Regular gas
$2.14/gal
↓ 11.8% vs 2015
A year-by-year explorer from 2000 to present
America Through the Years
2000–2026
Exploring: 2016
Explore how prices, jobs, housing, sports, entertainment, technology, politics and major events changed across America — one year at a time.
The economy
2016 at a glance
Unemployment
4.9%
↓ 0.4 pp vs 2015
Grocery prices
↓ 1.3%
vs 2015
Inflation
↑ 1.3%
vs 2015
Median rent
$981/mo
↑ 2.3% vs 2015
Median earnings
$31,986/yr
↑ 1.9% vs 2015
Show KPI details
Regular gas
U.S. average annual retail price for one gallon of regular gasoline, all formulations. Annual figure published by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Source: EIA ↗ (opens in new tab)Unemployment
Average U.S. unemployment rate for the year, calculated as the mean of the published monthly Current Population Survey unemployment rates.
Source: BLS ↗ (opens in new tab)Grocery prices
Year-over-year movement in the BLS Food at Home Consumer Price Index. Underlying CPI index: 239.1.
Source: BLS ↗ (opens in new tab)Inflation
Year-over-year change in the U.S. Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers, all items. Underlying CPI index: 240.0.
Source: BLS ↗ (opens in new tab)Median rent
Median gross monthly rent for occupied rental housing units. Annual ACS 1-year estimates begin in 2005.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS ↗ (opens in new tab)Median earnings
Median annual earnings measure from the American Community Survey. Annual ACS 1-year estimates begin in 2005.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS ↗ (opens in new tab)What is CPI?
CPI is an index used to track how consumer prices change over time. The reference period 1982–84 equals 100. A value such as 177.1 is an index level, not a dollar amount or an inflation rate.
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What happened?
What happened in 2016?
History in place
Where this event happened
More details
All events and sources for 2016
January
- Federal Reserve holds target rate at 1/4–1/2% — The Federal Open Market Committee kept its target for the federal funds rate at 1/4–1/2 percent. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System ↗ (opens in new tab)
February
- Spotlight wins Best Picture at the 2016 Academy Awards — Spotlight won Best Picture at the 2016 Academy Awards, honoring films released in 2015.
Annual Entertainment anchor event for the America Since 2000 timeline, sourced to the Academy’s official ceremony archive.
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences ↗ (opens in new tab) - Justice Antonin Scalia dies — Justice Antonin Scalia died on February 13, 2016 after serving on the Supreme Court since 1986. Supreme Court of the United States ↗ (opens in new tab)
March
- President Obama nominates Merrick Garland to the Supreme Court — President Barack Obama submitted Merrick Garland's nomination to fill the vacancy created by Justice Scalia's death. The Senate did not vote on the nomination. U.S. Senate ↗ (opens in new tab)
April
- Prince dies at age 57 — Prince was found dead at his Paisley Park estate in Chanhassen, Minnesota on April 21, 2016, of an accidental fentanyl overdose, at age 57. Britannica ↗ (opens in new tab)
- The Sympathizer, by Viet Thanh Nguyen wins the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction — The Pulitzer Prize Board awarded The Sympathizer, by Viet Thanh Nguyen the 2016 prize for Fiction. The Pulitzer Prizes ↗ (opens in new tab)
- Hamilton, by Lin-Manuel Miranda wins the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for Drama — The Pulitzer Prize Board awarded Hamilton, by Lin-Manuel Miranda the 2016 prize for Drama. The Pulitzer Prizes ↗ (opens in new tab)
June
- Supreme Court splits 4-4 in United States v. Texas — An equally divided Court affirmed the lower-court judgment without a precedential opinion, leaving an injunction against the challenged 2014 immigration policies in place. Oyez ↗ (opens in new tab)
- Supreme Court decides Whole Woman's Health v. Hellerstedt — The Court struck down Texas abortion regulations requiring admitting privileges and ambulatory-surgical-center standards, finding that the provisions imposed an undue burden. Oyez ↗ (opens in new tab)
