FACT CHECK: Does This Image Show How Cheap Gas Prices Were On Jan. 6, 2021?

An image shared on Facebook purportedly shows a gas station on Jan. 6, 2021 advertising regular unleaded gas for $1.73 a gallon.

Verdict: False

The image is from 2016, not January 2021. The national average was above $2 a gallon in January 2021, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Fact Check:

The average national gas price is currently $5 a gallon in the U.S., a record high, according to the American Automobile Association (AAA). Some analysts suggest that a recession would be “the solution” to combat high gas prices, Yahoo News reported.

A Facebook post, shared over 900 times, appears to show an Exxon Mobil gas station sign listing regular unleaded gas for $1.73 a gallon. “We will never forget January 6th, 2021,” the post’s caption claims.

While the image does show a legitimate sign, the photo predates January 2021 by about five years. A reverse image search revealed the picture was taken by a Getty Images photographer in January 2016.

“Oil prices fell further January 5 as the crude supply glut overshadowed a diplomatic row between key producers Saudi Arabia and Iran as fuel prices in the US have fallen below $2 per gallon,” the picture’s description reads. (RELATED: Does This Photo Show A Gas Station In Omaha, Nebraska Selling Gas For $9.99 A Gallon?)

The national gas price average in January 2021 was $2.05, according to the EIA. Prices then fell to $1.87 nationally the next month, the lowest recorded price during the 2010s, data shows.

National gas prices in January 2021 were $2.33 per gallon, according to the EIA. At the time, the lowest recorded gas market in the country was Mississippi, where gas was $2.08 per gallon, Automotive Fleet reported.

This is not the first time gas-related misinformation has gone viral. Check Your Fact recently debunked an image of a gas station sign advertising gas for $9 a gallon as well as another image that claimed to show a gas station sign that reads, “Fuck Joe Biden.”

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