Florida Gas Prices Drop 29 Cents in a Week but Remain Above $4 a Gallon

Florida drivers got some relief at the pump this week as the state's average price for regular gasoline fell to $4.105 a gallon on Saturday, Oct. 3, according to AAA, down about 29 cents from a week earlier and more than 30 cents below the late-September peak. Prices remain far above last year's levels, however, with the average driver still paying roughly $1 more per gallon than in early October 2025 as the Iran war keeps oil markets volatile.

The drop followed one of the sharpest run-ups of the year. Florida's daily average climbed 18 cents during the week of Sept. 21 and hit $4.42 on Friday, Sept. 25, the highest for the state since May, before beginning to slide.

How Prices Moved

AAA's daily averages show how quickly the trend reversed once crude oil prices eased:

At the Sept. 27 reading, Florida was still below the national average of $4.48 and above neighboring Georgia's $4.20, and the state average was $1.42 a gallon higher than a year earlier, AAA said.

Even after the decline, the average driver is paying about $65 to fill a tank that cost about $44 at this time last year, AAA said in its Sept. 28 report. Data compiled from AAA by Stacker showed Florida's Oct. 2 average up $1.04 a gallon, or 33.2 percent, from a year earlier.

Where Gas Costs the Most and Least

The familiar geographic split held. South Florida and parts of North Central and Southwest Florida remained the most expensive markets, while the western Panhandle stayed the cheapest. Data for Oct. 2, compiled from AAA by Stacker, showed these metro averages for regular:

Pensacola and Crestview-Fort Walton Beach also averaged under $4, according to AAA data. Pensacola, Panama City and Crestview-Fort Walton Beach were also the three cheapest markets in AAA's Sept. 28 report and in its early May report, making the western Panhandle the most consistent bargain in the state.

Why Prices Fell

Gasoline follows crude oil, and crude cooled at the end of September. West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark, traded around $91 a barrel on Friday, Oct. 2, and AAA said in its Sept. 28 report that oil had closed the prior Friday at about $92, down roughly 8 percent from about $100 a week earlier. Brent, the international benchmark, was more resilient and settled near $102 on Friday.

AAA spokesman Mark Jenkins said on Sept. 28 that gasoline prices had bounced higher in response to oil price gains the week before, and that lower oil prices could ease some of the upward pressure on prices at the pump. That is what happened over the following days.

The federal government also moved to add supply. On Sept. 29 the U.S. Department of Energy offered another 40 million barrels of crude from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the final piece of a 172 million barrel release President Donald Trump authorized in March as part of an International Energy Agency agreement in which roughly 30 member nations committed to put about 400 million barrels on global markets. The release is structured as an exchange, meaning companies that borrow crude must return it later with a premium.

The Iran War Backdrop

Fuel prices have been elevated nationwide for most of 2026 as the war with Iran, now nearly seven months old, has disrupted oil flows. In early May, Florida's average jumped 40 cents in a single week to $4.34, which AAA called a four-year high at the time. Jenkins said then that the ongoing Iranian conflict and uncertainty tied to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz were keeping upward pressure on fuel prices.

Florida's all-time record remains $4.89 a gallon, set on June 13, 2022.

Nationally, AAA said the average fell nearly 7 cents to $4.41 in the week ending Oct. 1, following a record-setting September in which the monthly national average was $4.33, about 50 cents higher than the previous September record of $3.83 set in 2023. The national average was about $4.38 on Oct. 3, putting Florida roughly 27 cents below the U.S. figure. AAA said gas prices nationally remain the highest on record for this time of year.

Diesel and the Wider Economy

Diesel has climbed even faster than gasoline. The Florida average for diesel was $5.92 a gallon on Oct. 2, down 25 cents in a week but up $2.27, or 62.3 percent, from a year earlier, according to the Stacker compilation of AAA data. Nationally, diesel has topped $6 a gallon amid tight supplies of middle distillates.

Because diesel powers the trucks that deliver groceries, building materials and retail goods across the state, higher diesel prices tend to show up in freight and delivery costs well beyond the pump.

Federal data cited by AAA for the week ending Oct. 1 showed U.S. gasoline demand slipping from 8.84 million barrels a day to 8.68 million, while total domestic gasoline supply fell from 206 million barrels to 204.4 million and production dipped from 9.59 million barrels a day to 9.46 million. Lower demand helps ease prices, while tighter supply works the other way.

What's Next

AAA Florida typically releases its weekly gas price report on Mondays, and the next one, due Oct. 5, will show whether the decline held through the weekend. The direction from here depends largely on crude oil, which has swung sharply on news from the Middle East, and on whether the final reserve release and softer demand keep downward pressure on prices.

For now, the regional gap remains wide. At Oct. 2 prices, a 15-gallon fill-up cost about $64.95 in the West Palm Beach-Boca Raton market and about $59.25 in Panama City, a difference of nearly $6 per tank.