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News Release Information

23-364-SAN
Friday, February 17, 2023

Contacts Technical information: Media contact:
  • (415) 625-2270

Average Energy Prices, San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward – January 2023

Gasoline prices averaged $4.569 a gallon in the San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward area in January 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that area gasoline prices were 24.0 cents lower than last January when they averaged $4.809 per gallon. San Francisco area households paid an average of 31.7 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) of electricity in January 2023, higher than the 27.9 cents per kWh paid in January 2022. The average cost of utility (piped) gas at $2.683 per therm in January was higher than the $2.156 per therm spent last year. (Data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year-analysis is used throughout.) 

At $4.569 a gallon, San Francisco area consumers paid 28.5 percent more than the $3.555 national average in January 2023. A year earlier, consumers in the San Francisco area paid 37.4 percent more than the national average for a gallon of gasoline. The local price of a gallon of gasoline has ranged from 32.0 to 50.6 percent above the national average in the month of January during the past five years. (See chart 1.)

The 31.7 cents per kWh San Francisco households paid for electricity in January 2023 was 88.7 percent more than the nationwide average of 16.8 cents per kWh. Last January, electricity costs were 89.8 percent higher in San Francisco compared to the nation. In each of the past five years, prices paid by San Francisco area consumers for electricity exceeded the U.S. average by at least 52.6 percent in the month of January. (See chart 2.)

Prices paid by San Francisco area consumers for utility (piped) gas, commonly referred to as natural gas, were $2.683 per therm, or 47.5 percent above the national average in January 2023 ($1.819 per therm). A year earlier, area consumers paid 53.0 percent more per therm for natural gas compared to the nation. In the past five years, the per therm cost for natural gas in January in the San Francisco area has varied between 27.6 percent and 53.0 percent above the U.S. average. (See chart 3.)

The San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, Calif. metropolitan area consists of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, and San Mateo Counties in California.


Technical Note

Average prices are estimated from Consumer Price Index (CPI) data for selected commodity series to support the research and analytic needs of CPI data users. Average prices for electricity, utility (piped) gas, and gasoline are published monthly for the U.S. city average, the 4 regions, 9 divisions, 2 population size classes, 8 region/size-class cross-classifications, and the 23 largest local index areas. For electricity, average prices per kilowatt-hour (kWh) are published. For utility (piped) gas, average prices per therm, are published. For gasoline, the average price per gallon is published. Average prices for commonly available grades of gasoline are published as well as the average price across all grades.

All eligible prices are converted to a price per normalized quantity. These prices are then used to estimate a price for a defined fixed quantity. The average price per kilowatt-hour represents the total bill divided by the kilowatt-hour usage. The total bill is the sum of all items applicable to all consumers appearing on an electricity bill including, but not limited to, variable rates per kWh, fixed costs, taxes, surcharges, and credits. This calculation also applies to the average price per therm for utility (piped) gas.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-691-5200; Telecommunications Relay Service: 7-1-1.

Table 1. Average prices for gasoline, electricity, and utility (piped) gas, the United States and San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA, January 2022–January 2023, not seasonally adjusted
Year and monthGasoline per gallonElectricity per kWhUtility (piped) gas per therm
United StatesSan Francisco areaUnited StatesSan Francisco areaUnited StatesSan Francisco area

2022

January

$3.500$4.809$0.147$0.279$1.409$2.156

February

3.6754.8530.1480.2791.4132.144

March

4.4015.7730.1500.3101.4112.030

April

4.3695.8430.1510.3031.4452.107

May

4.6956.1490.1540.3031.5652.222

June

5.1496.5560.1600.3111.6992.277

July

4.7686.0560.1640.3111.6292.318

August

4.2055.5250.1670.3111.6942.242

September

3.9905.6710.1670.3111.7392.424

October

4.1306.1650.1660.3071.6682.519

November

3.9585.4100.1630.3071.6162.325

December

3.4594.5950.1650.3071.6672.348

2023

January

3.5554.5690.1680.3171.8192.683

 

Last Modified Date: Friday, February 17, 2023