GasBuddy predicts a 13% drop in gasoline prices this Labor Day weekend

CHARLESTON, SC (WCIV) — A fuel-saving platform predicts that gasoline prices will fall on Labor Day to their lowest level since 2021.

GasBuddy predicts the average price of gasoline will fall to $3.27 per gallon on Labor Day. That's 50 cents per gallon, or 13%, lower than the $3.77 it will reach in 2023, according to the fuel savings prediction platform, saving drivers $750 million during the Friday-Monday travel period.

READ MORE | “South Carolina sees significant drop in gas prices, down 12.6 cents last week: Gasbuddy.”

“It was a great summer for drivers as gasoline prices were generally lower than last year,” said Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy.

“But just before Labor Day, the gap has grown significantly compared to last year, as there have been few outages or heat waves at refineries this month. Hurricane season has also been quiet so far. With no threat to the major refineries that produce gasoline and diesel, it is becoming increasingly likely that we can avoid a late summer price spike.

De Haan continued, “While many Americans wish summer could last forever, the good news is that we may have the best opportunity in years to get the national average price below $3 a gallon. As we get closer to Thanksgiving, we should see more gas stations eventually drop back below that level, thanks to declining seasonal demand and cheaper winter gasoline just around the corner.”

READ MORE | “South Carolina gas prices are rising, but at $3.03 a gallon they're still cheaper than July.”

Gasoline prices peaked at $3.69 per gallon in mid-April. Since then, prices have been steadily falling due to lower demand.

In South Carolina, gasoline prices continued to fall, averaging $2.90 per gallon on Monday, according to GasBuddy.

Gas prices on the West Coast are over 65 cents lower than they were a year ago. In Oregon, they're an average of 90 cents lower per gallon, in Washington, 87 cents lower, and in Alaska, 84 cents lower. And outside the West Coast, all 50 states will see lower gas prices this Labor Day weekend than they were a year ago, according to GasBuddy.

A May survey found that Labor Day is the least popular summer holiday, with only a little more than a third of respondents planning to end the summer on a road trip.