European gas prices surged to their highest level in nearly four years, hitting €87.20 per megawatt-hour on Tuesday. The spike, driven by the conflict in the Middle East, has disrupted liquefied natural gas shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, which typically handles about a fifth of global supplies. While petrol and diesel prices in the EU have already reached record highs, residential gas and electricity prices have risen more gradually. Between February and September 2026, average diesel prices in the EU climbed 35%, petrol prices increased 23%, residential gas prices rose 12%, and electricity prices went up 4.2%.
As of early September 2026, residential electricity prices in European capitals ranged from 8.4 euro cents per kilowatt-hour (c€/kWh) in Kyiv to 41.3 c€/kWh in Brussels. Berlin, Dublin, Bern, and London also ranked among the most expensive cities for electricity. In contrast, Budapest, Podgorica, Belgrade, and Valletta offered the cheapest electricity rates. When adjusted for purchasing power standards (PPS), Bucharest became the most expensive city at 55.1, while Oslo was the cheapest at 11.5.
Gas prices varied even more dramatically, with Stockholm at the top at 34.8 c€/kWh and Kyiv at the bottom at 1.5 c€/kWh. Amsterdam followed Stockholm as the second most expensive city for gas. Adjusting for purchasing power, Stockholm remained the most expensive for gas, while Budapest was the cheapest. Some cities, like Stockholm and Amsterdam, had high gas prices but relatively low electricity costs, while others, such as Bucharest, Brussels, and London, had the opposite pattern.
Several European capitals experienced significant changes in energy prices between February and September 2026. Lisbon saw the largest electricity price increase at 22%, followed by Amsterdam, Madrid, and Rome. Luxembourg City, Tallinn, and Helsinki saw declines in electricity prices. For gas, Tallinn recorded the largest rise at 59.2%, with other cities like Brussels, Athens, Bern, London, Riga, Vienna, Paris, and Berlin also seeing substantial increases. With EU gas storage levels at their lowest for this time of year since 2011, households may face higher energy bills as winter approaches.