Gas Prices in 1972

The average price was $0.36 a gallon in 1972, 0.7% lower than in 1971 at the pump and 3.8% lower after inflation, at $2.78 in 2025 dollars. That makes 1972 the least expensive year of the 1970s in real terms in this record.

The low price came just as the conditions that had kept it low were ending. In March 1972 the Texas Railroad Commission allowed wells in the state to produce at 100 percent of their permitted rate for the first time since 1948, ending its long practice of holding output below capacity. The move showed that Texas had little spare production left to add. With U.S. output past its 1970 peak and demand still rising, the country relied increasingly on imported oil.

Federal controls on wages and prices, introduced in August 1971, were still in effect through the year, which also restrained how quickly fuel prices could rise. The year-to-year figures here are annual averages across all grades; the EIA’s weekly and monthly retail series used for later years do not exist this far back.

Kansas was the cheapest state in 1972 at $0.32, while Hawaii was the most expensive at $0.42. That puts 9.6¢ between the highest-priced and lowest-priced state in 1972. Above the national figure for 1972 were 28 of 51 states, a count that includes D.C. Every 1972 state value comes from the annual averages in the EIA State Energy Data System, all grades.

Counted at the pump, 1972 is the 55th-highest of the 56 complete years from 1970 to 2025. In 1971 the national average stood at $0.36. Going into 1973 it climbed to $0.39, a rise of 7.6% at the pump and 1.3% in constant 2025 dollars.

The constant-dollar peak for 1970–2025 came in 2012 at $5.08. Figures for years before 2000, including 1972, are approximate national averages for all grades of motor gasoline with taxes included, drawn from the EIA State Energy Data System. Weekly data for 1972 are not held on the site. Constant-dollar figures are stated in 2025 dollars using CPI-U, and at the pump means not adjusted for inflation.