Nicolai Haugsted
Donald Trump claims gasoline prices are lower than under Joe Biden, but official figures tell a very different story.
Trump claims gas prices are lower than under Biden, but the numbers tell a very different story
Donald Trump has repeatedly assured Americans that they are paying less for gasoline than they did under his predecessor. With the midterm elections approaching and household expenses weighing on voters, the president has made that comparison a familiar part of his campaign speeches.
Unfortunately for the White House, the historical figures tell a rather different story.
During a rally in Ohio on Monday, Trump once again presented his administration’s record on fuel prices as an improvement over Joe Biden’s presidency.
However, a CNN fact-check using figures from the American Automobile Association (AAA) found that gasoline was actually cheaper during approximately 95 percent of Biden’s time in office than it was on the day Trump made his claim.
The difference is hardly pocket change.
The numbers challenge Trump’s claim
Speaking to supporters in Youngstown, Ohio, Trump encouraged the audience to compare today’s fuel costs with those under the previous administration.
“Remember, your prices – your gas prices – are lower than when Biden was president,” he declared.
“And he didn’t do anything about Iran.”
But according to AAA, the national average price of gasoline stood at approximately $4.36 per gallon on Monday, October 12.
During Biden’s 1,460 full days in office, prices exceeded that figure on just 76 days.
Put differently, Americans paid less for gasoline during roughly 95 percent of Biden’s presidency than they were paying when Trump addressed the Ohio crowd.
The comparison becomes even more striking when looking at prices since Trump returned to the White House.
On January 20, 2025, the national average stood at approximately $3.12 per gallon.
By Tuesday, October 13, 2026, that figure had climbed to around $4.34, representing an increase of approximately 39 percent.
Trump’s comparison relies on a brief period in 2022
There is a period during Biden’s presidency when gasoline prices were considerably higher than they are today.
However, it lasted only a few months.
Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, global energy markets experienced severe disruption, sending fuel prices sharply higher.
The national average eventually reached approximately $5.02 per gallon on June 14, 2022.
All 76 days when gasoline cost more than the October 12 figure occurred between May and July of that year.
By July 25, 2022, the national average had fallen below the level recorded on Tuesday this week.
It never returned to that height during the remainder of Biden’s presidency.
Trump could therefore accurately claim that gasoline is cheaper today than it was at its highest point under Biden.
Claiming that today’s prices are generally lower than they were during Biden’s administration, however, gives a misleading impression of the historical record.
The circumstances behind the two periods of elevated prices also differ. The 2022 surge followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, while the latest increases have been driven substantially by the conflict involving Iran and its consequences for global energy markets.
Even Ohio’s figures contradict the president
The numbers from the state hosting Trump’s rally offer little support for his argument.
According to AAA, the average gasoline price in Ohio was approximately $3.87 per gallon on Monday and $3.85 on Tuesday.
When Trump took office in January 2025, Ohio motorists were paying approximately $3.10 per gallon.
That means gasoline prices in the state have increased by roughly 24 to 25 percent since his inauguration.
Historical figures also show that gasoline was cheaper during approximately 90 percent of Biden’s presidency than it was during the two October days examined.
The last time Ohio’s average exceeded Tuesday’s level under Biden was November 8, 2022.
Trump has nevertheless continued to repeat his broader comparison during public appearances.
Speaking at a Texas event on October 1, he told supporters:
“Think of it, gasoline’s lower than it was with Biden, and we knocked the hell out of a country that was gonna try and kill us, probably.”
Two days later, during an Ohio television interview, he made a similar argument.
“Well, they’re actually lower than Biden, and he didn’t get rid of a nuclear weapon from Iran,” Trump said.
There is no established evidence that Iran possessed a nuclear weapon at the time.
Grocery bills tell another story
Gasoline was not the only expense Trump addressed during his Ohio rally.
The president also claimed that, apart from oil and gasoline, “your other prices have all come down” since Biden left office.
Official inflation figures contradict that assertion as well.
According to the Consumer Price Index, average consumer prices increased by a seasonally adjusted 4.8 percent between January 2025 and August 2026.
Several everyday expenses contributed to that increase.
Food prices rose by approximately 4.4 percent, while housing-related costs increased by 5 percent.
Medical care services became 5.3 percent more expensive, and clothing prices climbed by 4.6 percent.
Those figures measure changes in prices rather than the rate of inflation. Even when inflation slows, prices can continue rising.
