Big Island Fuel Costs Drop Drastically

Filling up gas on the Big Island took less of a dent out of your wallet in the past week. Big Island Now’s analysis of current fuel prices on the Big Island has found drastic decreases in Hilo and Kona fuel prices.

Using data from AAA’s Fuel Gauge Report and Gas Buddy, we’ve analyzed the latest fuel numbers.

On Tuesday, regular fuel prices in Hilo were an average of $3.02, a 20-cent drop from one week ago and two cents less than 24 hours ago. Mid-grade fuel saw a decrease of 18 cents with a one-cent drop from Sunday to $3.13. Hilo’s average for premium gas also dropped by 18 cents, averaging $3.24, one cent less than Sunday’s average.

The latest numbers have taken a drastic drop in the Big Island’s ongoing decreasing averages. Big Island Now’s analysis of AAA’s report shows that the average of regular fuel has dropped by 29 cents, compared to one month ago, while mid-grade and premium fuel have each seen a 25-cent decrease in average over the past month.

Compared to a year ago, Hilo fuel prices have decreased drastically. AAA’s numbers show that the average price for regular fuel during the same time in 2014 was $4.10, while mid-grade was an average of $4.19 and premium fuel cost $4.26. More than a dollar decrease in fuel prices has been seen for both regular and mid-grade fuel costs, while premium fuel just missed the dollar mark.

Kona fuel prices have seen a similar margin of decrease in gas costs over the past week. Big Island Now calculations of Gas Buddy data from Kona show that regular fuel is averaging about $3.33 on Tuesday, 17 cents less than one week ago. Mid-grade was about $3.43 on average, compared to $3.60 one week ago, and premium fuel buyers were paying an average of $3.53, 16 cents less than last week.

In Honolulu, the average price of regular fuel is seven cents less than in Hilo and 38 cents lower than Kona’s average regular fuel prices. Residents on Oahu are paying an average of $2.95 for regular fuel, a decrease of six cents from last week and a total of 22 cents in the past month.

Diesel buyers in Hilo are paying an average of $4.15 on Monday, nearly 10 cents less than one week ago. Honolulu diesel buyers are paying $4.50, a number that has only dropped one cent in the past month.

Club member-only prices, such as Costco and HFN, are excluded from this report and it’s averages.