What are petroleum products, and what is petroleum used for?
Petroleum products include transportation fuels, fuel oils for heating and electricity generation, asphalt and road oil, and feedstocks for making the chemicals, plastics, and synthetic materials that are in nearly everything we use. In 2021, of the approximately 7.2 billion barrels of total U.S. petroleum consumption, 44% was finished motor gasoline (includes fuel ethanol), 20% was distillate fuel (heating oil and diesel fuel), and 7% was jet fuel. Over 25 other types of petroleum products (including biodiesel, renewable diesel, and other biofuels) made up the other 29% of total petroleum consumption in 2021. Nine types of hydrocarbon gas liquids combined made up 17% of total U.S. petroleum consumption.
Learn more:
What is the difference between crude oil, petroleum products, and petroleum?
Energy Explained: Crude oil and petroleum products
Petroleum products supplied by type (Table 3.5) (product supplied represents consumption)
U.S. Petroleum Product Supplied
Last updated: April 19, 2022
Other FAQs about Oil/Petroleum
- When was the last refinery built in the United States?
- Does EIA have data on the movement (transport) of crude oil, petroleum products, fuel ethanol, and biodiesel by rail?
- What do I pay for in a gallon of gasoline and diesel fuel?
- How much coal, natural gas, or petroleum is used to generate a kilowatthour of electricity?
- What is the outlook for home heating fuel prices this winter?
- Does EIA have data on U.S. oil refineries and their locations?
- Does EIA have information on U.S. natural gas and oil pipelines?
- How much oil is consumed in the United States?
- How much oil is used to make plastic?
- What types and amounts of energy are produced in each state?
- How much shale (tight) oil is produced in the United States?
- Does the world have enough oil to meet our future needs?
- What is the difference between crude oil, petroleum products, and petroleum?
- What are petroleum products, and what is petroleum used for?
- How many gallons of gasoline and diesel fuel are made from one barrel of oil?
- Does EIA have forecasts or projections for energy production, consumption, and prices for individual states?
- How many alternative fuel and hybrid vehicles are there in the United States?
- What is U.S. electricity generation by energy source?
- Does EIA have data on the type or quality of crude oil?
- What countries are the top producers and consumers of oil?
- How much petroleum does the United States import and export?
- How much oil consumed by the United States comes from foreign countries?
- Does EIA have county-level energy production data?
- Does EIA have information on unplanned outages or shutdowns of U.S. energy infrastructure?
- How much of the crude oil produced in the United States is consumed in the United States?