Heating oil price history, winter by winter
This week's U.S. average of $6.190 compares with winter averages from $2.201 (2015-16) to $4.668 (2022-23).
Heating oil in Massachusetts: every winter since 2013-14
$6.115/gal now
Highest weekly price since October 2013: $6.137 (October 5, 2026).
| Cheapest winter (2015-16) | $2.211 |
| Dearest winter (2022-23) | $4.682 |
| This week against the dearest winter average | +30.6 % |
EIA weekly survey of October 19, 2026, excluding taxes. Next release October 28, 2026.
| Winter | Mid-October | Nov-Mar average | Season high | Season low |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | $6.116 | in progress | $6.137 | $6.115 |
| 2025-26 | $3.561 | $4.221 | $5.768 | $3.548 |
| 2024-25 | $3.524 | $3.751 | $4.023 | $3.473 |
| 2023-24 | $4.264 | $4.107 | $4.321 | $3.987 |
| 2022-23 | $5.756 | $4.682 | $5.927 | $4.088 |
| 2021-22 | $3.310 | $3.822 | $5.217 | $3.101 |
| 2020-21 | $2.080 | $2.512 | $2.896 | $2.062 |
| 2019-20 | $2.929 | $2.857 | $3.074 | $2.405 |
| 2018-19 | $3.356 | $3.251 | $3.380 | $3.176 |
| 2017-18 | $2.665 | $3.061 | $3.279 | $2.663 |
| 2016-17 | $2.407 | $2.610 | $2.681 | $2.337 |
| 2015-16 | $2.433 | $2.211 | $2.439 | $2.079 |
| 2014-15 | $3.537 | $3.131 | $3.537 | $2.823 |
| 2013-14 | $3.807 | $4.049 | $4.225 | $3.791 |
Compiled by Radif Partners · Where the prices come from · EIA weekly survey of October 19, 2026, excluding taxes · no dealer listed
The federal weekly survey gives a clean record of what households paid for heating oil each winter since 2013-14. Nationwide, the November to March average was lowest in 2015-16 at $2.201 a gallon and highest in 2022-23 at $4.668. The highest single week on file is $6.190, in the week of October 19, 2026. This week's $6.190 is above the dearest winter average by 33 %. Propane has moved within a narrower band: its winter averages ran from $1.977 in 2019-20 to $3.021 in 2013-14. The calculator above shows the history of any surveyed state and fuel, with each season's mid-October price, its winter average and its high and low weeks. All prices are as published, excluding taxes and without adjusting for inflation.
U.S. average, every winter on file
| Winter | Heating oil, mid-October | Heating oil, Nov-Mar | Heating oil high | Propane, mid-October | Propane, Nov-Mar |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-27 | $6.138 | in progress | $6.190 (October 19, 2026) | $2.633 | in progress |
| 2025-26 | $3.543 | $4.094 | $5.566 (March 23, 2026) | $2.425 | $2.575 |
| 2024-25 | $3.524 | $3.695 | $3.936 (January 20, 2025) | $2.420 | $2.622 |
| 2023-24 | $4.279 | $4.065 | $4.387 (October 2, 2023) | $2.390 | $2.522 |
| 2022-23 | $5.722 | $4.668 | $5.902 (November 7, 2022) | $2.664 | $2.688 |
| 2021-22 | $3.366 | $3.816 | $5.127 (March 28, 2022) | $2.691 | $2.792 |
| 2020-21 | $2.136 | $2.532 | $2.903 (March 15, 2021) | $1.777 | $2.113 |
| 2019-20 | $2.955 | $2.912 | $3.119 (January 6, 2020) | $1.847 | $1.977 |
| 2018-19 | $3.364 | $3.210 | $3.372 (October 22, 2018) | $2.402 | $2.426 |
| 2017-18 | $2.658 | $3.024 | $3.221 (January 29, 2018) | $2.315 | $2.507 |
| 2016-17 | $2.380 | $2.567 | $2.648 (February 27, 2017) | $2.053 | $2.284 |
| 2015-16 | $2.440 | $2.201 | $2.440 (October 12, 2015) | $1.894 | $1.995 |
| 2014-15 | $3.522 | $3.101 | $3.522 (October 13, 2014) | $2.376 | $2.370 |
| 2013-14 | $3.842 | $4.048 | $4.245 (February 10, 2014) | $2.337 | $3.021 |
Reading the record
Three things stand out. First, heating oil's winters differ far more than propane's: the dearest heating oil winter cost 112 % more a gallon than the cheapest, against 53 % for propane. Heating oil is a distillate, the same family of fuel as diesel (EIA), and its price follows that market; residential propane carries a large delivery margin over its wholesale price, and that margin moves slowly.
Second, the price inside a winter is not flat. In 2022-23, the national price ranged from $4.073 to $5.902 over the season. A household that filled its tank at the wrong week paid much more than one that filled at the right one, which is the case for spreading deliveries or for a capped contract.
Third, October is a poor predictor. The mid-October price was followed by a higher winter average in 7 of 13 winters for heating oil. The lock-in page turns that into a test of your dealer's offer.
History of your state
Heating oil in Maine: every winter since 2013-14
$6.026/gal now
| Cheapest winter (2015-16) | $1.894 |
| Dearest winter (2022-23) | $4.465 |
| This week against the dearest winter average | +35.0 % |
States apart
State histories follow the national line with their own gap. In the Northeast, where most oil-heated homes are, the gap to the U.S. average is small because those states make up most of it. In the Midwest states of the survey, heating oil has often been cheaper; propane there is among the cheapest in the country. Each state page carries its own winter-by-winter table and the curve of this season against the last.
Putting your own tickets next to the record
Delivery tickets carry the date, the gallons and the price per gallon. Set them against the weekly series of your state and you see whether your dealer tracked the market, ran above it in a cold week, or held a contract price while the average moved. A household that paid $5.902 in the dearest week of 2022-23 paid 26 % over that winter's average; spreading the same gallons over the season would have cost the average. The state pages give each season's high and its date, so a single expensive delivery can be placed in its winter.
What the history does not show
- Summer prices. The survey runs from October to March only, so it cannot show the price when dealers sell summer fills and contracts.
- Inflation. Prices are as published. A dollar of 2014 bought more than a dollar of 2026.
- Your dealer. A state average hides the spread between dealers in the same town.
- Before 2013. The site keeps the weekly survey from October 2013. The EIA's own pages go back further: EIA weekly heating oil series.
For the coming winter, the EIA's own forecast is on the forecast page.