Oil Price Records: WTI and Brent Highs, Lows, and Biggest Moves

WTI's highest daily spot price in EIA records is $145.31 per barrel on Jul 3, 2008, and Brent's is $143.95 on Jul 3, 2008. The lowest WTI close is −$36.98 on Apr 20, 2020, the only day WTI settled below zero; Brent's lowest is $9.10 on Dec 10, 1998.

Adjusted for inflation to September 2026 dollars with monthly CPI-U, WTI's highest daily price is $222.59 on Jul 3, 2008 and Brent's is $220.50 on Jul 3, 2008.

All-time highs and lows

Daily spot prices, $/bbl; real values in September 2026 dollars
Record	WTI	Date	Brent	Date
Highest close	$145.31	Jul 3, 2008	$143.95	Jul 3, 2008
Lowest close	−$36.98	Apr 20, 2020	$9.10	Dec 10, 1998
Highest close, inflation-adjusted	$222.59	Jul 3, 2008	$220.50	Jul 3, 2008
Lowest close, inflation-adjusted	−$48.60	Apr 20, 2020	$11.99	Apr 21, 2020
Widest Brent premium over WTI	$54.34	Apr 20, 2020	Widest WTI premium: $22.18 on Sep 22, 2008

Spread is Brent minus WTI on dates both are published; see WTI vs Brent.

Highest and lowest annual averages

WTI, complete calendar years, $/bbl
Highest	Avg	Lowest	Avg
2008	$99.67	1998	$14.42
2013	$97.98	1986	$15.05
2022	$94.90	1988	$15.97
2011	$94.88	1994	$17.20
2012	$94.05	1995 (tie)	$18.43
		1993 (tie)	$18.43

Brent, complete calendar years, $/bbl
Highest	Avg	Lowest	Avg
2012	$111.63	1998	$12.76
2011	$111.26	1988	$14.91
2013	$108.56	1994	$15.86
2022	$100.93	1993	$17.01
2014	$98.97	1995	$17.02

Largest daily moves: WTI

WTI largest daily gains, $/bbl
Date	Prior close	Close	$ change
Apr 21, 2020	−$36.98	$8.91	+$45.89
Sep 22, 2008	$104.05	$122.61	+$18.56
Sep 28, 2026	$85.23	$99.37	+$14.14
Apr 2, 2026	$101.90	$113.23	+$11.33
Jun 6, 2008	$127.93	$138.51	+$10.58
Mar 6, 2026	$80.88	$90.77	+$9.89
Mar 12, 2026	$86.80	$95.61	+$8.81
Oct 15, 2026	$96.34	$104.71	+$8.37
Sep 16, 2019	$54.76	$63.10	+$8.34
Mar 17, 2022	$94.85	$102.97	+$8.12

WTI largest daily losses, $/bbl
Date	Prior close	Close	$ change
Apr 20, 2020	$18.31	−$36.98	−$55.29
Apr 8, 2026	$114.58	$96.17	−$18.41
Mar 9, 2022	$123.64	$108.81	−$14.83
Sep 23, 2008	$122.61	$107.85	−$14.76
Mar 10, 2026	$94.65	$83.71	−$10.94
Jan 17, 1991	$32.25	$21.48	−$10.77
Sep 25, 2026	$95.88	$85.23	−$10.65
Apr 17, 2026	$96.46	$85.91	−$10.55
Sep 29, 2008	$106.77	$96.29	−$10.48
May 20, 2026	$112.09	$101.69	−$10.40

WTI largest daily gains, %
Date	Prior close	Close	% change
Apr 22, 2020	$8.91	$13.64	+53.1%
Mar 31, 2020	$14.10	$20.51	+45.5%
Apr 30, 2020	$15.04	$19.23	+27.9%
Apr 2, 2020	$20.28	$25.18	+24.2%
Mar 19, 2020	$20.48	$25.09	+22.5%
Apr 29, 2020	$12.40	$15.04	+21.3%
Aug 4, 1986	$11.56	$14.00	+21.1%
Aug 6, 1990	$23.79	$28.73	+20.8%
May 5, 2020	$20.47	$24.56	+20.0%
Mar 23, 2020	$19.48	$23.33	+19.8%

WTI largest daily losses, %
Date	Prior close	Close	% change
Jan 17, 1991	$32.25	$21.48	−33.4%
Mar 9, 2020	$41.14	$31.05	−24.5%
Mar 18, 2020	$26.96	$20.48	−24.0%
Apr 27, 2020	$15.99	$12.17	−23.9%
Mar 20, 2020	$25.09	$19.48	−22.4%
Mar 26, 2020	$20.75	$16.60	−20.0%
Jul 22, 1986	$13.07	$10.88	−16.8%
Apr 8, 2026	$114.58	$96.17	−16.1%
Oct 22, 1990	$33.82	$28.46	−15.8%
Sep 24, 2001	$25.46	$21.46	−15.7%

Percent changes are omitted when either price is zero or negative: WTI went from $18.31 on Apr 17, 2020 to −$36.98 on Apr 20 and back to $8.91 on Apr 21; those dollar moves appear in the $ tables.

