Gasoline Street Margin
Recent values
| Date | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Aug 10, 2026 | $1.01 | -0.24 |
| Aug 3, 2026 | $1.24 | +0.34 |
| Jul 27, 2026 | $0.90 | +0.16 |
| Jul 20, 2026 | $0.74 | -0.08 |
| Jul 13, 2026 | $0.82 | -0.09 |
| Jul 6, 2026 | $0.91 | +0.01 |
| Jun 29, 2026 | $0.90 | -0.32 |
| Jun 27, 2026 | $1.22 | +0.16 |
| Jun 22, 2026 | $1.06 | -0.18 |
| Jun 15, 2026 | $1.24 | +0.03 |
| U.S. Gasoline | $4.14 | -0.07 | Aug 10, 2026 |
| RBOB Gasoline | $2.98 | -0.29 | Aug 18, 2026 |
The gasoline street margin is the gap between what regular gasoline sells for at the pump and what it costs at wholesale: U.S. average retail gasoline minus the RBOB futures price, in dollars per gallon. It is the slice of every gallon that is not the wholesale fuel itself.
That slice is what a convenience-store operator actually works with on fuel. It covers freight and distribution, the retailer's margin, and federal plus state taxes. When RBOB spikes and the pump lags, the street margin compresses; when RBOB falls and the operator holds price, it widens. Gasoline is the thin-margin, high-traffic product that pulls customers toward the higher-margin store inside.
Methodology
Gasoline street margin = U.S. retail gasoline (EIA) minus RBOB futures. Both inputs are quoted in dollars per gallon, so the margin is a direct subtraction. Retail gasoline is the EIA weekly national average; RBOB is the front-month reformulated blendstock futures price, the standard wholesale gasoline benchmark.
It is a proxy, and we state the limits plainly. Retail is a national weekly average while RBOB trades continuously, so the two are measured at slightly different moments, and the margin blends distribution, retail markup, and state-by-state taxes into one number. It reads the wholesale-to-pump gap directionally, not as an exact per-station margin. Both inputs are public; no licensed price feeds are used.
Frequently asked
What is the gasoline street margin?
It is the difference between the U.S. average retail gasoline price and the RBOB wholesale futures price, in dollars per gallon: the combined distribution, retail margin, and tax between wholesale gasoline and the pump.
How is the gasoline street margin calculated?
Retail gasoline (the EIA weekly national average) minus RBOB futures (the wholesale benchmark). Both are in dollars per gallon, so it is a direct subtraction.
Why does the gasoline street margin matter to a convenience store?
Fuel is a thin-margin draw that brings traffic to the higher-margin store inside. When the street margin compresses, more of the store's profit has to come from inside sales.