per gallon (regular) — up $0.62 since the conflict began
The national average jumped nearly 27 cents in a single week as the Iran conflict threatens the Strait of Hormuz, through which 20% of the world's daily oil moves. AAA reports the fastest weekly increase since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Source: AAA Gas Prices · AAA Newsroom, Mar 2026
Jennifer Kavanagh of Defense Priorities estimates the U.S. "easily" spent more than $10 billion on air-defense systems in the first 48 hours. Iran launched 2,000+ drones and 500+ ballistic missiles (CSIS). CSIS separately estimates interceptor costs at $1.2B–$3.7B for the first 100 hours.
Source: NYT DealBook, Mar 4, 2026 (Niko Gallogly)
In June 2025's 12-day war, the U.S. expended up to 30% of its THAAD stockpile and 80 SM-3s. Production cannot keep pace: even at quadrupled rates, replacing 150 THAAD interceptors takes nearly 5 months.
At sustained conflict consumption, the entire U.S. interceptor stockpile could be exhausted in 4–5 weeks — creating vulnerabilities for NATO, Ukraine, Taiwan, and Japan, all of which depend on U.S. defense supplies.
Source: Military Times, Mar 6, 2026
This tracker exists because the public deserves real-time transparency about the cost of military operations — not just after-the-fact reports years later. The counter uses the Pentagon's own briefing to Congress — $11.3 billion for the first six days — plus $1 billion/day ongoing. Senator Coons has noted this is likely an undercount, and independent analyses suggest the true cost may be significantly higher.