March 20, 2026, 7:53 a.m. MT
Gas prices are rising across the country to nearly $4 a gallon on average.
The demand of spring travel tied with tensions in the Middle East are driving up costs, with a gallon of regular unleaded gas now averaging $3.912, which is up nearly $1 from a month ago, according to AAA. The cost of diesel fuel is also rising to $5.159 a gallon on average — inching closer to its highest recorded average price of $5.816 set back in June 2022.
The soaring costs are happening despite efforts made by the White House to release millions of barrels of oil from reserves, which the Department of Energy announced March 11.
“As part of this effort, President Trump authorized the Department of Energy to release 172 million barrels from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, beginning next week. This will take approximately 120 days to deliver based on planned discharge rates,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright in a statement.
The White House has also temporarily rolled back the Jones Act, a law that requires all goods traveling between U.S. ports to be moved on American-made and American-crewed ships in an effort to lower costs of oil.
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“President Trump’s decision to issue a 60-day Jones Act waiver is just another step to mitigate the short-term disruptions to the oil market as the U.S. military continues meeting the objectives of Operation Epic Fury,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement on X. “This action will allow vital resources like oil, natural gas, fertilizer, and coal to flow freely to U.S. ports for sixty days, and the Administration remains committed to continuing to strengthen our critical supply chains.”
Despite those efforts, Benchmark Brent oil ​prices jumped above $119 a barrel on March 19 after Iran attacked energy facilities across ‌the Middle East following Israel’s strike on its South Pars gas field, according to Reuters. It ended the day around $108.
Here’s what to know about gas prices today.
Price of crude oil today
The price of Brent crude oil was at about $108 at 7:32 a.m. MT/8:32 a.m. CT on Friday, March 20, reported Business Insider.
WTI crude oil price
The West Texas Intermediate (WTI) was at about $95.43 as of Friday morning.
What is Brent crude oil?
Crude oil is lighter in density and easier to refine into gasoline, while oil with a heavier density is more difficult to refine, according to Charles Schwab, a financial services company. Brent Crude is often considered the global benchmark for oil because roughly two-thirds of the world’s oil is priced off Brent Crude futures.
What state has the highest gas prices?
California has the highest gas prices as of Friday, March 20, with the average cost of a gallon of fuel at $5.657, according to AAA. Residents in Arizona, Nevada, Idaho, Washington, Illinois and Oregon are also paying some of the highest gas prices.
The United States Energy Information Administration released a “Short-Term Energy Outlook” on March 11 that said the closure of the Strait of Hormuz will cause oil production in the Middle East to fall further in the coming weeks.
“We forecast the Brent crude oil price will remain above $95/b over the next two months, before falling below $80/b in the third quarter of 2026 and around $70/b by the end of the year,” the administration said. “This price forecast is highly dependent on our modeled assumptions of both the duration of conflict in the Middle East and resulting outages in oil production.”
Meanwhile, Trump administration officials have said prices will remain high “for a few more weeks,” including U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright, who said NBC News’ “Meet the Press” that there could be a decrease in gas prices by the upcoming summer, which would drop the cost of fuel to under $3 per gallon.
Why are gas prices so high?
The gas prices come after strikes in Iran that ultimately killed the nation’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as well as dozens of top officials during a campaign called “Epic Fury” that began Feb. 28.
The country’s remaining leadership announced that its retaliation would include strikes on regional energy infrastructure and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which 20% of the world’s crude oil and natural gas passes through.
The gas prices come after strikes in Iran that ultimately killed the nation’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as well as dozens of top officials during a campaign called “Epic Fury” that began Feb. 28.
The country’s remaining leadership announced that its retaliation would include strikes on regional energy infrastructure and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which 20% of the world’s crude oil and natural gas passes through.
How to find the cheapest gas
You can find gas prices in El Paso by using the El Paso Times Gas Prices tracker.
Gas Buddy also offers comparisons of gas prices near you by downloading the app or you can search by web here.
USA Today contributed to this story.
Natassia Paloma may be reached at npaloma@gannett.com, @NatassiaPaloma on x; natassia_paloma on Instagram, and Natassia Paloma Thompson on Facebook.
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