This might be an easy to predict thread, but I was curious to see what major or regional gas station chains are traditionally the most & least expensive in your area?
Here in Western Colorado:
Most Expensive: Shell (since they tend to advertise their gas as "top-shelf" fuel)
Least Expensive: Sinclair (I believe most of their petroleum comes from the Rocky Mountain/Wyoming area).
Most Expensive: Chevron
Least Expensive: In Montana it's usually Town Pump (Exxon) or Safeway, Idaho is Maverik, Wyoming is either Maverik or whatever Kroger subsidiary serves that city
Most: Exxon
Least: Wawa (cash/credit usually same) or Gulf (cash cheaper)
BPs are generally ridiculous around here. Rockefeller's location scouters were very, very good and old Sohio stations (which BP took over) still occupy some of the best. This is despite decades of growth and sprawl around here. Many of the leftover locations are still fantastic and the fuel prices reflect it.
We have one Mobil that's out of order, being 20 cents higher than a shell on the other side of I-55 along US-30. However, the booby prize goes to Greedway..er..Speedway for being the first to always raise prices.
Most: Exxon, BP & Shell
Least: Tom Thumb & Raceway
Often Tom Thumb & Raceway are lower than Sams.
Most: Several in the District of Columbia, including a Liberty and Valero on Virginia Avenue, N.W. near the Watergate (the Liberty used to be an Exxon, and is considered the most-expensive on in the D.C. area)
Least: Costco and Sam's Club
For branded gas, it seems that ARCO is typically the cheapest here in Arizona. Chevron is usually the most expensive. However, Costco, Sam's Club, and Fry's are often even cheaper.
Quote from: Alps on January 06, 2015, 11:11:21 PM
Most: Exxon
Least: Wawa (cash/credit usually same) or Gulf (cash cheaper)
I saw an Exxon at least .21 cents higher than another gas station
about 1/2 of a mile away in Kendall Park the other day. I was disgusted that anyone would stop there and get ripped off when you get a much better deal for about half a minute more driving distance.
Wawa gets credit for having the cheapest gas, regardless if they're actually the cheapest. I've noticed they are quick to raise prices on speculation (ie: news reports of possible rising prices), then slowly lower them when the other gas stations remain the same or lower their prices.
Around me, Citgo has recently been one of the cheaper brands, and many (but not all) are same price cash/credit. But there's no one dominant brand that is always cheaper. Lukoils tend to be some of the most expensive stations around.
Most: Chevron
Least: Arco
I see much more variance from station to station of the same brand than I do from brand to brand. All other things being equal, the major vertically integrated petro brands (such as Exxon, Mobil, BP, Shell, and Chevron) are usually about the same price; lesser known or no-name brands next door might be a few cents less. Retailers that derive a much higher percentage of their revenues from non-fuel sales (such as very large convenience stores, grocery stores, and warehouse clubs) are often the cheapest.
Making a straight comparison of prices isn't always fair, though, because the lowest advertised price may require paying cash or having a paid membership, and on the other hand, some of the higher priced fuel retailers participate in grocery reward programs or have credit cards with per-gallon rebates, either of which could reduce your effective cost.
Quote from: Pink Jazz on January 07, 2015, 12:06:54 AM
For branded gas, it seems that ARCO is typically the cheapest here in Arizona.
Although it should be pointed out that not only is ARCO's price a cash only price, they don't accept credit cards at all–even for a surcharge. That also includes their convenience store.
When "cheapest gas" announcements are tacked onto Bay Area newscasts, the winners are almost always ARCO stations or Costco locations.
Quote from: Alps on January 06, 2015, 11:11:21 PM
Most: Exxon
Least: Wawa (cash/credit usually same) or Gulf (cash cheaper)
Wawa is cheaper than Delta, or are you just not in their range?
Here the cheapest chain is a very local handful of King Petroleum stations, followed closely by the regional ALPrime chain. The only multi-state chain even close would be Hess, but they're rarely as cheap as these others.
