{"id":216975,"date":"2026-03-12T20:51:10","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T20:51:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/216975\/"},"modified":"2026-03-12T20:51:10","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T20:51:10","slug":"ca-gas-prices-find-cheapest-stations-in-sacramento-la-sf","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/216975\/","title":{"rendered":"CA gas prices: Find cheapest stations in Sacramento, LA, SF"},"content":{"rendered":"

Gas prices are on the rise<\/a> across California, with average costs surpassing $5 a gallon within the span of a week.<\/p>\n

Doug Johnson, a spokesperson for AAA, previously told The Sacramento Bee that gas prices are rising<\/a> \u201call over the map.\u201d<\/p>\n

What are current gas prices in California<\/a>?<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s what to know:<\/p>\n

How much is gas in California?<\/p>\n

As of Thursday, March 12, the average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline in California<\/a> was about $5.37, according to AAA.<\/p>\n

Just a week earlier, the average price was $4.81<\/a> per gallon.<\/p>\n

That is more than a 50-cent difference within the span of seven days.<\/p>\n

Around this time in 2025<\/a>, California drivers were paying about $4.68 a gallon.<\/p>\n

Although the U.S. Energy Information Administration had previously predicted that gas prices in 2026<\/a> would be about 6% lower than in 2025, Johnson said recent events have changed that outlook.<\/p>\n

\"Gas Gas prices rise above $5 per gallon at gas stations at the intersection of Auburn Boulevard and Greenback Lane in Citrus Heights on Tuesday, March 10, 2026. HANNAH RUHOFF hruhoff@sacbee.com Iran war causes gas prices to rise across US<\/p>\n

Gas prices across the country<\/a>, including California, have increased in recent days due to conflict in the Middle East \u2014 and experts say they could keep rising as tensions with Iran escalate<\/a>, according to AAA.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe conflict in the Middle East has sent crude oil prices higher<\/a>,\u201d AAA said in a recent news release.<\/p>\n

Crude oil is the main ingredient used to make gasoline and diesel, so when oil prices rise, drivers usually feel it at<\/a> the pump.<\/p>\n

Roughly half of what you pay<\/a> at the pump comes from the cost of crude oil, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.<\/p>\n

\u201cCrude oil prices play a major role<\/a> in what drivers pay at the pump, and prices have surpassed the $100\/barrel mark multiple times in recent days,\u201d AAA said.<\/p>\n

Crude oil briefly surged<\/a> to about $119.50 per barrel on Monday, March 9, according to the Associated Press. Business Insider reports that prices have dropped<\/a> to a little over $99, as of Thursday morning.<\/p>\n

Even though the United States does not import oil from Iran, Johnson said, the conflict can still affect global supply.<\/p>\n

What is causing California gas prices to rise?<\/p>\n

While \u201ca large majority\u201d of the jump has been a result of the conflict in the Middle East, Johnson said, other factors are also pushing prices higher in California.<\/p>\n

\u201cGasoline demand increases<\/a> this time of year as the weather warms up and more drivers hit the road,\u201d AAA said.<\/p>\n

California refineries are beginning the annual switch to summer-blend gasoline<\/a>, which is more expensive to produce.<\/p>\n

The Golden State requires all gas stations to sell the seasonal fuel starting April<\/a> 1, and the change typically leads to higher prices at the pump.<\/p>\n

Refinery changes are also limiting supply on the West Coast.<\/p>\n

Johnson said that Phillips 66 shut down<\/a> in late 2025, and the Valero Benicia Refinery<\/a> is set to close.<\/p>\n

\"Gas Gas prices rise above $5 per gallon at gas stations at the intersection of Auburn Boulevard and Greenback Lane in Citrus Heights on Tuesday, March 10, 2026. HANNAH RUHOFF hruhoff@sacbee.com How much does gas cost in my California city?<\/p>\n

As of Thursday, stations in several California cities were selling regular gas for less than the statewide average of $5.37 a gallon.<\/p>\n

Northern California had some of the cheapest fuel costs, with a gallon of regular gas averaging $5.05 in Yuba City, $5.16 in Chico and $5.18 in Redding.<\/p>\n

As of Thursday, these were the average prices per gallon for regular gas<\/a> at metropolitan areas around California:<\/p>\n

Bakersfield: $5.26 per gallonChico-Paradise: $5.16El Centro: $5.14Fresno: $5.32Hanford-Corcoran: $5.26Los Angeles-Long Beach: $5.41Madera-Chowchila: $5.36Merced: $5.28Modesto: $5.24Napa: $5.58Oakland: $5.47Orange County: $5.37Redding: $5.18Riverside: $5.29Sacramento: $5.33Salinas: $5.53San Bernardino: $5.29San Diego: $5.40San Francisco: $5.63San Jose: $5.44San Luis Obispo-Atascadero-Paso Robles: $5.54San Rafael: $5.64Santa Barbara-Santa Maria-Lompoc: $5.25Santa Cruz-Watsonville: $5.34Santa Rosa: $5.57Stockton-Lodi: $5.26Vallejo-Fairfield: $5.36Ventura: $5.35Visalia-Tulare-Porterville: $5.36Yolo: $5.23Yuba City: $5.05Find cheapest gas stations in my area<\/p>\n

GasBuddy is a price-tracking website designed to help motorists find the cheapest gas prices<\/a> in their areas.<\/p>\n

You can search for the most affordable gas stations in your area on the GasBuddy website.<\/p>\n

Have a question about life in California?<\/p>\n

How to California \u2014 a guide to help you live, work and enjoy life in the Golden State, is here to help.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll answer your questions \u2014 big and small \u2014 about state laws, history, culture, recreation and travel.<\/p>\n

Ask your questions in the form below (can\u2019t see it? Click here<\/a>) or email howtocalifornia@mcclatchy.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Loading\u2026<\/p>\n

This story was originally published March 12, 2026 at 12:21 PM.<\/p>\n

Related Stories from Sacramento Bee<\/p>\n


\n \"Profile
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Angela Rodriguez<\/a><\/p>\n

The Modesto Bee<\/p>\n

Angela Rodriguez is a service journalism reporter for The Bee. She is a graduate of Sacramento State with a bachelor\u2019s degree in journalism. During her time there, she worked on the State Hornet covering arts and entertainment.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Gas prices are on the rise across California, with average costs surpassing $5 a gallon within the span…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":216381,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[148,99543,99544,99542,121,123,122],"class_list":["post-216975","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sacramento","tag-california-gas-prices","tag-cheapest-gas-california","tag-find-cheapest-stations","tag-gas-prices-update","tag-sacramento","tag-sacramento-headlines","tag-sacramento-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/216975","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=216975"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/216975\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/216381"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=216975"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=216975"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=216975"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}