Petrol price cycles
Petrol prices move up and down in regular patterns or cycles. The cheapest and most expensive days to buy petrol can change from cycle to cycle. Use price cycles to help you decide when to buy petrol.
Price cycles occur in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Perth. They do not occur in the other capital cities (Canberra, Hobart or Darwin) or in most regional locations.
A petrol price cycle is a movement in retail price from a low point (or trough) to a high point (or peak) to a subsequent low point. In these cycles, prices steadily go down for a period followed by a sharp increase.
Price cycles are the result of deliberate pricing policies of petrol retailers, and are not directly related to changes in wholesale costs.
The duration of petrol price cycles in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide varies from cycle to cycle, and has increased in recent years. In 2014 to date, the average price cycle duration in these cities has ranged from a low of 13 days to a high of 43 days. The petrol price cycle duration in Perth is 7 days.
Disclaimer
Historical data can only give an indication of the cheapest and most expensive days to buy petrol in the future, so consumers should use this information as a general guide only.
The charts are updated daily from Monday to Friday at around midday, and show average daily prices for the last 45 days. Updates on Mondays include prices for the preceding Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Buying tips are usually updated around midday on Monday, Wednesday and Friday
The buying tips may not always seem apparent from the charts. This is because the charts show historical prices.
The charts show average daily regular unleaded petrol for all cities except Sydney, which shows E10 prices.
Petrol prices in Sydney
Buying tip (updated Monday, Wednesday and Friday):
- Prices are decreasing but they are likely to decrease further.
- If possible, motorists should delay buying petrol until later.
The chart below shows daily average E10 petrol prices in Sydney over the past 45 days.
Source: FUELtrac
Information on the past five price cycles in Sydney is shown below:
| Date of lowest price in the cycle | No. of days to highest price in the cycle | Date of highest price in the cycle | Days to lowest price in the cycle | Price cycle duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 13 Aug 14 | 10 | Sat 23 Aug 14 | 16 | 26 |
| Mon 08 Sep 14 | 12 | Sat 20 Sep 14 | 22 | 34 |
| Sun 12 Oct 14 | 7 | Sun 19 Oct 14 | 21 | 28 |
| Sun 09 Nov 14 | 11 | Thu 20 Nov 14 | 73 | 84 |
| Sun 01 Feb 15 | 6 | Sat 07 Feb 15 | 9 | 15 |
Petrol prices in Melbourne
Buying tip (updated Monday, Wednesday and Friday):
- Prices are decreasing but they are likely to decrease further.
- If possible, motorists should delay buying petrol until later.
The chart below shows daily average regular unleaded petrol prices in Melbourne over the past 45 days.
Source: FUELtrac
Information on the past five price cycles in Melbourne is shown below:
| Date of lowest price in the cycle | No. of days to highest price in the cycle | Date of highest price in the cycle | Days to lowest price in the cycle | Price cycle duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 08 Jul 14 | 5 | Sat 13 Jul 14 | 24 | 29 |
| Wed 06 Aug 14 | 5 | Mon 11 Aug 14 | 27 | 32 |
| Sun 07 Sep 14 | 14 | Sun 21 Sep 14 | 18 | 32 |
| Thu 09 Oct 14 | 9 | Sat 18 Oct 14 | 106 | 115 |
| Sun 01 Feb 15 | 8 | Mon 09 Feb 15 | 14 | 22 |
Petrol prices in Brisbane
Buying tip (updated Monday, Wednesday and Friday):
- Prices are decreasing but they are likely to decrease further.
- If possible, motorists should delay buying petrol until later.
The chart below shows daily average regular unleaded petrol prices in Brisbane over the past 45 days.
Source: FUELtrac
Information on the past five price cycles in Brisbane is shown below:
| Date of lowest price in the cycle | No. of days to highest price in the cycle | Date of highest price in the cycle | Days to lowest price in the cycle | Price cycle duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 08 Jul 14 | 6 | Mon 14 Jul 14 | 22 | 28 |
| Tue 05 Aug 14 | 5 | Sun 10 Aug 14 | 24 | 29 |
| Wed 03 Sep 14 | 10 | Sat 13 Sep 14 | 25 | 35 |
| Wed 08 Oct 14 | 10 | Sat 18 Oct 14 | 24 | 34 |
| Tue 11 Nov 14 | 9 | Thu 20 Nov 14 | 72 | 81 |
Petrol prices in Adelaide
Buying tip (updated Monday, Wednesday and Friday):
- retail prices have recently been relatively stable. However, due to increasing wholesale prices it is unlikely that retail prices will decrease substantially in the coming days
- now may be a good time for motorists to buy petrol.
The chart below shows daily average regular unleaded petrol prices in Adelaide over the past 45 days.
Source: FUELtrac
Information on the past five price cycles in Adelaide is shown below:
| Date of lowest price in the cycle | No. of days to highest price in the cycle | Date of highest price in the cycle | Days to lowest price in the cycle | Price cycle duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue 08 Jul 14 | 3 | Fri 11 Jun 14 | 13 | 16 |
| Thu 24 Jul 14 | 2 | Sat 26 Jul 14 | 32 | 34 |
| Wed 27 Aug 14 | 8 | Thu 04 Sep 14 | 24 | 32 |
| Sun 28 Sep 14 | 3 | Wed 01 Oct | 40 | 43 |
| Mon 10 Nov 14 | 11 | Fri 21 Nov 14 | 72 | 83 |
Petrol prices in Perth
Buying tip
Perth has regular weekly petrol price cycles, with prices peaking on Thursday and then decreasing to a low on Wednesday. Therefore, Tuesday and Wednesday are generally the best days to buy, though a minority of retailers may offer their lowest price on Thursday.
The chart below shows average daily regular unleaded petrol prices in Perth over the past 45 days.
Source: FUELtrac
Information on the past five price cycles in Perth is shown below:
| Date of lowest price in the cycle | No. of days to highest price in the cycle | Date of highest price in the cycle | Days to lowest price in the cycle | Price cycle duration |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wed 21 Jan 15 | 1 | Thu 22 Jan 15 | 6 | 7 |
| Wed 28 Jan 14 | 1 | Thu 29 Jan 15 | 6 | 7 |
| Wed 04 Feb 15 | 1 | Thu 05 Feb 15 | 6 | 7 |
| Wed 11 Feb 15 | 1 | Thu 12 Feb 15 | 6 | 7 |
| Wed 18 Feb 15 | 1 | Thu 19 Feb 15 | 6 | 7 |
More information
Petrol, diesel and LPG
Monitoring of the Australian petroleum industry - reports