Quote from: cpzilliacus on January 06, 2015, 11:52:14 PM
Most: Several in the District of Columbia, including a Liberty and Valero on Virginia Avenue, N.W. near the Watergate (the Liberty used to be an Exxon, and is considered the most-expensive on in the D.C. area)
Least: Costco and Sam's Club
For the inner Northern Virginia suburbs, Liberty and Hess seem to be cheapest (not many grocery or club stores with gas pumps, nor Wawas or Sheetzes, this close to D.C.). But wide disparities within brands, largely based on location.
Most: Mobil
Least: Most non-chain gas stations
Here in north central Louisiana, Murphy USA (read Wal-Mart gas) and Raceway are usually the inexpensive brands. However, in the last 6 months, I've noticed that the name-brand stations have actually been keeping up with Raceway's and Wal-Mart's prices.
Quote from: oscar on January 07, 2015, 03:24:38 AM
Quote from: cpzilliacus on January 06, 2015, 11:52:14 PM
Most: Several in the District of Columbia, including a Liberty and Valero on Virginia Avenue, N.W. near the Watergate (the Liberty used to be an Exxon, and is considered the most-expensive on in the D.C. area)
Least: Costco and Sam's Club
For the inner Northern Virginia suburbs, Liberty and Hess seem to be cheapest (not many grocery or club stores with gas pumps, nor Wawas or Sheetzes, this close to D.C.). But wide disparities within brands, largely based on location.
This matches my observation. The two stations on Virginia Avenue are real outliers in price, though the Valero (which is the one on the corner of Rock Creek Pakrway that used to be an Exxon; the Liberty across the street used to be a Chevron and then a Sunoco) is not as insanely expensive as it used to be. Seems there's a new owner.
BP seems to be, on average, the most expensive, but there are fewer BPs around than other brands.
I tend to go to Shell for the grocery-point discount. If I don't have points, I go to Liberty since it's usually a bit cheaper. (For those unfamiliar, I believe Liberty is a regional brand, as I've seen them as far south as the I-64 corridor.)
Not really a chain, but there is a local station called Dairy Mart. It is in a somewhat rough area and has very old pumps that do not take cards thus requiring going inside to pre-pay, so they need to always be 4-7 cents below everybody else to attract business.
While Speedway used to have the cheapest gas, there is now a lot more parity between stations regardless of brands. Meijer, Mobil, Shell, Speedway and BP almost always have the same price in Bolingbrook, although occasionally BP is 10 cents more expensive in Woodridge. Interestingly, the biggest difference in gas prices is often between the two Shells at the intersection of IL-53 and Boughton, one is owned and the other I believe is company run. The owned Shell often has gas more expensive (sometimes ridiculously so) than the one kitty corner from it. Go figure.
Quote from: Zeffy on January 07, 2015, 12:15:24 AM
I saw an Exxon at least .21 cents higher
They list prices to the hundredth of a cent? :bigass:
(".21 cents" is equal to $0.0021. Either say "21 cents" or "$0.21". Or get a job at Verizon.)
Quote from: Scott5114 on January 07, 2015, 08:30:34 AM
Quote from: Zeffy on January 07, 2015, 12:15:24 AM
I saw an Exxon at least .21 cents higher
They list prices to the hundredth of a cent? :bigass:
(".21 cents" is equal to $0.0021. Either say "21 cents" or "$0.21". Or get a job at Verizon.)
Better yet, "21¢"
Sometimes it seems like I'm the only one who fills up where convenient and couldn't tell you which stations are consistently cheaper locally. All of the stations are within 10 cents of each other so at worst I'm out an extra $1.50 for the fill up.
Quote from: CPMost: Several in the District of Columbia, including a Liberty and Valero on Virginia Avenue, N.W. near the Watergate (the Liberty used to be an Exxon, and is considered the most-expensive on in the D.C. area)
Least: Costco and Sam's Club
Oscar mentioned (and hoo agreed) that Northern Virginia is more location-dependent than brand-dependent. I'd argue the same is the case for DC proper...your mentioning of the station at 27th and Virginia NW is an excellent example.