July
- Stranger Things premieres on Netflix — Netflix released the first season of Stranger Things on July 15, 2016, an eight-episode 1980s-set thriller that became one of the platform's signature original series. Netflix (Tudum) ↗ (opens in new tab)
- Juno enters orbit around Jupiter — NASA’s Juno spacecraft completed a five-year journey and entered polar orbit around Jupiter. National Aeronautics and Space Administration ↗ (opens in new tab)
September
- Congress overrides presidential veto of JASTA — The Senate and House voted to override President Obama's veto of the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act; it became Public Law 114-222. U.S. Senate ↗ (opens in new tab)
- NASA launches OSIRIS-REx toward asteroid Bennu — OSIRIS-REx launched to collect and return a sample from asteroid Bennu. National Aeronautics and Space Administration ↗ (opens in new tab)
November
- Donald Trump wins the presidential election — Donald Trump won the presidency; the final Electoral College tally was 304 votes for Trump and 227 for Hillary Clinton, with several electoral votes cast for other candidates. National Archives and Records Administration ↗ (opens in new tab)
December
- Electors cast ballots in the 2016 Electoral College — Presidential electors met in their states and cast the Electoral College votes that were later counted by Congress. National Archives and Records Administration ↗ (opens in new tab)
- Federal Reserve raises target rate to 1/2–3/4% — The Federal Open Market Committee raised its target for the federal funds rate to 1/2–3/4 percent. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System ↗ (opens in new tab)
Date within this year unknown
- Cleveland Cavaliers win the 2016 NBA championship — Cleveland Cavaliers defeated the Golden State Warriors 4-3 in the NBA Finals to win the 2016 championship. LeBron James was named Finals MVP.
Annual Sports anchor event for the America Since 2000 timeline. The championship, runner-up, series result, and Finals MVP are sourced from NBA.com history archives.
NBA.com ↗ (opens in new tab) NBA.com ↗ (opens in new tab) - Denver Broncos win Super Bowl 50 over Panthers — The Denver Broncos beat the Carolina Panthers 24-10 in Super Bowl 50, Peyton Manning's final NFL game.
Santa Clara, California. Levi's Stadium Location ↗ (opens in new tab)
CBS News ↗ (opens in new tab) - Chicago Cubs win 2016 World Series over Indians, ending 108-year drought — The Chicago Cubs beat the Cleveland team (then named the Indians) 4 games to 3, winning their first championship since 1908 after trailing 3-1 in the series. MLB.com ↗ (opens in new tab)
What changed?
How have regular gas prices changed since 2000?
Only years with a verified figure are plotted; a gap in the line means no verified value exists in between, not zero change.
REGULAR GAS
U.S. average retail price per gallon
Not enough historical observations to display this comparison.
REGULAR GAS
Average value per decade, from verified years only.
Not enough historical observations to summarize by decade.
REGULAR GAS · ANNUAL VALUES
| Year | Value | YoY |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | $1.136 | — |
| 2000 | $1.484 | — |
| 2001 | $1.420 | — |
| 2002 | $1.345 | — |
| 2003 | $1.561 | — |
| 2004 | $1.852 | — |
| 2005 | $2.270 | — |
| 2006 | $2.572 | — |
| 2007 | $2.796 | — |
| 2008 | $3.246 | — |
| 2009 | $2.353 | — |
| 2010 | $2.782 | — |
| 2011 | $3.521 | — |
| 2012 | $3.618 | — |
| 2013 | $3.505 | — |
| 2014 | $3.358 | — |
| 2015 | $2.429 | — |
| 2016 | $2.143 | — |
| 2017 | $2.415 | — |
| 2018 | $2.719 | — |
| 2019 | $2.604 | — |
| 2020 | $2.168 | — |
| 2021 | $3.008 | — |
| 2022 | $3.951 | — |
| 2023 | $3.519 | — |
| 2024 | $3.304 | — |
| 2025 | $3.097 | — |
| 2026 | $4.058 | — |
Want to compare the numbers directly? Compare two years →
About these figures
Economic figures come from official U.S. government sources (BLS, EIA, and Census); historical events come from Data Driven Tech's reviewed content collection. Every figure and every event links to its original public source. Where a source has not yet published a figure for a given year, that is stated directly rather than estimated.
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