The US-Iraq war has imposed a hefty energy bill on Americans, with costs climbing relentlessly as the conflict drags on. A cost-tracking study from Brown University's Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs reveals that since the war erupted in late February, American consumers have forked out an extra $100.9 billion on gasoline and diesel alone—translating to roughly $770 per household. With fuel prices stubbornly elevated, that figure is poised to climb even further.

Gulf Oil's chief energy advisor Tom Kloza told reporters over the weekend, "This fall, we're looking at the highest gasoline prices ever recorded, and diesel will be even worse. It's going to push inflation upward across every sector." The research gauges the added financial strain by comparing real-world energy prices against a hypothetical "no-war scenario," isolating the economic toll exacted by the conflict. While prices haven't spiked as dramatically as some feared, the tracking data underscores how the fighting is steadily eroding disposable income for everyday Americans.

Since hostilities began, gasoline alone has cost consumers an extra $55 billion, or an average of $422 per household. According to the American Automobile Association (AAA), gasoline prices hit a three-month high on Tuesday, surpassing $4.15 per gallon. This year's Labor Day Monday saw the most expensive fuel prices on record for that holiday, compared to $3.20 a gallon last year and $2.98 before the war began. Still, current prices remain well off the post-conflict peak of $4.56 per gallon hit in May, and considerably lower than the all-time high of $5.02 per gallon recorded in 2022 following Russia's invasion of Ukraine.