TL;DR: Yes, diesel is dearer than premium 98 in Brisbane today. The metro median diesel is 254.9 c/L, against 227.9 for 98 — so diesel is about 27c a litre over 98, 35c over 95, and 53c over regular 91. The blunt version: the typical diesel (254.9) is dearer than even the dearest 98 on the map today (236.9). It’s not a data glitch, and it won’t drop on a cycle — diesel doesn’t ride the petrol discount cycle. Your only lever is which servo: the cheapest diesel today is 225.5, about 29c under the median.
I’ve had this asked three times this week, always with the same disbelief. “Diesel’s supposed to be the cheap one — now it’s above premium?” Yes. Here’s the number, and why it isn’t a mistake.
The question
“Diesel used to be cheaper than unleaded. Now it’s dearer than premium 98. Is that a data error?”
Fair thing to check. For years diesel sat under the petrols, so a diesel above the top-shelf 98 looks broken.
What the feed says
Every number here is the Queensland Government price feed — what each station reported charging today, not a guess at the bowser. Brisbane metro medians, 24 August:
- E10 — 199.9
- Regular 91 (ULP) — 202.2
- Premium 95 — 219.9
- Premium 98 — 227.9
- Diesel (All Diesel family) — 254.9
So diesel is about 27c over 98, 35c over 95, and 53c over regular 91. And here’s the part people don’t believe: the median diesel of 254.9 is dearer than the dearest 98 in the metro today, which is 236.9. Filling a diesel right now costs more than filling with the priciest premium unleaded on the map.
Why it’s not an error
Diesel doesn’t play the petrol game. Regular and premium unleaded ride the Brisbane discount cycle — they saw-tooth up and down every week or two. Diesel doesn’t. It tracks the wholesale price and freight demand, and lately that’s been grinding up in a straight line, not cycling. So there’s no “cheap week” coming round for diesel the way there is for 91.
I’ve written the two companion pieces if you want the detail: why the diesel-over-petrol gap has widened and why diesel doesn’t follow the cycle. Short version: it’s real, and waiting for it to “come back down on a cycle” is waiting for something that doesn’t happen with diesel.
So what, for you
A petrol driver can time the cycle. A diesel driver can’t — the only lever you’ve got is which station. And that lever is worth a lot right now, because diesel is spread wide: cheapest today is 225.5, dearest is 260.9. So the cheapest diesel is about 29c under the median, and about 35c under the dear end. Same fuel, a $17 difference on a 50L fill.
That’s the whole play. You can’t wait it out, so don’t — just find the cheapest diesel near you today. The prices come straight off the Queensland Government feed, so the number on the map is the number at the pump: Pinly Fuel.
How we measure: Brisbane-metro medians from the QLD Government price feed, 24 Aug 2026, within about 30 km of the CBD. “Diesel” is the All Diesel family — the cheapest diesel-family price reported at each station — so it pools plain and premium diesel the way the app does. Grade coverage varies: fewer stations report 95 than diesel or 91, so its median carries a touch less certainty. A single day’s median moves with the cycle for the petrols; the diesel figure is a level, not a cyclic low. Your own suburb on your own day will differ by a few cents.