--- title: This Is How We Waste More Than $2 Billion Every Year description: Many of us are burning money every time we drive. AAA finds that 16.5 million drivers put premium gas in their tanks when they don't need to. authors: - name: Martha C. White role: Writer url: https://money.com/author/martha-c-white/ education: BA, English, Princeton University at_money_since: 2015 articles: 350 covers: - Personal Finance - Banking - Business - Career Advice - Credit - Credit Cards - Debt - Economy and Politics - Education - Federal Reserve Rate Cuts - Health and Wellness - Housing - Identity Theft - Insurance - Investing - Lifestyle - Loans - Mortgages - Professional Services - Retirement - Shopping - Taxes - Technology published: '2016-09-21T17:46:43.000Z' modified: '2024-05-16T11:43:24.000Z' section: Personal Finance tags: - AAA - Gas prices - gasoline prices - lower gas prices word_count: 345 canonical: https://money.com/this-is-how-we-waste-more-than-2-billion-every-year/ type: Article source: structured-blocks --- > **Disclosure:** We research all brands listed and may earn a fee from our partners. Research and financial considerations may influence how brands are displayed. Not all brands are included. [Learn more](https://money.com/page/disclaimer/). ![Fuel Station](https://img.money.com/2016/09/162009_em_premiumgas.jpg) *Fuel Station* Americans have been enjoying uncharacteristically low gas prices for nearly two years, but many of us are still burning money every time we step on the gas. Drivers have acclimated to today's low gas prices all too well: It's gotten to the point where, even though we were [elated](http://fortune.com/2014/10/31/gas-prices-to-drop-below-3-for-the-first-time-in-like-forever/) when prices fell below $3 per gallon in October of 2014, there was consternation when it failed to continue its slide below $2 per gallon several months later. But with prices still hovering in that just-over-$2 range (the most recent data shows that the national average was $2.21 per gallon, according to AAA), perhaps it's to be expected that we'd get a little cavalier with our spending at the gas pump. Here's how it plays out: We waste roughly $2.1 billion per year on premium gas. While some car manufacturers recommend premium gasoline for certain high-performance models, AAA [found](http://newsroom.aaa.com/2016/09/u-s-drivers-waste-2-1-billion-annually-premium-gasoline/) that 16.5 million drivers who have cars for which premium gas is not recommended still filled up with the pricier fuel over the past 12 months. And most of those buying expensive gas did so at least once a month. That's a total of 270 million trips to the gas station that cost Americans more than they should have, even with gas prices as low as they are today. (Regular gas is 87-octane while premium is 93-octane, and experts say that's the only difference; "premium" doesn't signify a difference in quality.) AAA found that roughly 70% of cars on the road in the U.S. today take regular gas, 16% call for premium and the remainder either recommend mid-grade or use an alternative source of energy. If your owner's manual calls for regular gas, you're just wasting money, the AAA's Megan McKernan, manager of the Automobile Club of Southern California’s Automotive Research Center, said in a statement. 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