Not in dollars at the gas station, but in minutes of your life. How long you had to work to buy 1 gallon of gasoline in New York City — under Obama and under Trump.
Official data: EIA — gasoline prices in New York City, NY Department of Labor — minimum wage in New York.
1. Gasoline Price in Dollars — Already a Difference
- Obama, 2012 — the most expensive year of his presidency:
Gasoline in New York City — average $3.93 per gallon (All Grades, EIA).
At the peak — $4.10 — $4.15 per gallon. - Trump, 2019 — a normal year before COVID:
Gasoline in New York City — average $2.62 per gallon (EIA, New York City).
U.S. average — $2.60 per gallon.
So in dollars — already 1.5 times cheaper: $3.93 vs $2.62.
But that’s not the whole truth. Because wages also changed.
2. The Main Calculation — How Many Minutes to Work for 1 Gallon
This is where you get “2 times cheaper.”
Under Obama, New York, 2012:
- Minimum wage in New York State: $7.25 per hour
- Gasoline: $3.93 per gallon
- Calculation: 3.93 / 7.25 × 60 = 32.5 minutes
To buy 1 gallon of gasoline, a New Yorker on minimum wage had to work half an hour.
Under Trump, New York, 2019:
- Minimum wage in New York City: $15.00 per hour for large employers, $13.50 for small employers
- Gasoline: $2.62 per gallon
- Calculation for $15: 2.62 / 15.00 × 60 = 10.5 minutes
- Calculation for $13.50: 2.62 / 13.50 × 60 = 11.6 minutes
To buy 1 gallon of gasoline, a New Yorker on minimum wage had to work 10-11 minutes.
Result: 32.5 minutes under Obama vs 10.5 minutes under Trump — 3 times cheaper in time.
If you take not just New York City, but all of New York State, where the minimum wage in 2019 was $11.10, you get:
$11.10 per hour, gasoline $2.62 = 14.2 minutes — still 2.3 times cheaper than under Obama.
That’s where “2 times” comes from — it’s not a slogan, it’s math: gasoline went down, and wages went up.
3. The Price of Crude Oil Itself — Also in Trump’s Favor
WTI, average crude oil price per presidency:
- Obama, 2009-2017 — $76.64 per barrel on average
- Trump, first term, 2017-2021 — $53.02 per barrel on average
- 2012, Obama — $94.21
- 2019, Trump — $57.00
So crude oil itself under Trump was on average 30% cheaper, and in peak years — almost 2 times cheaper: $94 vs $57.
Sources:
- EIA — U.S. Domestic Crude Oil First Purchase Prices: https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/mcrfpus2m.htm
- EIA — New York All Grades Retail Gasoline Prices: https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/mg_tt_nyM.htm
- EIA — U.S. average retail gasoline prices in 2019: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=42455
4. Why Did It Happen? 4 Reasons
1. Shale Revolution — slowed under Obama, released under Trump.
Under Obama, drilling on federal lands was limited, permits were issued slowly. Under Trump — ANWR in Alaska opened, leasing accelerated, the “Waters of the United States” rule that hindered drilling was cancelled.
Result: In 2018, the U.S. became a net oil exporter for the first time since 1973. Supply grew — price fell.
2. Pipelines.
Under Obama, Keystone XL was blocked for 7 years. Under Trump — approved in the first month. Dakota Access — also approved. Oil moved faster and cheaper from Canada and North Dakota to Texas.
3. Sanctions on Iran — different effect.
Under Obama in 2012, sanctions on Iran removed 1 million barrels per day from the market — price jumped to $94. Under Trump, sanctions on Iran also existed, but the U.S. itself was already producing so much that it compensated for that loss.
4. Minimum wage in New York went up.
This is not directly Trump’s achievement — it’s a New York State law passed under Cuomo. But it coincided with falling gasoline prices. And you got double relief: cheaper gasoline and higher wages.
5. Table — How Many Minutes for 1 Gallon
| Year, President | Gasoline in NYC | Minimum Wage in NYC | Minutes for 1 Gallon |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012, Obama | $3.93 | $7.25 | 32.5 min |
| 2016, Obama | $2.36 | $9.00 | 15.7 min |
| 2019, Trump | $2.62 | $15.00 | 10.5 min |
| 2022, Biden | $4.10 | $15.00 | 16.4 min |
You can see: even at the end of Obama, when gasoline fell to $2.36, you had to work 15.7 minutes — more than under Trump. And in the peak year 2012 — 3 times more.
Oil Under Trump vs Obama: 32 Minutes vs 10 Minutes — And What Happened in 2025 and 2026
By Midtown Tribune
How much do you have to work to buy 1 gallon of gasoline in New York City?
This is the simplest question in American politics. Not the price in dollars. Not the price of oil in London. But the price in your time.
Because dollars lie. Time does not lie.
