Metro Denver motorists are saving more money on gas compared to other major cities nationwide this holiday season.

One oil pricing expert said some Denver gas stations are some of the cheapest not only in Colorado, but across the country.

As of Monday, gas is averaging $2.47 per gallon in Colorado, down from $2.76 a month ago, according to numbers posted on AAA’s website.

In Colorado’s most populous city, that number is even lower.

Denver and Arapahoe counties gas prices are both averaging around $2.30. Some gas stations appeared to go as low as $1.69. The most expensive station was reported around $3.

AAA data shows other big area counties averaging low gas prices as of Monday:

• Douglas: $2.44
• Jefferson: $2.38
• Adams: $2.15
• El Paso: $2.26
• Boulder: $2.54

“You have the lowest cities with the lowest priced individual stations that one can find in the nation, a good 15% cheaper than the next cheapest stations in Oklahoma City and Oklahoma,” Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, told The Denver Gazette on Monday.

GasBuddy is an app that tracks the best gas prices nationwide.

De Haan said cheaper gas prices in Colorado are due to a number of factors, but notably because of the Suncor refinery in Commerce City. The oil refinery produces 98,000 barrels of gasoline, diesel fuel and paving-grade asphalt a day, according to Suncor’s website.

“Colorado is relatively landlocked, meaning that the gasoline that comes out of the Suncor refinery doesn’t have a whole lot of options to get into areas or to be exported,” De Haan said.

On its website, Suncor officials said the refinery purchases crude oil from the Denver-Julesburg Basin, process it in Commerce City and sells nearly 95% of its products within Colorado.

AAA regional spokesperson Skyler McKinley also attributed price drops in Colorado to good oil inventories, low demand and individual gas station pricing methods.

“Generally across the metro, there is pricing well below $2. That’s strategic,” McKinley said.

“Most of the margin in owning a gas station isn’t in the gas, it’s actually in getting folks to stop in, buy a hot dog, buy a Coca Cola,” he said. “A great way to get people to come to your service station is to price at or below cost.”

In a news release last week, AAA officials said national gas price averages dipped below $3 for the first time since May 2021. The national average stood at $2.95 on Monday, AAA numbers show.

“Sluggish gas demand and cheaper-to-produce winter blend gasoline are also contributing to the drop at the pump,” AAA officials said in the release.

Crude oil prices remain around $60 a barrel, according to AAA.

In Colorado, gas prices should remain low.

“The Front Range will always have the cheapest gas in Colorado as a function of that supply and demand,” McKinley said.

De Haan said gas prices are still trending down in most states. Whether that will continue is up for speculation.

“Barring any major disruptions,” De Haan said, “prices are likely to stay relatively low into the new year.”