Regular gas
$3.95/gal
↑ 31.3% vs 2021
A year-by-year explorer from 2000 to present
America Through the Years
2000–2026
Exploring: 2022
Explore how prices, jobs, housing, sports, entertainment, technology, politics and major events changed across America — one year at a time.
The economy
2022 at a glance
Unemployment
3.7%
↓ 1.7 pp vs 2021
Grocery prices
↑ 11.4%
vs 2021
Inflation
↑ 8.0%
vs 2021
Median rent
$1,300/mo
↑ 9.2% vs 2021
Median earnings
$42,542/yr
↑ 5.7% vs 2021
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: 288.5.
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: 292.7.
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 2022?
History in place
Where this event happened
More details
All events and sources for 2022
March
- CODA wins Best Picture at the 2022 Academy Awards — CODA won Best Picture at the 2022 Academy Awards, honoring films released in 2021.
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) - Federal Reserve raises target rate to 1/4–1/2% — The Federal Open Market Committee raised its target for the federal funds rate to 1/4–1/2 percent. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System ↗ (opens in new tab)
April
- Senate confirms Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court — The Senate confirmed Ketanji Brown Jackson as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court by a 53-47 vote. U.S. Senate ↗ (opens in new tab)
- We Are wins Album of the Year at the 2022 Grammys — Jon Batiste won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year for We Are. Recording Academy ↗ (opens in new tab)
May
- The Netanyahus, by Joshua Cohen wins the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction — The Pulitzer Prize Board awarded The Netanyahus, by Joshua Cohen the 2022 prize for Fiction. The Pulitzer Prizes ↗ (opens in new tab)
- Fat Ham, by James Ijames wins the 2022 Pulitzer Prize for Drama — The Pulitzer Prize Board awarded Fat Ham, by James Ijames the 2022 prize for Drama. The Pulitzer Prizes ↗ (opens in new tab)
June
- March for Our Lives rally held in Washington — March for Our Lives organized a national rally in Washington, D.C. on June 11, 2022, with related events around the country focused on gun policy. March for Our Lives ↗ (opens in new tab)
- Supreme Court decides Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization — The Court held that the Constitution does not confer a right to abortion and overruled Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey. Supreme Court of the United States ↗ (opens in new tab)
- Bipartisan Safer Communities Act becomes law — Public Law 117-159, the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, was approved on June 25, 2022. GovInfo / U.S. Government Publishing Office ↗ (opens in new tab)
July
- NASA releases first full-color images from the James Webb Space Telescope — NASA, ESA and the Canadian Space Agency released the James Webb Space Telescope's first full-color science images on July 12, 2022, in a televised broadcast from NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, marking the start of the observatory's public science mission after its December 2021 launch. ESA/Webb ↗ (opens in new tab)
August
- CHIPS and Science Act becomes law — Public Law 117-167, commonly known as the CHIPS and Science Act, was approved on August 9, 2022. GovInfo / U.S. Government Publishing Office ↗ (opens in new tab)
- Inflation Reduction Act becomes law — Public Law 117-169, commonly known as the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, was approved on August 16, 2022. GovInfo / U.S. Government Publishing Office ↗ (opens in new tab)
November
- OpenAI releases ChatGPT to the public — OpenAI released ChatGPT as a free public research preview on November 30, 2022. It reached an estimated one million users within five days, becoming what was then described as the fastest-growing consumer technology product in history. History.com ↗ (opens in new tab)
- Midterm elections shift control of the House — The 2022 House elections produced a 222-Republican to 213-Democratic division for the 118th Congress, transferring House control to Republicans while Democrats retained Senate control. U.S. House of Representatives, History, Art & Archives ↗ (opens in new tab)
December
- Argentina wins 2022 FIFA World Cup over France — Argentina beat France on penalties 4-2 after a 3-3 draw through extra time in the 2022 FIFA World Cup final at Lusail Stadium in Qatar, widely regarded as one of the greatest finals in tournament history. Lionel Messi was named the tournament's best player, winning the Golden Ball for a second time. CBS News ↗ (opens in new tab) Olympics.com ↗ (opens in new tab)
- Respect for Marriage Act becomes law — Public Law 117-228 repealed the Defense of Marriage Act and established federal and interstate recognition rules for marriages valid under state law. GovInfo / U.S. Government Publishing Office ↗ (opens in new tab)
- Federal Reserve raises target rate to 4-1/4–4-1/2% — The Federal Open Market Committee raised its target for the federal funds rate to 4-1/4–4-1/2 percent. Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System ↗ (opens in new tab)
Date within this year unknown
- Golden State Warriors win the 2022 NBA championship — Golden State Warriors defeated the Boston Celtics 4-2 in the NBA Finals to win the 2022 championship. Stephen Curry 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) - Los Angeles Rams win Super Bowl LVI over Bengals — The Los Angeles Rams beat the Cincinnati Bengals 23-20 to win a championship in their home stadium's market.
Inglewood, California. SoFi Stadium Location ↗ (opens in new tab)
CBS News ↗ (opens in new tab) - Houston Astros win 2022 World Series over Phillies — The Houston Astros beat the Philadelphia Phillies 4 games to 2 to win the franchise's second championship in six seasons. 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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