DOE vs AAA diesel price
Two real numbers, two different jobs — and only one of them is in your contract
- The DOE/EIA number is weekly — one volume-weighted average from a Monday survey of ~590 on-highway outlets, released Tuesday. This week: $5.134 (week of ).
- AAA's number is daily — computed from OPIS station price data across tens of thousands of stations, updated every morning.
- Fuel-surcharge contracts overwhelmingly reference the DOE/EIA weekly number, not AAA's.
Both numbers are real; they answer different questions. The DOE/EIA weekly price is a settlement reference — published once a week on a fixed schedule, from a fixed methodology, so both sides of a freight contract can verify it. AAA's daily average (published at gasprices.aaa.com) is a consumer snapshot — fresher, but it moves every day, which is exactly what you do not want under a surcharge schedule that settles weekly.
The two also differ mechanically: EIA's sample is on-highway diesel (truck stops matter most, volume-weighted), while AAA's OPIS-derived average sweeps in stations of every kind. In practice they run within a few cents of each other and converge over any multi-week window.
If a rate confirmation, broker packet, or TMS says “DOE average,” it means the number on this site's front page — also available as JSON.
FAQ
Which diesel price does my fuel surcharge contract use?
Almost certainly the DOE/EIA weekly number. Freight contracts reference it because it is free, public, weekly, and neutral. AAA's daily average is a consumer-facing number; it is rarely named in surcharge schedules.
Why is AAA's diesel price different from the DOE price?
Different survey, different day, different weighting. EIA surveys ~590 on-highway outlets every Monday morning and publishes one volume-weighted number per week; AAA publishes a daily average computed from OPIS price data covering a much larger set of stations of all kinds. Both describe the same market, so they track each other closely but rarely match to the cent on any given day.
Which number should I quote?
Match the audience. Settling a fuel surcharge or writing a rate con: the DOE weekly number, because that is what the contract names. Talking to a consumer audience about today's pump price: AAA's daily figure is fresher. Citing either, say which one and its date — the two are frequently a few cents apart.