Fuel up now or later in NC? Gas Buddy weighs in

Posted: May 16, 2022 / 05:36 PM EDT

Updated: May 16, 2022 / 05:36 PM EDT

RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) – People in North Carolina have experienced another painful few days at the pump.

On Monday morning, gas prices in Raleigh were averaging $4.25 per gallon, according to GasBuddy’s survey of 472 stations in the city.

“Those filling their tanks last week saw another jolt at the pump, as both gasoline and diesel prices continued their multi-week rally,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.

Prices in Raleigh were up 43 cents per gallon compared to one month ago. While prices are $1.30 per gallon higher than a year ago, comparing prices to this time last year doesn’t give a clear picture of price trends. More Americans were still working from home or traveling less because of the pandemic. This drove demand and then costs down. Still, prices are higher than this same time in pre-pandemic years.

“New records continued to be set on a near-daily basis as the national average edges even closer to $4.50 per gallon,” said De Haan.

If you’re looking at your fuel gauge getting lower and lower, should you fill up right away or hold off? The safest bet may be to fill up now. De Haan said there’s little hope prices will come down in the coming days.

“Prices later this week could be closer to $5 per gallon than $4, as demand continues to edge higher and inventories of both gasoline and diesel continue to decline, temperatures warm and motorists get back outside and we near the Memorial Day weekend, the start of the summer driving season. While the increases may start to slow in the days ahead as pump prices catch up to oil, there isn’t much reason to be optimistic that we’ll see a plunge any time soon,” said De Haan.

According to GasBuddy price reports, the cheapest station in Raleigh was priced at $4.09 per gallon Sunday while the most expensive was $4.60 per gallon. Statewide, the lowest price in the state was $3.59 per gallon while the highest was $5.19 per gallon.

The national average price of gasoline went unchanged for the last week but sits at almost 40 cents per gallon higher than a month ago.