Up here in northern New England, cheapest tends to be a toss-up between Irving or Cumberland Farms.
Quote from: realjd on January 07, 2015, 08:36:18 AM
Sometimes it seems like I'm the only one who fills up where convenient and couldn't tell you which stations are consistently cheaper locally. All of the stations are within 10 cents of each other so at worst I'm out an extra $1.50 for the fill up.
I find it's not too difficult to plan ahead when I know I'll need gas. But if I'm out on the Interstate and I don't know the local stations, I'll just stop where it's convenient. While I have the useful GasBuddy app, I won't operate it while I'm driving.
Thing is, within about a 2-mile radius of our house the price varies by a good 50¢ a gallon. About a mile to the west are five stations that are typically about 50¢ a gallon more than the three about a mile to the east. Under those circumstances, it'd be crazy not to go to the cheaper ones unless you knew of a problem with their gas or you had a special reason for patronizing the other ones (friend owns the station, perhaps).
My brother-in-law uses BP even when it costs more because he gets some kind of discount with his BP credit card, but it seems to me there's little chance that discount would outweigh a 50¢-a-gallon premium!
Here, in my area of southern NJ, Shell seems to be consistantly highest and CITGO lowest for regular grade gasoline. Premium prices vary all over the place.
Although off-topic, diesel fuel prices seem consistant at most stations where available with the exception of few odd-balls.
Although off-topic, no stations sell e-85.
For southern Delaware County, PACheapest: East Coast, Wawa & the nearest Sunoco station where I live.
Most Expensive: Exxon, most Lukoil's and the Sunoco along PA 420 just north of I-95.
Quote from: 02 Park Ave on January 07, 2015, 08:59:43 AMPremium prices vary all over the place.
I've noticed such as well. One station might have the cheapest price for regular but its mid & premium grades (more newer vehicles actually require the higher grades due to their higher compression engines than the manufacturers let on but that's another story) are priced higher than those of a neighboring station that charges a little more for regular. I saw such first hand with two stations along Germantown Pike in East Norriton Twp., Montgomery County, PA.
Quote from: Pete from Boston on January 07, 2015, 02:31:21 AM
Quote from: Alps on January 06, 2015, 11:11:21 PM
Most: Exxon
Least: Wawa (cash/credit usually same) or Gulf (cash cheaper)
Wawa is cheaper than Delta, or are you just not in their range?
To point out Wawa's not-really-the-lowest gas prices, use this for an example: http://www.newjerseygasprices.com/ . You'll see (at least currently), that none of the lowest priced stations are Wawas. And to the point made above, Delta appears a few times on this list. Typing in any zip code generally yields the same results on a more local level.
In Wawa's favor though is that most of the lowest priced states have higher prices for Credit (Costco is the major exception there). So those paying credit will find Wawa more competitive in many areas.
BTW, this is the (now former) Exxon station cpzilliacus mentioned near the Watergate in DC. This wasn't the most expensive I ever saw it–I recall they were up to $5.79 a gallon at one point, which is the most expensive I've ever seen in the United States. (I paid the equivalent of $7.25 a gallon for diesel in England in April 2007 when the exchange rate was $2 to £1.)
Now that this station is a Valero, it's more reasonable but it's still very expensive. They annoyingly do not display the prices for all three grades, but last week they were charging $3.39 for 87 octane, compared to the $2.30 range in Fairfax County.
(https://www.aaroads.com/forum/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fi31.photobucket.com%2Falbums%2Fc378%2F1995hoo%2FRoad%2520sign%2520pictures%2F7aebc918.jpg&hash=2d55ec20a03bbb20e3d6f477d75bfb387f29478d)
Most expensive: BP, most Shells (the one I frequent is an outlier and is usually the cheapest gas around and, FWIW, was a Texaco until that company left the Mid-Atlantic), anything close to I-95
Least expensive: Gulf, Pure, Wawa, Sheetz, Sam's Club.
