Which State Has the Highest Gas Tax in 2026?

California, and it is not close. In 2026 California drivers pay 73.6 cents per gallon in state level gas taxes and fees, according to the Tax Foundation's annual ranking. That is more than eight times what drivers pay in Alaska, and nearly double the national state average. But the headline number hides a more interesting story about why the ranking looks the way it does.

The top 5 in 2026

California: 73.6 cents. Illinois: 70.4 cents. Indiana: 63.1 cents. Washington: 60.2 cents. Pennsylvania: 58.7 cents. Then New Jersey at 49.1 and Maryland at 46.8 round out the upper tier.

Indiana is the mover of the year. Its gas tax jumped 8.6 cents after an increase in the per gallon license tax combined with the state's 7 percent sales tax applying to higher pump prices, vaulting Indiana from 5th to 3rd. Washington, which raised its rate 1.1 cents, got passed in the process and now sits 4th. Illinois added 4 cents and held onto 2nd place.

Why California is really that high

Here is what most coverage misses: the 73.6 cent figure is only the direct tax. California layers environmental programs on top that function like additional taxes at the pump. The Legislative Analyst's Office estimates cap and trade adds about 23 cents per gallon, and the Low Carbon Fuel Standard, tightened in July 2025, adds somewhere between 19 and 52 cents depending on whose estimate you trust. Add it up and the total direct plus regulatory burden is about $1.16 per gallon, per the Tax Foundation's compilation of official figures.

So when someone tells you California's gas tax is 73.6 cents, that is technically the tax number and practically an understatement of what policy costs at the pump. I think this distinction matters because voters hear "gas tax" and think of the excise tax, while the bigger bite comes from programs most drivers have never heard of.

The bottom of the chart

Alaska: 8.95 cents, a rate that has barely moved in decades. Hawaii: 18.5 cents at the state level, though local county taxes in places like Maui can add up to 24 cents more. New Mexico: 18.9 cents. Arizona: 19.0 cents. Texas and Oklahoma: 20.0 cents each; Texas has not raised its gas tax since 1991.

The spread between California and Alaska, about 65 cents a gallon, means a driver filling a 15 gallon tank pays roughly $9.75 more in state tax in California than in Alaska for the same gasoline. Over a year of driving, that is the difference between a rounding error and a real budget line.

What the tax is supposed to do

Gas taxes are meant to work as user fees: drivers pay for the roads they use. The federal tax of 18.4 cents per gallon has not been raised since 1993, which is why states have had to carry the load, and why so many now index their rates to inflation or fuel prices automatically. The system is quietly breaking anyway, because electric vehicles pay no gas tax at all and improving fuel economy means fewer gallons taxed per mile driven. Most states now charge EV owners an extra registration fee to plug part of the gap, and the long term conversation is shifting toward per mile charges.

My take: if you are comparing states by pump price, the tax ranking explains more of the difference than most people assume, but it is not the whole story. Refining capacity, fuel blends, and transport costs matter too, which is why the tax gap between two states never translates exactly into a pump price gap. Check the full 2026 ranking before your next road trip and you will at least know which states are taxing you hardest per gallon.

See every state ranked: use our free 2026 gas tax by state table with annual cost estimator and CSV download.

Related reading: How Much Gas Tax Do You Pay Per Year?