Gasoline prices averaged $4.844 a gallon in the San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward area in December 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that area gasoline prices were $1.606 higher than last December when they averaged $3.238 per gallon. San Francisco area households paid an average of 25.9 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) of electricity in December 2021, higher than the 23.6 cents per kWh paid in December 2020. The average cost of utility (piped) gas at $2.047 per therm in December was higher than the $1.602 per therm spent last year. (Data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year-analysis is used throughout.) 

At $4.844 a gallon, San Francisco area consumers paid 38.2 percent more than the $3.505 national average in December 2021. A year earlier, consumers in the San Francisco area paid 44.9 percent more than the national average for a gallon of gasoline. The local price of a gallon of gasoline has ranged from 25.5 to 48.2 percent above the national average in the month of December during the past five years. (See chart 1.)

The 25.9 cents per kWh San Francisco households paid for electricity in December 2021 was 82.4 percent more than the nationwide average of 14.2 cents per kWh. Last December, electricity costs were 73.5 percent higher in San Francisco compared to the nation. In each of the past five years, prices paid by San Francisco area consumers for electricity exceeded the U.S. average by at least 50.0 percent in the month of December. (See chart 2.)

Prices paid by San Francisco area consumers for utility (piped) gas, commonly referred to as natural gas, were $2.047 per therm, or 46.0 percent above the national average in December 2021 ($1.402 per therm). A year earlier, area consumers paid 43.8 percent more 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 San Francisco area has varied between 21.0 percent and 46.0 percent above the U.S. average. (See chart 3.)

The San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, Calif. metropolitan area consists of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, and San Mateo Counties in California.

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; Federal Relay Service: 800-877-8339.

Table 1. Average prices for gasoline, electricity, and utility (piped) gas, the United States and San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA, December 2020–December 2021, not seasonally adjusted

Year and month	Gasoline per gallon		Electricity per kWh		Utility (piped) gas per therm
	United States	San Francisco area	United States	San Francisco area	United States	San Francisco area
2020
December	$2.235	$3.238	$0.136	$0.236	$1.114	$1.602
2021
January	2.391	3.356	0.136	0.242	1.119	1.603
February	2.559	3.458	0.137	0.242	1.124	1.618
March	2.856	3.790	0.138	0.251	1.144	1.656
April	2.907	3.943	0.139	0.257	1.166	1.707
May	3.041	4.117	0.140	0.257	1.201	1.695
June	3.245	4.396	0.142	0.261	1.219	1.704
July	3.326	4.472	0.143	0.261	1.241	1.678
August	3.351	4.572	0.144	0.263	1.267	1.712
September	3.361	4.559	0.144	0.263	1.302	1.932
October	3.477	4.674	0.142	0.258	1.383	2.166
November	3.576	4.864	0.142	0.258	1.401	2.052
December	3.505	4.844	0.142	0.259	1.402	2.047