There's a Liberty station in downtown Petersburg. Its prices are in the middle.
Here outside of Baltimore, the prices vary wildly between brands. The better indicator in the county is how close you are to I-95 or I-695. The further away, the better the price. The price difference can vary as widely as 30 cents.
The city is always consistently higher than the county. Royal Farms is typically the least expensive "name brand" gas. Here, the further away you are from an interstate, the more expensive gas is. It's reverse from the county.
Around here, everyone is the same price. In the town where I work, there are two Marathons and one each of BP, Shell, Valero and Liberty. Prices have been a steady $2.299 at all of them for the past three weeks, despite Kentucky's gas tax going down 4.3 cents on Jan. 1 and the price of oil continuing to decline.
In the town where I live, there is a Valero, Shell and Marathon. All are usually the same price or only a penny's difference.
Yet the politicians try to tell us there's no collusion in gas prices.
In Massachusetts, least expensive chains I've observed are BJ's Wholesale and Stop and Shop. Most expensive I've observed are Shell and Hess. I tend to gas up at Mobil most of the time, as their prices are pretty much middle of the road (sorry for the pun) and the stations are very convenient to where I normally drive anyway.
I've found that Sunoco gives me the best MPG of all the major gas brands, however, there aren't any Sunoco stations convenient to me.
Quote from: jeffandnicole on January 07, 2015, 09:24:26 AM
Jeff, my observations are based out of southern Delaware County, PA. To my knowledge, there are no Delta stations in southeastern PA.
Additionally, most if not all stations in PA don't charge more if one uses a credit or debit card. Although they do charge more for full-service (as high as $0.30/gallon more), if available.
Most: Shell and Texaco (where they are remaining)
Least: Wavaho (local chain), Raceway
Around these parts, Speedway seems to set the price, and all the others follow. Sam's Club and Costco are at the low end of the scale. Example: This past Monday, Speedway reset its price to $2.099 for regular/$2.299 for premium at all its stations, and everyone except the warehouse stores followed suit.
Quote from: cjk374 on January 07, 2015, 06:50:37 AM
Here in north central Louisiana, Murphy USA (read Wal-Mart gas) and Raceway are usually the inexpensive brands. However, in the last 6 months, I've noticed that the name-brand stations have actually been keeping up with Raceway's and Wal-Mart's prices.
Same here in Jackson. Pilot and Loves also tend to be lower.
Around here, price tends to be driven more by location than any particular brand. Lately the truck stops out on 11 Mile and I-94 (Exit 104) attempt to undercut one another, so that area tends to have the cheapest prices in the Battle Creek area. This tends to lead the truck stops at Exits 110 and 112 in Marshall to match in price.
In my area of the Space Coast:
Most: BP, Shell, Kangaroo
Least: Sunoco (although BP is starting to match them [good luck with that guys!])
Most expensive gas store chain in my area is easy: Shell. The cheapest? Maybe the stations with Citgo?
Shell stations tend to be the most expensive, Western the cheapest. Costco price-matches the cheapest within 5 (?) (ie. Western), which means they are also able to be the cheapest, but their stations of course require a membership card.
Are members-only stations like Costco and Sams Club prohibited from advertising their prices on the street? Costco lists their prices only at the pump, and two signs inside the store, one above the main entrance and the other above the food court.
Quote from: Zmapper on January 09, 2015, 11:02:43 PM
Shell stations tend to be the most expensive, Western the cheapest. Costco price-matches the cheapest within 5 (?) (ie. Western), which means they are also able to be the cheapest, but their stations of course require a membership card.
Are members-only stations like Costco and Sams Club prohibited from advertising their prices on the street? Costco lists their prices only at the pump, and two signs inside the store, one above the main entrance and the other above the food court.
It would depend on state law. In general, they're probably not prohibited, but since they're not generally open to the public maybe they don't feel the need to advertise the prices. At least the stations I've seen though, they generally do have prices that can be viewed from the street.
