Gasoline prices averaged $4.814 a gallon in the Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim area in December 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that area gasoline prices were 20.4 cents higher than last December when they averaged $4.610 per gallon. Los Angeles area households paid an average of 28.8 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) of electricity in December 2023, higher than the 26.0 cents price per kWh paid in December 2022. The average cost of utility (piped) gas at $1.604 per therm in December was lower than the $2.059 per therm spent last year. (Data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year-analysis is used throughout.) 

At $4.814 a gallon, Los Angeles area consumers paid 41.1 percent more than the $3.411 national average in December 2023. A year earlier, consumers in the Los Angeles area paid 33.3 percent more than the national average for a gallon of gasoline. The local price of a gallon of gasoline has ranged from 33.3 percent to 41.1 percent above the national average in the month of December during the past five years. (See chart 1.)

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Chart 1. Average prices for gasoline, the United States and Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA, 2019–23 (as of December)

Period	United States	Los Angeles
Dec 2019	$2.652	$3.641
Dec 2020	$2.235	$3.120
Dec 2021	$3.505	$4.720
Dec 2022	$3.459	$4.610
Dec 2023	$3.411	$4.814
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The 28.8 cents per kWh Los Angeles households paid for electricity in December 2023 was 70.4 percent more than the nationwide average of 16.9 cents per kWh. Last December, electricity costs were 57.6 percent higher in Los Angeles compared to the nation. In the past five years, prices paid by Los Angeles area consumers for electricity exceeded the U.S. average by 42.9 percent or more in the month of December. (See chart 2.)

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Chart 2. Average prices for electricity, the United States and Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA, 2019–23 (as of December)

Period	United States	Los Angeles
Dec 2019	$0.133	$0.190
Dec 2020	$0.136	$0.208
Dec 2021	$0.142	$0.240
Dec 2022	$0.165	$0.260
Dec 2023	$0.169	$0.288
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Prices paid by Los Angeles area consumers for utility (piped) gas, commonly referred to as natural gas, were $1.604 per therm, 12.2 percent more than the national average in December 2023 ($1.429 per therm). A year earlier, area consumers paid 23.5 percent more per therm for natural gas compared to the nation. In the Los Angeles area over the past five years, the per therm cost for natural gas in December has varied between 12.2 percent and 23.5 percent above the U.S. average. (See chart 3.)

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Chart 3. Average prices for utility (piped) gas, the United States and Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA, 2019–23 (as of December)

Period	United States	Los Angeles
Dec 2019	$1.057	$1.215
Dec 2020	$1.114	$1.374
Dec 2021	$1.402	$1.625
Dec 2022	$1.667	$2.059
Dec 2023	$1.429	$1.604
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, Calif. metropolitan area consists of Los Angeles and Orange Counties in California.

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.