Interactive maps show how low Idaho gas prices have dropped, but don’t expect it to last
It’s the season of festive cheer for Idahoans, not just with family at home but at the gas pump, too.
For the first time since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which resulted in gas prices spiking to as high as $5.34 per gallon in Ada County, the cost of gas has dropped below $4 for the first time.
As of Tuesday morning, the average gas price in Idaho was $3.92 per gallon, 17 cents lower than last week, according to AAA. Despite the good news, the Gem State still has the seventh-most expensive gas in the nation and is far above the national average of $3.38 per gallon.
Gas prices have been falling at a consistent rate heading into the winter months, which typically happens yearly due to falling fuel demands as people travel less.
“It’s encouraging that Utah, where most of Idaho’s gasoline supply is refined, is seeing an average price of $3.79 per gallon today,” AAA Idaho public affairs director Matthew Conde stated in a Monday news release. “Hopefully, the trend will continue, and Gem State prices will be even better in the run-up to the holidays.”
But despite currently low prices, crude oil has remained at a high cost.
The West Texas Intermediate benchmark, one of three benchmarks in oil pricing worldwide, is trading crude oil near $77 per barrel as of Nov. 28. That is $11 less than at the start of November yet $7 more than a year ago.
“If the threat of crude oil scarcity rattles the market, drivers could suffer the consequences,” Conde said. “OPEC recently announced that it will follow through on an agreement to cut crude production by two million barrels per day, and Russia has also threatened to withhold oil from any nation that attempts to cap its prices.”
OPEC — the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries — comprises 13 oil-exporting countries such as Iran, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela. In October, it announced its plan to cut crude oil production amid uncertainty around the global economy.
“While supply issues or a surge in holiday fuel demand could send pump prices higher,” Conde noted, “we’re keeping our fingers crossed that more savings are on the way.”
Gas prices in Idaho
As of Tuesday, gas prices in Ada County averaged $3.96 per gallon, but several gas stations were offering gas as low as $3.85, such as the Flying J at 3353 Federal Way and the Shell at 4115 Broadway Ave.
Several other gas stations around Boise are also below $3.90 per gallon, according to GasBuddy.
Blaine County in central Idaho has the highest average cost of gas in the state at $4.53, and Kootenai County in the Idaho Panhandle has the cheapest at $3.59.
Check out the interactive map below to see how much your county pays — the map updates daily with the most recently available prices.
You can also check the updating map below comparing Ada County to Idaho’s most and least expensive counties for gas, Blaine and Kootenai Counties, respectively.