Quote from: jeffandnicole on January 10, 2015, 09:21:35 AM
Quote from: Zmapper on January 09, 2015, 11:02:43 PM
Shell stations tend to be the most expensive, Western the cheapest. Costco price-matches the cheapest within 5 (?) (ie. Western), which means they are also able to be the cheapest, but their stations of course require a membership card.
Are members-only stations like Costco and Sams Club prohibited from advertising their prices on the street? Costco lists their prices only at the pump, and two signs inside the store, one above the main entrance and the other above the food court.
It would depend on state law. In general, they're probably not prohibited, but since they're not generally open to the public maybe they don't feel the need to advertise the prices. At least the stations I've seen though, they generally do have prices that can be viewed from the street.
Murphy USA/Wal-Mart advertise that if you use a Wal-Mart card of any kind, you get a 3 cent/gal discount at the pumps (Wal-Mart only, not Sam's Club). However, Alabama law prohibits this type of discount plan. So I have noticed that Murphy USA/Wal-Mart's prices there are 3 cents/gal cheaper than most places around them.
Quote from: codyg1985 on January 07, 2015, 01:13:29 PM
Most: Shell and Texaco (where they are remaining)
Least: Wavaho (local chain), Raceway
Add Fuel City, Sunoco, and Costco to the "Least" list.
Least: A brand new Arco AM/PM in Indio $2.43 a gal (on New Years eve).
Most: My half-sister described an Arco AM/PM in Corona was $2.89 a gallon.
I've seen price differences among Shell, Exxon-Mobil, Valero and Chevron to be a little higher than Arco AM/PM.
It's about time gas prices are back to "cheap" range in this country, even though I'm in pricey southern CA.
Least: Costco, Fred Meyer (owned by Kroger), ARCO
Most: Shell, Chevron, 76
It's my personal belief here in Omaha, they all go up or down in unison. Also, it's not the brand of gas they sell, but whoever owns the store who sells the gas. As for what I do when I need gas, if I am not at home when I need to get it, I try to go to the Kwik Shop and use my Baker's card (both affiliated with Kroger) to get the cheaper price. Once in a while, I'll go to a 66 or Shell station just to keep those credit cards in good standing.
Buffalo has notoriously expensive gas, but typically, Mobil is most expensive (even charging a credit card surcharge on top of their crazy prices), and either BJ's, Kwik Fill, or Delta Sonic have the lowest prices in an area.
If you want to travel, cheapest name brand gas is a Citgo in Springville. Indian gas on reservations is a good 50 cents cheaper than "regular" gas, but is known to wreak havoc with a lot of engines if you get it from the wrong place (all but a couple).
Quote from: DandyDan on January 12, 2015, 04:47:30 PM
It's my personal belief here in Omaha, they all go up or down in unison. Also, it's not the brand of gas they sell, but whoever owns the store who sells the gas. As for what I do when I need gas, if I am not at home when I need to get it, I try to go to the Kwik Shop and use my Baker's card (both affiliated with Kroger) to get the cheaper price. Once in a while, I'll go to a 66 or Shell station just to keep those credit cards in good standing.
The synchronized price changes surely have something to do with common distributors.
Quote from: Pete from Boston on January 14, 2015, 09:45:59 PM
Quote from: DandyDan on January 12, 2015, 04:47:30 PM
It's my personal belief here in Omaha, they all go up or down in unison. Also, it's not the brand of gas they sell, but whoever owns the store who sells the gas. As for what I do when I need gas, if I am not at home when I need to get it, I try to go to the Kwik Shop and use my Baker's card (both affiliated with Kroger) to get the cheaper price. Once in a while, I'll go to a 66 or Shell station just to keep those credit cards in good standing.
The synchronized price changes surely have something to do with common distributors.
Or price fixing. That's a big issue in parts of New York and it wouldn't shock me if it happens elsewhere.
I still think that individual stations are cheaper than chains in most cases.