Consumer Alert: $5 gas is here. NY State has advice on how to save money on gas

ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WHEC) – For the first time ever, the national average price of gas surpassed $5.00 per gallon. That’s according to Gas Buddy. The rising oil costs and high demand for gas are keeping pump prices surging.

And the same is true in the state of New York. According to AAA, the average price of a gallon of gas hit $5 in the Empire State Thursday – $5.01 to be exact.

Here in Rochester, the average is $4.95 per gallon. It’s risen every day this week despite the state’s gas tax holiday. So the New York Division of Consumer Protection published some advice on how to save.

• Don’t fill up until you get down to a quarter of a tank. You get better gas mileage with a lighter load, so always having full tank wastes money.
• Make sure that the price per gallon remains the same the entire time you’re pumping.
• Use an app to find the cheapest gas near you.
Here are a few of my favorites:
• Waze
• GasBuddy
• Gas Guru
• Mapquest Gas Prices
• AAA
For a full list of all the attorney general’s tips for saving money on gas, click here.