National average heating oil price per gallon
The EIA State Heating Oil and Propane Program (SHOPP) is the primary source. It runs October through March, surveys roughly 240 residential dealers across 23 states, and posts the national + state averages each Monday afternoon. The current national average is $5.54/gal for the week of 2026-03-30 EIA.
How SHOPP is collected
EIA contracts state energy offices in the major heating-oil states (NY, MA, CT, ME, NH, VT, PA, RI, plus DE, MD, NJ, etc.). State staff phone residential dealers each Monday morning. Dealers report the price they would charge a residential customer that day for a cash, 100-to-150-gallon delivery. The state office submits to EIA. The national figure is consumption-weighted. EIA
Release schedule
- October through March: weekly Monday release, around 13:00 ET.
- April through September: paused. The series goes dark for ~26 weeks.
- Next release: 2026-10-05.
The pause is the structural reason summer headlines on big news sites quote 6-month-old data. This site shows the NYMEX NY Harbor ULSD daily wholesale alongside the EIA retail so off-season visitors still see a moving number.
National average vs Northeast 8
Why the national figure understates the Northeast
80%+ of US #2 heating oil is burned in PADD1A (the eight states above). The remaining 20% is spread thin across 18 reporting states with smaller dealer panels and milder weather. The national average is dragged down by southern states with low oil-heat penetration. If you live in PADD1A, the state number on New York or Maine is the one to watch.
Internal cross-references
- Weekly EIA release calendar
- Wholesale vs retail spread
- 25-year price history
- Seasonal price pattern
- Sources manifest