The Average American Will Spend $2,304 On Gas in 2023

AVERAGE AMOUNT SPENT ON GAS

The most popular car in America is the Ford F-150. gets 24 miles per gallon of gas. On average, Americans drive 13,500 miles a year, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration. When you divide 13,500 miles by how many miles per gallon the F-150 gets, that means the average American uses 562 gallons of gas a year.

562 gallons a year combined with that $4.101 (as of 4/19/2022) price tag means Americans will spend $2,304 on gas this year.  

Why are prices going up? What can we do about it? And how much longer before it all gets too expensive for us to handle? In order to understand these questions and many others, it's important first to understand how the gas market works.

Gas prices are set in daily auctions across the world.

Oil companies hold auctions daily to determine the price of gasoline. These auctions are based on the price at which oil is being traded, while the price of oil is, in turn, determined by the price of gasoline. Oil companies make a bulk of their profit from gas sales and so do gas stations.

The more you know about how gas prices work, the better able you will be to protect yourself from getting ripped off. The next section will tell you exactly how much money you can save on your next tank of gas.

The auctions are based on the price of oil being traded.

Oil companies hold auctions daily to determine the price of gasoline. These auctions are based on the price at which oil is being traded, while the price of oil is, in turn, determined by the price of gasoline. Oil companies make a bulk of their profit from gas sales and so do gas stations.

The more you know about how gas prices work, the better able you will be to protect yourself from getting ripped off. The next section will tell you exactly how much money you can save on your next tank of gas.

Gas stations do not control the prices they sell gasoline at, they only buy it at auction and then make a profit on it.

Gas stations never set the retail price of gasoline, they only buy it and then make a profit on it. Gas station owners do not set prices, they buy at an auction and then add a profit margin.

Gas companies also sell cheaper gas to customers who make large quantities.

Gas stations never set the retail price of gasoline, they only buy it and then make a profit on it. Gas station owners do not set prices, they buy at an auction and then add a profit margin.

• Airlines
• Schools
• Refineries (which produce gasoline)
• Large factories which use large equipment and machinery that runs on gasoline
• Large farms which use large equipment and machinery that runs on gasoline
• Large construction companies which use large equipment and machinery that runs on gasoline
• The US military, uses a lot of vehicles, ships, and airplanes that run on gasoline.
• The US government, for its federal buildings such as the White House and Federal Government buildings in every state.
• The US Postal Service.
• The US prison system

Gas is expensive to buy and it is almost purely profit for the gas stations.

A quick look at the cost breakdown of a typical fill-up (for 87 octane, grade) shows that you’re paying more than $1.60 per gallon in profit. Why is this? Gas stations need to make a profit to stay open, but there are so many other businesses that do the same thing for less—and we don’t mind spending our money on them.

Why should gas stations get away with charging us more? It’s because they have an unfair advantage over other businesses: they can charge as much as people will pay, even though it costs them very little to give us what we want! There are two reasons why this happens:

• We really need gasoline (it’s practically impossible not using your car).
• Gas is scarce.