Natural Gas (Henry Hub) Price Today

The Henry Hub spot price was $2.94 per MMBtu for the week ending September 18, 2026, rose $0.15 (+5.38%) from the prior week, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration's weekly natural gas data, refreshed by PetroEyes on September 29, 2026. The four-week average sits at $2.86 per MMBtu, and the benchmark has traded between $2.62 and $13.80 per MMBtu over the past year. NYMEX Henry Hub futures — the contract most traders actually watch day to day — closed at $3.05 per MMBtu on September 28, 2026 (+1.67% on the day). The rest of this page explains what the Henry Hub price is, how to read it, and what genuinely moves it.

1. What the Henry Hub price is

Henry Hub is a natural gas distribution point in Erath, Louisiana, where several major pipelines interconnect. It is the delivery point for the NYMEX natural gas futures contract, which makes its price the reference for physical gas deals across North America. When someone says "the US natural gas price," they usually mean the Henry Hub price.

The headline figure on this page is the EIA weekly spot price: the average cash price for physical gas delivered at Henry Hub during a week, as reported in the EIA's Natural Gas Navigator data file. It is a look backward at what physical gas actually traded for — the ground truth of the market. The NYMEX futures price, quoted daily, is instead a bet on where gas will trade in a future delivery month. The two normally sit close together; when they diverge persistently, it usually signals a near-term supply or demand shock that the market expects to resolve.

Prices are quoted in dollars per MMBtu (one million British thermal units), the standard energy unit for US gas. For context, residential gas bills are usually quoted per therm, and one MMBtu equals ten therms.

2. Recent weekly history

The table below shows the eight most recent weekly readings from the EIA series PetroEyes tracks — 465 weekly observations in total, running back to January 1997.

Over the past year the series traded as high as $13.80 per MMBtu in late January 2026 — a winter spike — before retreating to a $2.62 low in late July. The same week a year ago printed $3.05, so current prices sit below year-ago levels despite the recent weekly gain.

3. How to read the number

Three checks keep the headline price honest. First, which price: the weekly EIA spot on this page is backward-looking and stable; the NYMEX futures price moves every trading day and can gap on weather forecasts. They answer different questions. Second, which unit: $/MMBtu at Henry Hub is not the same as the price a homeowner pays — retail bills add distribution, taxes, and utility margins, often several times the commodity cost. Third, which region: Henry Hub reflects the US Gulf Coast. Regional prices diverge sharply when pipelines fill up — Alberta's AECO hub, for example, often trades at a deep discount, and PetroEyes' monthly market data put the Henry Hub–AECO spread at $2.18 per MMBtu for July 2026. Track regional context on the markets page, which carries the live benchmark quotes and spread series.

4. What moves Henry Hub

Natural gas is the most weather-sensitive major commodity, and the framework for reading price moves is the same one PetroEyes uses in its natural gas price drivers explainer: storage, weather, LNG exports, and power demand.

Storage vs. the five-year average

Storage is the market's shock absorber. Gas injected in spring and fall covers winter heating and summer cooling peaks. What matters is not the absolute storage level but its position relative to the five-year average heading into each season — a surplus pressures prices down, a deficit adds a risk premium. The EIA's weekly storage report, released Thursday mornings, is the single most watched recurring data point in the gas market.

Weather

Cold snaps drive heating demand (measured in heating degree days) and heat waves drive power demand for air conditioning (cooling degree days). Because US gas production is relatively steady week to week, demand swings show up in price almost immediately — which is why a single model run of a 10-day forecast can move futures several percent.

LNG exports

US LNG terminals on the Gulf Coast consume large volumes of domestic gas as year-round baseload demand, linking Henry Hub partially to global prices in Europe and Asia. Terminal outages reverse the flow — gas stranded at home pushes domestic prices down. Our LNG export dynamics guide walks through the mechanics in detail.

Power demand and supply

Gas is the marginal fuel for US electricity generation, so power-sector demand — from coal retirements, data-center load growth, and renewable intermittency — sets a structural floor under consumption. On the supply side, associated gas from oil drilling means crude prices indirectly influence gas output. See the shale technology guide for how production technology shapes the supply picture.

5. Henry Hub vs. crude oil

Gas and oil prices move on different fundamentals — oil is global and fungible, gas is regional and weather-driven — so their ratio swings widely. This week the EIA data puts WTI crude at $103.54 per barrel (week ending September 18, 2026) against Henry Hub at $2.94 per MMBtu. On an energy-equivalent basis (roughly 5.8 MMBtu per barrel), gas remains far cheaper per unit of energy than oil, which is normal: the two fuels serve different end uses and face different transport constraints. For the crude-side analogue of this page, see WTI vs Brent spread explained.

6. Frequently asked questions

What is today's Henry Hub natural gas price?

The latest EIA weekly reading is $2.94 per MMBtu for the week ending September 18, 2026. NYMEX futures, which trade daily, last closed at $3.05 per MMBtu on September 28, 2026. This page updates with each PetroEyes data refresh.

Where does the data come from?

The weekly series is the EIA's Henry Hub natural gas spot price from the Natural Gas Navigator data file, scraped and archived by PetroEyes' data pipeline —465 weekly observations back to 1997. The futures quote comes from daily NYMEX market data. Both series are shown with their as-of dates, and our methodology page documents the pipeline.

Why is natural gas so volatile?

Storage is finite, demand is weather-driven, and gas is expensive to move — pipelines, not tankers, set regional prices. When a cold snap hits while storage is below average, there is no quick substitute, so prices spike. The late-January 2026 run to $13.80 per MMBtu is a textbook example of that dynamic.

Is Henry Hub the price I pay on my gas bill?

No. Henry Hub is the wholesale commodity price. Residential bills add pipeline transport, local distribution, utility operating costs, and taxes — the commodity is often a minority share of the final bill.

7. Related reading

• Crude Oil Price Today: WTI, Brent, Henry Hub — live benchmark quotes and spread series.
• What Drives Natural Gas Prices: The Core 4 Framework — storage, weather, LNG, and power demand in depth.
• LNG Export Dynamics — how export terminals link Henry Hub to world gas prices.
• EIA Crude Oil Inventory & Weekly Petroleum Status Report — the weekly physical data behind the headlines.
• Market Forecasts & Outlooks — published outlooks with sources, not price targets.