Gasoline prices averaged $3.595 per gallon in the Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington area in January 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Alexandra Hall Bovee noted that area gasoline prices were 1.9 percent higher than last January when they averaged $3.529 per gallon. Philadelphia-area households paid an average of 19.7 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) of electricity in January 2023, 14.5 percent higher than the average of 17.2 cents in January 2022. The average cost of utility (piped) gas at $1.639 per therm in January 2023 was 22.6 percent higher than its price of $1.337 per therm a year earlier. (Data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year-analysis is used throughout.)

At $3.595 per gallon, the price for gasoline in the Philadelphia area was slightly higher than the national average of $3.555 per gallon in January 2023. From 2019 to 2022, local and national prices for gasoline in January differed by 12.3 percent or less. (See chart 1 and table 1.)

The 19.7 cents per kWh that Philadelphia households paid for electricity in January 2023 was 17.3 percent higher than the nationwide average cost of 16.8 cents per kWh. Last January, electricity prices in Philadelphia were 17.0 percent higher than the nation. From 2019 to 2021, prices paid by Philadelphia-area consumers for electricity in January ranged between 12.6 percent lower to 14.2 percent higher than the U.S. average. (See chart 2.)

The price paid by Philadelphia-area consumers for utility (piped) gas, commonly referred to as natural gas, was $1.639 per therm in January 2023, 9.9 percent lower than the national average of $1.819 per therm. Utility (piped) gas prices in the Philadelphia area in January for the previous four years ranged from 5.1 percent lower to 6.5 percent higher compared to the U.S. average. (See chart 3.)

The Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD Core Based Statistical Area includes Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, and Philadelphia Counties in Pennsylvania; Burlington, Camden, Gloucester, and Salem Counties in New Jersey; New Castle County in Delaware; and Cecil County in Maryland.

The Consumer Price Index for February 2023 is scheduled to be released on Tuesday, March 14, 2023, at 8:30 a.m. (ET).

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, the 3 population size classes, 10 region/size-class cross-classifications, and the 14 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 individuals with sensory impairments 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 Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD, January 2022–January 2023, not seasonally adjusted

Year and month	Gasoline per gallon		Electricity per kWh		Utility (piped) gas per therm
	United States	Philadelphia area	United States	Philadelphia area	United States	Philadelphia area
2022
January	$3.500	$3.529	$0.147	$0.172	$1.409	$1.337
February	3.675	3.712	0.148	0.170	1.413	1.344
March	4.401	4.308	0.150	0.172	1.411	1.323
April	4.369	4.256	0.151	0.173	1.445	1.344
May	4.695	4.728	0.154	0.175	1.565	1.356
June	5.149	5.072	0.160	0.185	1.699	1.554
July	4.768	4.739	0.164	0.185	1.629	1.562
August	4.205	4.310	0.167	0.184	1.694	1.573
September	3.990	3.844	0.167	0.188	1.739	1.556
October	4.130	3.853	0.166	0.184	1.668	1.616
November	3.958	4.027	0.163	0.183	1.616	1.628
December	3.459	3.605	0.165	0.193	1.667	1.586
2023
January	3.555	3.595	0.168	0.197	1.819	1.639