How we turned public energy data into a dashboard with LogSheet

Public data is everywhere. Insights are not.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration publishes electricity rates and gasoline prices for every state on a monthly basis. The data is free and well structured, but gasoline and electricity use different units: dollars per gallon versus cents per kilowatt-hour. Comparing them requires more than a quick spreadsheet glance.

Conversion: from kilowatt-hours to gallons

To compare costs on a comparable basis, we selected two vehicles from the same manufacturer and segment: the Hyundai Elantra (gasoline) and the Hyundai Ioniq 6 (electric). The closest real-world equivalent replacement in the market.

• The Ioniq 6 consumes 24 kWh per 100 miles according to EPA tests.
• The Elantra delivers 36 miles per gallon.

To travel 36 miles, the Ioniq 6 consumes:

36 miles × 0.24 kWh per mile = 8.64 kWh.

This produces a single conversion factor: take any residential electricity rate in cents, multiply it by 0.0864, and you get the cost in dollars of an “EV gallon” — the electric equivalent required to travel the same distance as one gallon of gasoline.

For example, the average U.S. residential electricity rate in 2024 was 16.48 cents per kWh. The EV equivalent: 16.48 × 0.0864 = $1.42. The average gasoline price that year was $3.31 per gallon. The electric driver paid 57% less for the same distance.

Turning two datasets into a single log

We created a LogSheet log where each record represents a year. Fields include: year, residential electricity rate, average gasoline price, calculated EV equivalent, and data source.

What the dashboard revealed

Gasoline prices saw three spikes and two drops between 2016 and 2026. The pandemic pushed them down to $2.17 in 2020. Post-COVID recovery and global supply disruptions pushed them to $3.96 in 2022. They fell back to $3.10 in 2025, then rose again to $3.36 when conflict with Iran pushed crude oil above $100 per barrel.

The EV equivalent, however, changed very little. It increased from $1.08 in 2016 to $1.56 in 2026 — a rise of just 48 cents over ten years.

Why a log works so well here

Public datasets require cleaning, transformation, and context before they become usable. A structured log handles this natively: consistent fields, easy updates, and automatic dashboards. No formulas to maintain, no pivot tables to rebuild.

The same approach works for production logs, equipment readings, and quality data — anywhere structured collection improves decision-making.

Data sources: EIA Electric Power Monthly (Tables 5.3 and 5.6.B) for electricity. EIA Petroleum Retail Prices, Regular All Formulations (U.S.) for gasoline. EPA consumption data for vehicle specifications.