Largest daily moves: Brent

Brent largest daily gains, $/bbl
Date	Prior close	Close	$ change
Oct 2, 2026	$114.82	$135.51	+$20.69
Sep 10, 2026	$109.51	$120.98	+$11.47
Mar 12, 2026	$90.98	$102.38	+$11.40
Jul 23, 2026	$94.12	$105.32	+$11.20
Apr 7, 2026	$127.61	$138.21	+$10.60
Jun 6, 2008	$122.36	$132.81	+$10.45
Mar 18, 2026	$108.39	$118.09	+$9.70
Sep 15, 2026	$121.25	$130.80	+$9.55
Mar 17, 2022	$104.61	$113.50	+$8.89
Aug 21, 2008	$108.72	$117.24	+$8.52

Brent largest daily losses, $/bbl
Date	Prior close	Close	$ change
Apr 17, 2026	$116.63	$98.63	−$18.00
Mar 9, 2022	$133.18	$116.58	−$16.60
Apr 8, 2026	$138.21	$122.11	−$16.10
Mar 23, 2026	$118.42	$103.79	−$14.63
Jul 5, 2022	$121.80	$110.49	−$11.31
May 6, 2026	$114.51	$103.70	−$10.81
Mar 9, 2020	$45.60	$35.33	−$10.27
Oct 5, 2026	$135.51	$125.51	−$10.00
Nov 26, 2021	$82.05	$72.37	−$9.68
May 5, 2011	$121.55	$111.93	−$9.62

Brent largest daily gains, %
Date	Prior close	Close	% change
Apr 22, 2020	$9.12	$13.77	+51.0%
Apr 2, 2020	$14.97	$20.24	+35.2%
May 5, 2020	$20.40	$25.46	+24.8%
Apr 3, 2020	$20.24	$24.33	+20.2%
Jan 2, 2009	$35.82	$42.94	+19.9%
Jan 10, 1991	$22.35	$26.58	+18.9%
Oct 2, 2026	$114.82	$135.51	+18.0%
Mar 23, 1998	$12.35	$14.53	+17.7%
Apr 29, 2020	$15.60	$17.86	+14.5%
Apr 8, 2020	$22.10	$25.22	+14.1%

Brent largest daily losses, %
Date	Prior close	Close	% change
Apr 21, 2020	$17.36	$9.12	−47.5%
Jan 17, 1991	$30.28	$21.10	−30.3%
Mar 31, 2020	$19.19	$14.85	−22.6%
Mar 9, 2020	$45.60	$35.33	−22.5%
Apr 9, 2020	$25.22	$20.23	−19.8%
Mar 18, 2020	$27.97	$22.79	−18.5%
Sep 24, 2001	$25.17	$20.63	−18.0%
Oct 22, 1990	$33.20	$27.45	−17.3%
Dec 5, 2008	$43.83	$37.04	−15.5%
Apr 17, 2026	$116.63	$98.63	−15.4%

Longest price streaks

Consecutive published daily observations (trading days with an EIA price) meeting each condition
Condition	Benchmark	Longest run	From	To	Total observations
At or above $100	WTI	134 observations	Mar 5, 2008	Sep 12, 2008	580
At or above $100	Brent	321 observations	Feb 14, 2011	May 31, 2012	1,194
At or above $75	WTI	1,040 observations	Sep 27, 2010	Nov 12, 2014	2,269
At or above $75	Brent	1,061 observations	Sep 3, 2010	Nov 26, 2014	2,529
Below $50	WTI	4,737 observations	Jan 2, 1986 (start of EIA series)	Sep 30, 2004	5,646
Below $50	Brent	4,424 observations	May 20, 1987 (start of EIA series)	Oct 8, 2004	5,227
Below $20	WTI	410 observations	Nov 19, 1997	Jul 12, 1999	2,339
Below $20	Brent	858 observations	Oct 26, 1992	Mar 15, 1996	2,656
Below $0	WTI	1 observation	Apr 20, 2020	Apr 20, 2020	1
Below $0	Brent	Never	—	—	0

Records cover 10,276 WTI observations from Jan 2, 1986 to Oct 20, 2026 and 10,003 Brent observations from May 20, 1987 to Oct 20, 2026. Daily moves compare each published close with the previous published close, so a move can span a weekend or holiday.

Source and methodology

Provider	Series	Units	Coverage	Latest observation
U.S. Energy Information Administration	RWTC — Cushing, OK WTI spot price FOB (daily)	$/bbl	1986-01-02 to 2026-10-20	Oct 20, 2026
U.S. Energy Information Administration	RBRTE — Europe Brent spot price FOB (daily)	$/bbl	1987-05-20 to 2026-10-20	Oct 20, 2026
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics	CUUR0000SA0 — CPI-U, all items, U.S. city average, NSA	index, 1982–84=100	1985 onward	September 2026

Last updated: Oct 21, 2026, 5:44 PM CDT. Raw values are shown in source units; any conversion is labeled. See methodology and data sources.

Download:Records (CSV)