Pennsylvania Gas Tax
Pennsylvania’s state taxes and fees on gasoline total 58.7¢ a gallon, the 5th-highest of 51; with the 18.4¢ federal tax, drivers pay 77.1¢ a gallon in combined tax. Rates are from U.S. Energy Information Administration data as of July 2026.
What makes up Pennsylvania’s 77.1¢
| Pennsylvania state excise tax | 57.6¢ |
|---|---|
| Other Pennsylvania taxes & fees sales/use taxes, inspection and environmental fees | 1.1¢ |
| Total Pennsylvania state tax | 58.7¢ |
| Federal excise + LUST fee 18.3¢ excise + 0.1¢ LUST, unchanged since 1993 | 18.4¢ |
| Combined state + federal | 77.1¢ |
A variable rate is calculated annually and replaced the OCS and Liquid Fuels Tax (see PA Bulletin for updated rate info). Underground Storage Tank (UST) Fund fee (applies only to gasoline and diesel fuel into tanks at farms: $0.0110/gal. Most diesel fuel subject to the tank Capacity fee: $0.0825/gal of UST capacity, paid annually. See PA Insurance Dept, Bureau of Special Funds, USTIF for UST fees.
A wholesale-price formula recalculated each year
Almost all of Pennsylvania’s gasoline tax is the Oil Company Franchise Tax, which the EIA lists as a per-gallon excise of 57.6¢. It is not a fixed rate: the Department of Revenue recalculates it each year from the average wholesale price of fuel over the 12 months ending September 30, and publishes the new rate in the Pennsylvania Bulletin for the following calendar year. The law sets a floor on the wholesale price used, $2.99 a gallon, so the tax cannot fall below a minimum even when wholesale prices drop.
This structure dates to Act 89, signed on November 25, 2013. It removed the cap that had limited the wholesale price in the formula and folded the fixed 12¢ Liquid Fuels and Fuels tax into the franchise tax, with the cap phased out through 2017. The gasoline rate was 57.6¢ in both 2025 and 2026. The remaining state charge is a 1.1¢ underground storage tank fee.
In the EIA’s July 2026 (revised August 2026) table, Pennsylvania’s state taxes and fees total 58.7¢ a gallon, the 5th-highest of the 50 states and D.C., against a 51-jurisdiction average of 33.8¢. Its excise alone is among the highest in the country. The effect on pump prices is on the Pennsylvania gas prices page.
Sources: current rates and rankings are from the EIA motor fuel tax table in our database; other facts are from the sources listed here.
How much of a gallon in Pennsylvania is tax
Pennsylvania gasoline is estimated at $4.42 a gallon. Against that, the 77.1¢ of combined state and federal tax is about 17.5% of what a driver pays — with local taxes, where they apply, on top.
Tax rate from EIA as of July 2026; pump price is this week’s US Gas Gauge estimate from EIA regional prices (EIA publishes no weekly average for Pennsylvania). The two are published on different schedules, so the share moves as prices move even when the tax does not.
Pennsylvania vs. the other 50 states
Pennsylvania’s state gas tax of 58.7¢ is 24.9¢ above the 33.8¢ average across 50 states and D.C. — it is the 5th-highest.
Neighboring states' gas tax
| State | State tax | vs. Pennsylvania |
|---|---|---|
| New Jersey gas tax | 49.2¢ | −9.6¢ |
| Maryland gas tax | 46.8¢ | −11.9¢ |
| Ohio gas tax | 38.5¢ | −20.2¢ |
| West Virginia gas tax | 35.7¢ | −23.0¢ |
| New York gas tax | 24.2¢ | −34.5¢ |
| Delaware gas tax | 23.0¢ | −35.7¢ |
Pennsylvania gas tax, answered
- What is the gas tax in Pennsylvania?
- Pennsylvania charges 58.7¢ per gallon in state gasoline taxes — 57.6¢ of state excise tax plus 1.1¢ in other state taxes and fees. Adding the 18.4¢ federal tax brings the total to 77.1¢ per gallon, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration data as of July 2026. These are state and federal taxes only and exclude county and local taxes.
- How does Pennsylvania's gas tax compare to other states?
- Pennsylvania's state gasoline tax of 58.7¢ per gallon is the 5th-highest of the 50 states and D.C. that EIA lists, against an average of 33.8¢. The highest is California at 73.6¢ and the lowest is Alaska at 9.0¢.
- What is the federal gas tax in Pennsylvania?
- The federal gasoline tax is 18.4¢ per gallon in Pennsylvania, the same as in every other state — 18.3¢ of excise tax plus a 0.1¢ Leaking Underground Storage Tank fee. It has been unchanged since 1993.
- How much of the price of gas in Pennsylvania is tax?
- With Pennsylvania gasoline estimated at $4.42 per gallon this week (a US Gas Gauge estimate from EIA regional prices), the 77.1¢ of combined state and federal tax is about 17.5% of the pump price. Local taxes, where they apply, are on top of that.
- Does Pennsylvania charge local gas taxes too?
- EIA does not flag Pennsylvania as a state where local option taxes are allowed. Its table covers taxes of general application and excludes county and local taxes in every state, so treat the figures here as state and federal only.
Related to Pennsylvania gas tax
Tax rates from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, “Federal and state motor fuels taxes”, edition July 2026 (revised August 2026) (as of July 2026), published on EIA’s Petroleum Marketing Monthly page and reissued each January and July. EIA lists taxes “of general application … exclusive of county and local taxes”; rates are for gasoline. How these figures are built.
More Pennsylvania data
Use this data
Download: Gas tax by state, federal + state rates (CSV).
Column definitions, coverage and every file: gas price data. Free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 with credit.
Cite as: US Gas Gauge, “Pennsylvania Gas Tax,” usgasgauge.com/gas-tax/pennsylvania. Source data: U.S. Energy Information Administration.