# U.S. crude production vs refinery inputs | PIER20 benchmarks Is U.S. crude production running ahead of or behind refinery demand? This page charts U.S. field production of crude oil against refinery crude inputs, in thousand barrels per day, week by week. It also charts the production minus runs (Crude production minus Refinery crude inputs). A wider production minus runs means Crude production grows faster than Refinery crude inputs, or falls slower. A narrower balance means the opposite. The balance is a flow in units per day. A weekly balance reading is the average daily difference for that week. It describes physical supply and demand direction, not a financial position. As of **31 July 2026**, the latest readings are Crude production at **13804.00 Thousand Barrels per Day** and Refinery crude inputs at **17381.00 Thousand Barrels per Day**. The Crude production line is up 3.9% over the past year and above its long-run median of 7261.00 Thousand Barrels per Day. ## Summary statistics (full history) | Series | First | Latest | Min | Max | |---|---|---|---|---| | Crude production | 8634.00 | 13804.00 | 3813.00 | 13862.00 | | Refinery crude inputs | | 17381.00 | 10300.00 | 18243.00 | ## Last 24 readings | Date | Crude production | Refinery crude inputs | |---|---|---| | 20 Feb 2026 | 13702.00 | 15963.00 | | 27 Feb 2026 | 13696.00 | 16083.00 | | 6 Mar 2026 | 13678.00 | 16370.00 | | 13 Mar 2026 | 13668.00 | 16463.00 | | 20 Mar 2026 | 13657.00 | 16747.00 | | 27 Mar 2026 | 13657.00 | 16592.00 | | 3 Apr 2026 | 13596.00 | 16578.00 | | 10 Apr 2026 | 13596.00 | 16273.00 | | 17 Apr 2026 | 13585.00 | 16180.00 | | 24 Apr 2026 | 13586.00 | 16274.00 | | 1 May 2026 | 13573.00 | 16361.00 | | 8 May 2026 | 13710.00 | 16661.00 | | 15 May 2026 | 13702.00 | 16642.00 | | 22 May 2026 | 13715.00 | 17171.00 | | 29 May 2026 | 13707.00 | 17199.00 | | 5 Jun 2026 | 13799.00 | 17315.00 | | 12 Jun 2026 | 13806.00 | 17415.00 | | 19 Jun 2026 | 13819.00 | 17317.00 | | 26 Jun 2026 | 13810.00 | 17408.00 | | 3 Jul 2026 | 13860.00 | 17257.00 | | 10 Jul 2026 | 13861.00 | 17322.00 | | 17 Jul 2026 | 13798.00 | 17319.00 | | 24 Jul 2026 | 13796.00 | 17518.00 | | 31 Jul 2026 | 13804.00 | 17381.00 | ## How to read this benchmark **What a widening or narrowing balance means.** On this construction the balance is almost always negative: U.S. field production runs below gross refinery inputs, so the domestic gap is filled by imports (and stock draws) while quality-driven exports still leave the country. A less-negative (narrower) gap means production is closer to covering runs; a more-negative gap means refiners need more foreign or stored barrels. COVID 2020 is the extreme narrowing, not a flip into surplus: runs collapsed harder than production, so production-minus-inputs moved toward zero even as the broader inventory identity built stocks. **Why Refinery crude inputs as the comparator.** Gross refinery inputs (EIA gross inputs into refineries) are the domestic absorption line for crude and unfinished oils: they are what field production must feed first, alongside imports and stocks. Comparing the two isolates how far production alone covers domestic runs. Not the export account. **Why the balance is quoted per day.** Both flows are weekly totals from the WPSR. Each is divided by the number of days in the report week. That keeps weeks of different length comparable. The balance uses the same daily unit. A balance of +500 thousand barrels per day means the first flow ran 500 kb/d ahead of the second that week. **Limitations.** Weekly observations carry revisions. The WPSR revises earlier weeks when new data lands. Production minus runs is a physical flow. Prices also embed stocks, demand, policy, and the financial side of the market. Treat the chart as context for supply and demand conditions, not investment advice. ## How this benchmark is used **The domestic production-to-runs gap.** Shale-era crude exports coexist with a structural production-minus-runs deficit because U.S. light barrels are the wrong grade for much of Gulf Coast capacity: the country imports heavy crude while exporting light. Watching this gap shows whether domestic field output is closing on refinery absorption, not whether the U.S. is a net crude exporter (that is the crude imports-vs-exports page). ## Frequently asked questions **What is the current U.S. crude production vs refinery inputs?** As of 31 July 2026, the latest readings are Crude production at 13804.00 Thousand Barrels per Day and Refinery crude inputs at 17381.00 Thousand Barrels per Day. The Crude production line is up 3.9% over the past year and above its long-run median of 7261.00 Thousand Barrels per Day. **How often is this benchmark updated?** This benchmark is built on weekly data. The page is refreshed when the source publishes new observations; the freshness block below the chart shows the exact data-through date and when PIER20 last fetched the file. **What data sources does this chart use?** The chart is built from Crude production and Refinery crude inputs, sourced from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). **What does a negative production minus runs mean?** A negative reading means Refinery crude inputs exceeded Crude production that week. The second flow ran ahead of the first. The balance is signed. Positive favors the first flow. Negative favors the second. The percentile cell ranks the latest balance against the full sample. **How is this different from imports vs exports?** The production-vs-inputs comparison is the domestic absorption gap. The imports-vs-exports page is the crude trade balance: what crosses the border. The two connect through identity. Production plus imports must equal inputs plus exports plus stock change. But they measure different sides of it. **How often is the data updated?** Weekly. The Weekly Petroleum Status Report publishes Thursday 1:00 p.m. ET with data through the prior Friday. The fetch retries the next day if a scheduled release is late. ## Methodology - Formula: production minus runs = Crude production − Refinery crude inputs, in thousand barrels per day - Frequency: Weekly - Sources: Crude production (WCRFPUS2) https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=PET&s=WCRFPUS2&f=W; Refinery crude inputs (WGIRIUS2) https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=PET&s=WGIRIUS2&f=W. Data via the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). - Data through: 31 July 2026 - Last refreshed: 11 Aug 2026 Full interactive chart: https://pier20.com/benchmarks/crude-production-vs-refinery-inputs Disclaimer: research software output, not investment advice.