An old saying states two things in life are certain, death and taxes. You pay taxes on gasoline every time you fill up at the pump, but do you know how much gasoline tax you actually pay? It’s easy to not notice when gas prices alone are nearing $3 a gallon.
Both the federal and state governments tax gasoline heavily because it’s a product many people absolutely have to buy.
The federal government collects 18.4 cents per gallon, but the states’ tax rates vary considerably.
State and Federal Gas Taxes
The average state gasoline tax is 33.72 cents per gallon. When you add in the 18.4 cents the federal government takes, the average gasoline tax is 52.12 cents per gallon.
The table below lists the gasoline tax assessed by each state, as well as the total tax per gallon once you include the federal government’s share. These values in the first two columns are expressed in cents per gallon (CPG). The table also includes the annual and monthly gasoline tax paid by a driver burning the average consumption of gasoline per year: 656 gallons. The states are in order of the lowest gas taxes to the highest.
| State | State Tax | Total State + Federal Taxes (@18.4 CPG) | Average Annual Gasoline Taxes | Average Monthly Gasoline Taxes |
| Alaska | 14.36 | 32.76 | $214.91 | $17.91 |
| Oklahoma | 17.00 | 35.40 | $232.22 | $19.35 |
| Missouri | 17.35 | 35.75 | $234.52 | $19.54 |
| Mississippi | 18.79 | 37.19 | $243.97 | $20.33 |
| New Mexico | 18.88 | 37.28 | $244.56 | $20.38 |
| Arizona | 19.00 | 37.40 | $245.34 | $20.45 |
| Texas | 20.00 | 38.40 | $251.90 | $20.99 |
| Louisiana | 20.01 | 38.41 | $251.97 | $21.00 |
| South Carolina | 20.75 | 39.15 | $256.82 | $21.40 |
| Alabama | 20.91 | 39.31 | $257.87 | $21.49 |
| Arkansas | 21.80 | 40.20 | $263.71 | $21.98 |
| Colorado | 22.00 | 40.40 | $265.02 | $22.09 |
| Virginia | 22.40 | 40.80 | $267.65 | $22.30 |
| Delaware | 23.00 | 41.40 | $271.58 | $22.63 |
| North Dakota | 23.00 | 41.40 | $271.58 | $22.63 |
| District of Columbia | 23.50 | 41.90 | $274.86 | $22.91 |
| New Hampshire | 23.83 | 42.23 | $277.03 | $23.09 |
| Wyoming | 24.00 | 42.40 | $278.14 | $23.18 |
| Kansas | 24.03 | 42.43 | $278.34 | $23.20 |
| Tennessee | 25.40 | 43.80 | $287.33 | $23.94 |
| Kentucky | 26.00 | 44.40 | $291.26 | $24.27 |
| Massachusetts | 26.54 | 44.94 | $294.81 | $24.57 |
| Ohio | 28.01 | 46.41 | $304.45 | $25.37 |
| Minnesota | 28.60 | 47.00 | $308.32 | $25.69 |
| Nebraska | 29.30 | 47.70 | $312.91 | $26.08 |
| Utah | 29.41 | 47.81 | $313.63 | $26.14 |
| South Dakota | 30.00 | 48.40 | $317.50 | $26.46 |
| Maine | 30.01 | 48.41 | $317.57 | $26.46 |
| Iowa | 30.50 | 48.90 | $320.78 | $26.73 |
| Vermont | 30.80 | 49.20 | $322.75 | $26.90 |
| Georgia | 31.59 | 49.99 | $327.93 | $27.33 |
| Montana | 32.25 | 50.65 | $332.26 | $27.69 |
| Wisconsin | 32.90 | 51.30 | $336.53 | $28.04 |
| Idaho | 33.00 | 51.40 | $337.18 | $28.10 |
| Nevada | 33.78 | 52.18 | $342.30 | $28.53 |
| Maryland | 33.80 | 52.20 | $342.43 | $28.54 |
| Rhode Island | 34.00 | 52.40 | $343.74 | $28.65 |
| North Carolina | 35.35 | 53.75 | $352.60 | $29.38 |
| West Virginia | 35.70 | 54.10 | $354.90 | $29.57 |
| Illinois | 35.75 | 54.15 | $355.22 | $29.60 |
| Oregon | 36.77 | 55.17 | $361.92 | $30.16 |
| New Jersey | 37.10 | 55.50 | $364.08 | $30.34 |
| Connecticut | 39.30 | 57.70 | $378.51 | $31.54 |
| Florida | 41.36 | 59.76 | $392.03 | $32.67 |
| Indiana | 41.90 | 60.30 | $395.57 | $32.96 |
| Michigan | 42.42 | 60.82 | $398.98 | $33.25 |
| New York | 44.69 | 63.09 | $413.87 | $34.49 |
| Hawaii | 46.92 | 65.32 | $428.50 | $35.71 |
| Washington | 49.40 | 67.80 | $444.77 | $37.06 |
| California | 54.73 | 73.13 | $479.73 | $39.98 |
| Pennsylvania | 58.70 | 77.10 | $505.78 | $42.15 |
Readers, how much of what you’ve read here surprises you — how much do you pay attention to taxes when you buy gas? And how does the gas tax in your state compare to the national average?
Give the gift of savings! Learn more
Read More
If you liked this article, you just might love these other gems on the topic of gas:
- Is Costco Gas Quality the Same as Exxon, Shell and Chevron?
- Costco Gas Stations Hours Of Operation
- How to Buy Cheap Costco Gas without a Membership
- Is It Better to Keep Your Gas Tank Full or Empty?
- Is ARCO Gas Bad For Your Car or Is It the Same as 76, Exxon, Shell and Chevron?
If you enjoy reading our blog posts and would like to try your hand at blogging, we have good news for you; you can do exactly that on Saving Advice. Just click here to get started.
Read More
Gas prices, consumer spending on home remodeling, and travel are on the rise while GameStop…
It's always nice to sell something for more than you paid for it. However, that…
As you may know Costco members pay less for gasoline. But is their gas…
The New Old Idea Growing out of the pandemic is a throwback called “buy now,…
Should you be paying to file your taxes? After all, there are options out there…
Connecticut's cost of living is relatively high compared to other states in the country. However,…
Comments