The Formula
Minutes = Gasoline Price / Minimum Wage × 60
We take the official gasoline price in New York from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) and the official minimum wage in New York City from the New York City Comptroller and the New York State Department of Labor. No opinions. Only numbers.
Obama, 2012: 32 Minutes
In 2012, under Barack Obama:
- Gasoline in New York City: $3.93 per gallon
- Minimum wage in New York City: $7.25 per hour
- Calculation: 3.93 / 7.25 × 60 = 32.5 minutes
To buy 1 gallon, a New Yorker on minimum wage had to work 32 minutes.
Crude oil itself, WTI, averaged $94.05 per barrel in 2012. The Obama administration had banned drilling in the Atlantic, in the Arctic, in the Gulf, and had blocked the Keystone XL pipeline. America was buying oil from abroad and paying for it with work time.
Trump, First Term, 2019: 10 Minutes
In 2019, under Donald Trump, first term:
- Gasoline in New York City: $2.62 per gallon
- Minimum wage in New York City: $15.00 per hour
- Calculation: 2.62 / 15.00 × 60 = 10.5 minutes
To buy 1 gallon, a New Yorker had to work 10 minutes.
Crude oil, WTI, averaged $57.05 per barrel in 2019. The Trump administration had opened federal lands, approved pipelines, and lifted the export ban. America became the largest oil producer in the world. Oil became cheap because there was a lot of it.
Difference: 32 minutes vs 10 minutes. Three times cheaper.
Biden, 2022: 16 Minutes
In 2022, under Joe Biden:
- Gasoline in New York City: $4.10 per gallon
- Minimum wage in New York City: $15.00 per hour
- Calculation: 4.10 / 15.00 × 60 = 16.4 minutes
To buy 1 gallon, a New Yorker had to work 16 minutes.
WTI averaged $94.76 per barrel in 2022. The Biden administration had cancelled Keystone XL on day one, paused new leases on federal lands, and restricted drilling. Then came the war in Ukraine and sanctions on Russian oil. The price jumped.
16 minutes is better than 32 minutes under Obama. But it is 60% worse than 10 minutes under Trump in 2019.
Trump, Second Term, 2025: 11 Minutes
In 2025, under Donald Trump, second term:
- Gasoline in New York City, yearly average: $3.06 per gallon
- Minimum wage in New York City: $16.50 per hour from January 1, 2025
- Calculation: 3.06 / 16.50 × 60 = 11.1 minutes
To buy 1 gallon, a New Yorker had to work 11 minutes.
WTI averaged $65.39 per barrel in 2025 — the lowest annual average since 2021.
2025 confirmed the formula: cheap oil + higher minimum wage = cheap gasoline in work time.
In 2025, gasoline in dollars was 44 cents more expensive than in 2019 — $3.06 vs $2.62. Why? Because New York State raised gasoline taxes, and drilling in the state itself is still banned. Cheap oil from Texas reaches New York, but New York itself adds taxes and logistics to the price.
Still, 11 minutes in 2025 is almost the same as 10.5 minutes in 2019. And it is three times cheaper than 32 minutes under Obama in 2012.
Trump, Second Term, 2026: 14 Minutes
In 2026, under Donald Trump, second term:
- Gasoline in New York City, week of November 9, 2026: $4.01 per gallon
- Gasoline in the U.S. average, year-to-date 2026: $3.87 per gallon, +25% vs 2025
- Minimum wage in New York City: $17.00 per hour from January 1, 2026
- Calculation for New York City now: 4.01 / 17.00 × 60 = 14.1 minutes
- Calculation for U.S. year-to-date average: 3.87 / 17.00 × 60 = 13.7 minutes
To buy 1 gallon, a New Yorker now has to work 14 minutes.
WTI year-to-date 2026: $87.21 per barrel, +33% vs 2025. EIA forecast for the full year 2026: $88.29 per barrel.
Why did the price jump in 2026?
- Disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz
- Falling inventories
- Stronger U.S. exports
- Higher refinery margins
In January 2026, U.S. gasoline was still $2.81. In May 2026, it peaked at $4.50. In October 2026, it was $4.31. In the week of November 9, it was $4.00 in the U.S., $4.12 in New York State, $4.01 in New York City.
So 2026 is more expensive than 2025. But even in the most expensive moment of 2026 — 14 minutes — it is still 2.3 times cheaper than 32 minutes under Obama.
Full Table
| Year | President | Gasoline in NYC | Minimum Wage in NYC | Minutes for 1 Gallon | WTI Oil |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Obama | $3.93 | $7.25 | 32.5 min | $94.05 |
| 2019 | Trump-1 | $2.62 | $15.00 | 10.5 min | $57.05 |
| 2022 | Biden | $4.10 | $15.00 | 16.4 min | $94.76 |
| 2025 | Trump-2 | $3.06 | $16.50 | 11.1 min | $65.39 |
| 2026, now | Trump-2 | $4.01 | $17.00 | 14.1 min | $87.21 YTD |
Why Were New York Republicans Silent?
