Iran War Has Added More Than $760 To The Average U.S. Household’s Energy Bill. Diesel Is Driving The Increase.
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American households have paid more than $760 in additional gasoline and diesel costs since the Iran war began Feb. 28, according to an estimate from Brown University’s Iran War Energy Cost Tracker. The nationwide increase had reached roughly $100 billion by Monday as fuel prices remained well above year-earlier levels.
The calculations use daily gasoline and diesel prices from AAA, consumption data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration and household data from the Census Bureau.
Brown researchers estimated in mid-April that Americans had spent about $20 billion more on fuel since the conflict began, equivalent to more than $150 per household. By May 18, the additional cost had more than doubled to over $40 billion, or more than $300 per household.
Diesel has accounted for a growing share of the increase as prices climbed to record levels. The national average reached a record $5.9015 a gallon Monday and stood at about $5.90 Tuesday, according to AAA, up from about $3.70 a year earlier. Regular gasoline averaged about $4.15 a gallon Tuesday, compared with roughly $3.20 a year ago.
The fuel-price pressure has intensified alongside renewed disruptions to regional energy flows. Brent crude reached an intraday high of $99.46 on Tuesday before pulling back, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate climbed as high as $94.73. Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz remained constrained, with seven commodity vessels passing through Monday, down from eight the previous day, Kpler data showed.
Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries and restrictions on Russian fuel exports have further tightened refined-fuel supplies, adding to pressure from disruptions to Gulf refining capacity and keeping diesel markets particularly constrained.
The higher energy costs are landing less than two months before the U.S. midterm elections, keeping fuel prices in the political spotlight. President Donald Trump has defended the war despite the increase, saying Americans are willing to pay more to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
The nationwide increase has been unevenly distributed, with Texas consumers incurring about $11 billion in additional gasoline and diesel costs by Monday, the largest total of any state. California’s burden stood at roughly $8 billion, while Florida’s was nearly $5 billion, according to Brown University estimates.
