cars don't, including high-end marques like the Lincoln Navigator — then there's no benefit to paying the premium. The extra octane will do nothing for you.
Of note: This chart does come with one big asterisk. The average "premium premium" nationwide doesn't necessarily reflect the actual extra amount U.S. drivers pay for premium gas.
- The premium premium is over a dollar in the Midwest and other areas where there are fewer luxury cars. Those are also regions where premium gasoline tends to carry a high 93 octane rating.
- In California, where there are many more luxury cars, the supply of alkylate is more abundant, premium gasoline is generally 91 octane, and the premium premium is much lower, closer to 30 cents.
The bottom line: The gas savings involved in switching to an EV could be larger than you think, if the alternative involves a car that requires premium fuel.
