Area gas prices expected to fall gradually in 2026

That means area drivers this year should expect to see peak prices in the spring when gas stations switch to summer formulas as they do every year.

But those peaks should be lowest they’ve been since COVID, De Haan said. Instead of gas hitting $2.99 per gallon, De Haan said as an example, the price would top out at $2.89.

Gas prices in the region typically fall as much as 40 cents per gallon below the national average according to GasBuddy and AAA.

Low prices for regular unleaded in Dayton, Springfield, Hamilton and Middletown on Wednesday were $2.27 per gallon at Sunoco on South Broadway Street, $2.28 at Speedway on S. Limestone Street, $2.35 at AG Station and Food Mart on Tylersville Road, and $2.29 at AmeriStop on Lefferson Road.

Average prices nationally are forecast to fall back below $3 per gallon for the first time since since the COVID pandemic. The yearly U.S. average is projected to be $2.97 per gallon, down 13 cents from 2025’s average of $3.102.

“The world has spent years recovering from the economic whiplash of the pandemic and shock of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but the situation has been improving quietly since 2022,” De Haan. “As global central banks slammed the brakes on an overheated economy and a new refining capacity came online, we’ve seen fuel prices ease year after year, a trend few would’ve bet on when chaos ruled the energy market.”

2025 was the third consecutive year the national average price dropped.

Numerous factors contributed to the decline, according to GasBuddy and AAA, including falling crude oil prices, and increased supply from OPEC and domestically.

In January 2025, the average price per gallon of regular unleaded in Dayton was about $3.08. It fell to $3.02 midyear. By December, prices in some Dayton areas were below $2.50 per gallon before ticking up after the first of the year as part of routine price cycling.

Motorists nationwide are projected to spend $11 billion less on gasoline in 2026 compared to 2025. The average household will spend $2,083 at the pump, according to GasBuddy.