Prices at the pump are surging again, while spot market rates continue a late-summer slide.
During the most recent week ending Aug. 24, the Energy Information Administration reported that diesel prices increased by 19.8 cents nationally, following up on the prior week’s 19.7-cent increase. Diesel’s at a new 2026 high of $5.65 per gallon.
When fuel prices first surged this year in March and April, diesel topped out at $5.64/gal.
With the last two weeks’ big fuel increases, prices in all regions are well above the $5/gal. threshold, and California’s average price even jumped over $7 to $7.04/gal. The cheapest fuel can be found in the Lower Atlantic region at $5.35/gal.
Prices in other regions, according to EIA:
- New England — $5.72
- Central Atlantic — $5.84
- Midwest — $5.64
- Gulf Coast — $5.48
- Rocky Mountain — $5.54
- West Coast less California — $5.86
ProMiles’ diesel averages during the same week jumped 15.8 cents to $5.51/gal. nationwide. According to the ProMiles Fuel Surcharge Index, the most expensive diesel can be found in California at $7.03/gal., and the cheapest along the Gulf Coast at $5.27/gal.
Rates shrink
Spot rates declined slightly during the week ending Aug. 21 despite those rising fuel prices, moving largely in line with seasonal expectations, according to FTR Transportation Intelligence and Truckstop.com.
The firms reported the total market broker-posted rate fell 2.7 cents a mile during the week to $3.17/mile — its lowest level since early April. The decrease was in a typical range for late August, but it’s worth noting that fuel costs are not supporting higher rates as they were in March and April.
One reason for that, FTR and Truckstop said, could be the freight recovery itself.
“Adjusted for fuel costs, total spot rates were running 15% to 16% higher year over year before the early March surge in diesel prices,” the firms said. “During the jump in diesel prices over the past six weeks, fuel-adjusted total spot rates generally have been 40% to 50% higher than comparable 2025 weeks.”
In other words, carriers’ fuel cost recovery “arguably is not as critical as it was in early spring,” the firms noted.
The latest week shows diesel eating into the year-over-year improvement in underlying linehaul rates. The most recent week shows fuel-adjusted rates “37% higher year over year — the softest comparison since the end of April.”
By segment last week, dry van rates dropped 2 cents to $2.60/mile; reefer ticked up 1.3 cents to $3.31; and flatbed fell just more than 4 cents to $3.30.
DAT Freight & Analytics reported national average all-in spot rates likewise falling for all three equipment types over the week, with the van rate down 5 cents to $2.88/mile; reefer down 2 cents to $3.36; and flatbed down 4 cents to $3.50.
[Related: Know your costs, owner-operators? Use Overdrive’s Load Profit Analyzer to calculate potential profit in any rate]
