Department of Labor Logo United States Department of Labor
Dot gov

The .gov means it's official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you're on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

News Release Information

24-74-SAN
Tuesday, January 16, 2024

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

Average Energy Prices, Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue – December 2023

Gasoline prices averaged $4.499 in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue area in December 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that area gasoline prices were 17.0 cents higher than last December when they averaged $4.329 per gallon. Seattle area households paid an average of 12.7 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) of electricity in December 2023, compared to the 11.8 cents per kWh paid in December 2022. The average cost of utility (piped) gas at $0.985 per therm in December was less than the $1.420 per therm spent last year. (Data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year-analysis is used throughout.) 

At $4.499 a gallon, Seattle area consumers paid 31.9 percent more than the $3.411 national average in December 2023. A year earlier, consumers in the Seattle area paid 25.2 percent more than the national average for a gallon of gasoline. The local price of a gallon of gasoline has been within 31.9 percent of the national average in the month of December during the past five years. (See chart 1.)

Chart 1. Average prices for gasoline, Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue and the United States, 2019-2023 (as of December)

The 12.7 cents per kWh Seattle households paid for electricity in December 2023 was 24.9 percent less than the nationwide average of 16.9 cents per kWh. Last December, electricity costs were 28.5 percent lower in Seattle compared to the nation. In each of the past five years during the month of December, prices paid by Seattle area consumers for electricity were less than the U.S. average by at least 16.2 percent. (See chart 2.)

Chart 2. Average prices for electricity, Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue and the United States, 2019-2023 (as of December)

Prices paid by Seattle area consumers for utility (piped) gas, commonly referred to as natural gas, were $0.985 per therm, 31.1 percent lower than the national average in December 2023 ($1.429 per therm). A year earlier, area consumers paid 14.8 percent less per therm for natural gas compared to the nation. In the past five years, the per therm cost for natural gas in December in the Seattle area has varied between 7.6 percent above and 31.1 percent below the U.S. average. (See chart 3.)

Chart 3. Average prices for utility (piped) gas, Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue and the United States, 2019-2023 (as of December)

The Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, Wash. metropolitan area consists of King, Snohomish, and Pierce Counties of Washington.


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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA, December 2022–December 2023, not seasonally adjusted
Year and monthGasoline per gallonElectricity per kWhUtility (piped) gas per therm
United StatesSeattle areaUnited StatesSeattle areaUnited StatesSeattle area

2022

December

$3.459$4.329$0.165$0.118$1.667$1.420

2023

January

3.5554.2420.1680.1261.8191.491

February

3.6224.3970.1680.1261.6091.491

March

3.6604.4900.1660.1261.4931.491

April

3.8394.6690.1650.1271.4131.491

May

3.7944.7900.1650.1271.3851.589

June

3.8215.0090.1700.1271.3711.589

July

3.8425.1370.1690.1271.3951.589

August

4.0645.2280.1700.1271.4021.589

September

4.1075.2700.1710.1281.3771.589

October

3.9105.1200.1690.1271.3881.644

November

3.6234.7420.1680.1271.4421.144

December

3.4114.4990.1690.1271.4290.985

 

Last Modified Date: Tuesday, January 16, 2024