NYMEX heating oil (ultra-low-sulfur diesel, ticker HO) is the benchmark futures contract for the middle of the barrel — home heating oil, diesel and jet-adjacent distillates — quoted in dollars per gallon for New York Harbor delivery. Because heating oil and on-road diesel are nearly the same product, HO is also the market's proxy for diesel prices.
As of the 2026-08-18 close, Heating Oil traded at 4.318 USD / gal. The chart above overlays the live intraday quote during market hours.
Over the last 52 weeks, Heating Oil has traded between a low of 2.057 and a high of 4.608 USD / gal (daily closing prices).
Heating Oil is up 104.2% year-to-date in 2026, moving from 2.115 at the start of the year to 4.318 USD / gal as of 2026-08-18.
NYMEX heating oil (ultra-low-sulfur diesel, ticker HO) is the benchmark futures contract for the middle of the barrel — home heating oil, diesel and jet-adjacent distillates — quoted in dollars per gallon for New York Harbor delivery. Because heating oil and on-road diesel are nearly the same product, HO is also the market's proxy for diesel prices.
Distillate demand peaks in the cold months — especially in the US Northeast, the world's largest heating-oil market. Refiners build distillate stocks in autumn; a colder-than-normal winter or low inventories going into the season pushes prices up quickly.
Essentially yes — both are middle-distillate fuels. On-road diesel must meet ultra-low-sulfur specs and carries road taxes; heating oil sold for homes is dyed to mark it as untaxed. The NYMEX HO contract itself now specifies ultra-low-sulfur diesel.