Gas-Saving Sites To Keep Us Calm

As gas price increase, my bank account decreases. I currently own an SUV (not for long) and to fill up my car, I have to take out a loan…Well, maybe not that bad quite yet, but at over $100, I am just about willing to do anything to fill up for as cheap as possible. Whenever I take a necessary ride somewhere, I noticed the price of gas rising right before my eyes and it seems like yesterday, I was complaining over $1.92/gallon. I cannot help you get it back to that price, but I can help you save some gas money.

I’m pretty sure most of you have heard of the few places I am going to talk about since traffic to these sites are growing every day. “GasBuddy.com, which serves as an umbrella site for 180 regionalized sites covering some 170,000 gas stations in the U.S. and Canada, has seen more of a steady climb in traffic.” This site, and GasPriceWatcher essentially do the same thing - Find the cheapest gas prices in your vicinity. GasBuddy.com and GasPriceWatch.com, both 8-year-old sites, rely on their networks of registered members/spotters. Spotters are community members who are usually offered incentive points or a chance to win a “thank you” prize such as a discount on gas.

GasBuddy.com has one of the coolest features in what it calls its Gas Temperature Map, an interactive display of gas prices around the country, with areas color-coded according to their average price for regular unleaded gasoline. I was able to find some cheap gas this way, but that is not the only way to be alerted of cheap gas. It should be noted that new technologies have changed the way we consumers are accessing information from the gas price sites. Some are still looking at the sites on their PCs. But other gadgeteers, like me, are getting such information through in-car GPS systems, text messaging, and smartphone applications.

Make no mistake that these are not the only gas saving websites out there. There is also AAA’s Gas Price Finder, unlike the other two sites; this site uses data primarily from credit card transactions. MapQuest Gas Prices and MSN Gas Prices rely on data supplied by the Oil Price Information Service, a pricing database that collects information from 125,000 North American retail outlets. Not to mention, last year, a X-writer here at The Tech Brief wrote about six super ways to save on gas. That super six ways is definitely a must see.

If you were not aware of these sites, I suggest you use them, because now a day, every little bit of savings helps. Another useful tip I heard not too long ago is if you can find a gas station that does not accept credit cards, then the gas will be considerably cheaper. Word on the streets is that the prices will continue to grow to groundbreaking records and soon, we will all be working from home, not going anywhere.