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News Release Information

23-365-SAN
Friday, February 17, 2023

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

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

Gasoline prices averaged $4.242 in the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue area in January 2023, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Regional Commissioner Chris Rosenlund noted that area gasoline prices were 10.4 cents higher than last January when they averaged $4.138 per gallon. Seattle area households paid an average of 12.6 cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) of electricity in January 2023, compared to the 11.7 cents per kWh paid in January 2022. The average cost of utility (piped) gas at $1.491 per therm in January was more than the $1.269 per therm spent last year. (Data in this release are not seasonally adjusted; accordingly, over-the-year-analysis is used throughout.) 

At $4.242 a gallon, Seattle area consumers paid 19.3 percent more than the $3.555 national average in January 2023. A year earlier, consumers in the Seattle area paid 18.2 percent more than the national average for a gallon of gasoline. The local price of a gallon of gasoline has been within 25.2 percent of the national average in the month of January during the past five years. (See chart 1.)

The 12.6 cents per kWh Seattle households paid for electricity in January 2023 was 25.0 percent less than the nationwide average of 16.8 cents per kWh. Last January, electricity costs were 20.4 percent lower in Seattle compared to the nation. In each of the past five years during the month of January, prices paid by Seattle area consumers for electricity were less than the U.S. average by at least 16.2 percent. (See chart 2.)

Prices paid by Seattle area consumers for utility (piped) gas, commonly referred to as natural gas, were $1.491 per therm, or 18.0 percent below the national average in January 2023 ($1.819 per therm). A year earlier, area consumers paid 9.9 percent less per therm for natural gas compared to the nation. In the past five years, the per therm cost for natural gas in January in the Seattle area has varied between 6.7 percent above and 18.0 percent below the U.S. average. (See chart 3.)

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, January 2022–January 2023, not seasonally adjusted
Year and monthGasoline per gallonElectricity per kWhUtility (piped) gas per therm
United StatesSeattle areaUnited StatesSeattle areaUnited StatesSeattle area

2022

January

$3.500$4.138$0.147$0.117$1.409$1.269

February

3.6754.1820.1480.1171.4131.269

March

4.4014.8480.1500.1171.4111.269

April

4.3694.9080.1510.1191.4451.263

May

4.6955.2120.1540.1181.5651.261

June

5.1495.6750.1600.1181.6991.261

July

4.7685.4600.1640.1181.6291.261

August

4.2055.0240.1670.1181.6941.261

September

3.9904.9490.1670.1181.7391.264

October

4.1305.4290.1660.1181.6681.263

November

3.9584.9650.1630.1181.6161.420

December

3.4594.3290.1650.1181.6671.420

2023

January

3.5554.2420.1680.1261.8191.491

 

Last Modified Date: Friday, February 17, 2023