Inside Every Barrel of Oil

One Barrel of Oil Equals…

Crude oil is trading at around $48 per barrel today. This is important because the price of crude oil determines how much we pay to fill the tank of our cars, heat our houses, and it can have a noticeable effect on the stock market and the U.S. economy. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, part of the U.S. Department of Energy, “in 2015, the United States consumed a total of 7.08 billion barrels of petroleum products, an average of about 19.4 million barrels per day.”

The magnitude of a number as high as 19.4 million is difficult to comprehend, especially when we don’t even understand what each barrel can do. Let’s look at just 1 barrel. Below is a graphic from Visual Capitalist, that shows some of the different uses for crude oil and how much just one barrel can go.