Here is the question nobody in Albany wants to answer.
In 2012, New York Republicans were silent when a New Yorker worked 32 minutes for 1 gallon.
In 2019, they were silent when it became 10 minutes.
In 2025 and 2026, they are silent again.
Why? Because in Albany, they are in the minority. They cannot explain to the voter that 11 minutes in 2025 and 14 minutes in 2026 are Washington’s achievement, and $3.06 instead of $2.62, and $4.01 instead of $3.06, are Albany’s markup — taxes, bans on drilling, bans on pipelines.
New York has not allowed fracking since 2014. New York has blocked pipelines from Pennsylvania. New York has added its own taxes on top of federal taxes. And then New York politicians complain that gasoline is expensive.
The oil is cheap in Texas. It becomes expensive on the way to New York.
Conclusion
- Under Obama, 2012: 32 minutes
- Under Trump, 2019: 10 minutes
- Under Biden, 2022: 16 minutes
- Under Trump, 2025: 11 minutes
- Under Trump, 2026, now: 14 minutes
Even after the 2026 oil shock, gasoline in New York costs less than half the work time it cost under Obama.
The formula has not changed in 14 years: when America drills, gasoline is cheap in minutes. When America bans drilling, gasoline is expensive in minutes.
The only thing that has changed is that in New York, the price in dollars keeps growing because Albany keeps adding taxes, while the price in minutes stays low because Washington keeps oil cheap and New York keeps raising the minimum wage.
And New York Republicans? They are still silent.
Sources:
- EIA — New York gasoline prices, weekly: https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/mg_tt_nyM.htm
- EIA — U.S. average gasoline 2025 $3.10, 2026 YTD $3.87: https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/mg_tt_usM.htm
- EIA — WTI spot price: https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/RWTCd.htm
- EIA — Short-Term Energy Outlook, November 2026, WTI forecast 2026 $88.29: https://www.eia.gov/outlooks/steo/
- NYC Comptroller — Minimum Wage 2025 $16.50, 2026 $17.00: https://comptroller.nyc.gov/reports/spotlight-minimum-wage/
- NY State Dept. of Labor — Minimum Wage History: https://dol.ny.gov/minimum-wage
Why Were New York Republicans Silent?
This is the most uncomfortable question for New York Republicans.
Because the numbers are in their favor. Gasoline under Trump in New York City was 2-3 times cheaper in work time than under Obama. It seems obvious — take it and shout on every corner: “Look, under Trump you worked 10 minutes for a gallon, and under Obama — 32 minutes!”
But they were silent. Why?
1. In New York, Republicans are a minority.
In the New York State Assembly and State Senate, Democrats have the majority. In New York City — even more so. New York Republicans control neither Albany nor City Hall. They have nothing to show the voter in the state — they did not pass minimum wage laws, they did not cut gasoline taxes in the state.
The $15 minimum wage in NYC — that’s Cuomo’s law, a Democrat’s law. They cannot claim someone else’s law.
2. Cheap gasoline was a federal achievement, not a state one.
Production grew because of Trump’s federal policy — leases, pipelines, deregulation. And in New York — on the contrary, the state banned fracking in 2014, banned new gas pipelines. New York itself raised its own energy price, while using cheap oil from Texas and North Dakota.
New York Republicans could not explain to the voter: “Gasoline is cheap because of Trump, and expensive because our state banned drilling.” That would be a blow to their own donors in Albany.
3. In New York, gasoline price is not a top issue.
In New York City, most people don’t drive every day — subway, bus. Gasoline price is a topic for Texas, Ohio, Pennsylvania. In New York, Republicans fight for property taxes, crime, education, not for a gallon of gasoline. So they missed their strongest number.
4. Fear that Trump is toxic in New York.
In New York, Trump lost by a large margin — both in 2016 and in 2020. Local Republicans were afraid to associate with him, even when the numbers were in their favor. They thought: if we praise Trump for gasoline, we will be labeled “Trumpists” and we will lose local elections.
Result: New York Republicans were silent because they were a minority, they feared Trump, and they could not explain that cheap gasoline came from Washington, while expensive gasoline came from Albany.
And New York Democrats were also silent — because it was not profitable for them to show that under Obama you had to work 32 minutes for a gallon, and under Trump — 10 minutes.
Both sides were silent. That’s why nobody heard this number.
Sources to verify:
- EIA — New York gasoline prices: https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/mg_tt_nyM.htm
- EIA — U.S. average gasoline prices 2019: https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=42455
- NYC Comptroller — Minimum Wage history in NYC: https://comptroller.nyc.gov/reports/spotlight-minimum-wage/
- NY Department of Labor — New York Minimum Wage: https://dol.ny.gov/minimum-wage-0
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