The price of gas has been trending downward for the most part in recent weeks. Today’s average price is slightly more expensive than a week ago when the national average price was $3.02 per gallon. Yet, despite the increases, the cost of a gallon of regular gas is cheaper than a month ago, when it was $3.071. 

The national average price of a gallon of regular gas has fallen since May and is significantly less expensive than last winter and spring. Today’s gas price is the lowest in the country since May 2021, when the average price was $2.985 per gallon, according to the Energy Information Administration. In June 2021, the cost of gas started increasing significantly, eventually reaching record-high averages of over $4 per gallon.

After hitting the highest national average price in the country’s history in 2022, costs gradually fell. In 2023, gas prices started to rise again and peaked in April 2024 before steadily starting to decrease in May.

Meanwhile, gas prices continue to fluctuate throughout the country, with average prices in some states near $2.50 per gallon and over $4.50 in others. Hawaii has the highest average price for a gallon of gas, at $4.546. Oklahoma has the cheapest gas prices in the country, at $2.567 per gallon.

Gas prices have been a controversial political topic for most of the time President Joe Biden has been in office. After reaching record national prices, Biden assured the nation that gas prices would fall. Years later, near the end of his term, he seems to have finally delivered on that promise. Nevertheless, despite this year’s substantial decrease in gas prices, gas costs remain higher now than when President-elect Donald Trump was in office between January 2017 and January 2021.

Click here to see the current prices of gas in different states. Read below to see the average cost for a gallon of regular gas in and around Washington, D.C.

Delaware

Gas prices in Delaware are plummeting, which is good news for drivers in the state. Wednesday’s price decreased to $2.787, a drop of nearly eight cents from a week ago when a gallon of regular gas in the state cost $2.853. Gas prices fluctuated quite a bit in November before starting the current downward trend. Whereas a gallon of regular gas costs $2.787 today, a month ago, people in the First State paid $3.119.

Maryland

Like Delaware, gas prices dropped in Maryland on Wednesday, with a gallon of regular gas falling to $2.923. This was a decrease of over one cent from Tuesday’s price of $2.937. A week ago, a gallon of regular gas in Maryland was $2.969. Also, similar to Delaware, gas prices in Maryland have fluctuated quite a bit over the last 30 days. A month ago, a gallon of regular gas was more expensive than it is today, costing $3.204.

Virginia

Gas prices also slightly decreased in Virginia on Wednesday, dropping to $2.889 per gallon from $2.895 on Tuesday. A week ago, a gallon of regular gas in the state cost $2.892. Prices have trended downward in Virginia over the last month, and today’s price is less expensive than a month ago, when regular gas was $3.005 per gallon.

Washington, D.C.

The price for a gallon of regular gas in Washington, D.C. continues to be the most expensive in the region, with a price of $3.227. It is significantly more expensive to get a gallon of gas on Wednesday in the nation’s capital than the states surrounding it. Over the last month, gas prices have remained in the range of $3.20 to $3.30 per gallon. A week ago, a gallon of regular gas in Washington, D.C. cost $3.224; a month ago the price was $3.259 per gallon.