Americans are getting an early holiday gift at the pump this Thanksgiving, with gas prices creeping near their lowest level in four years. The national average for a gallon of regular gasoline is hovering just above the $3 mark , a welcome relief for the tens of millions hitting the road.
Cruising Towards the Holiday
According to data from AAA, the national average stood at a precise $3,055 per gallon on Tuesday, down slightly from $3,077 just a week prior. This trend marks the second consecutive year of Thanksgiving gas prices falling below those recorded back in 2020, a year when the drastic pandemic reduced demand and caused prices to crater. The affordability is critical this season, as an estimated 73 million out of 82 million total expected travelers are planning to journey via car.
The Economics Behind the Drop
Experts attribute the sustained decline largely to favorable market conditions. “Overall demand is low this time of year which helps keep pump prices down,” noted AAA. A significant factor is the steep drop in the price of crude oil , the base commodity for gasoline. Patrick de Haan, the head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, points out that the global benchmark price for Brent oil has fallen approximately 17% since June , clocking crude in at around $63.40 per barrel. Furthermore, the national average has seen few major fluctuations in 2025 thanks to persistently low crude oil prices and the absence of major storms impacting Gulf Coast refineries.
Regional Relief and Political Context
The downward trend has put pump prices under $3 per gallon in several states, including Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Indiana, Ohio, Minnesota, and Texas , among others. This is a dramatic reversal from the figures seen during the previous administration. In the summer of 2022, gas prices skyrocketed under the Biden administration, with the national average hitting a record high of $5,016 on June 14, 2022. Just five days later, diesel also broke its record, averaging $5,816 per gallon nationally. This recent trend follows a victory moment reported in October, when gas prices finally dipped below $3 for the first time in four years—a milestone the current Trump administration, with its hyper-focus on affordability, is touting as a major success and a fulfillment of its promises. As GasBuddy’s Patrick De Haan stated at the time, the $2.99 national average arrived at the earliest date seen since the pandemic-driven lows of 2020.