US Trends

where does the us get its oil

The U.S. gets most of its oil from inside the United States itself and from a small group of close trading partners, especially Canada and Mexico.

Quick Scoop: Where the U.S. Gets Its Oil

  • The U.S. is now one of the world’s largest oil producers and supplies a big share of its own needs from domestic wells.
  • The biggest foreign source by far is Canada , followed by Mexico and a smaller share from countries like Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Brazil, and others.
  • Imports from the broader Middle East (Persian Gulf countries) are much lower as a percentage than many people assume.

1. First: A Lot Is “Home‑Grown”

The U.S. produces oil in more than 30 states, but a handful of them dominate.

Key producing states include:

  • Texas (by far the largest share)
  • New Mexico
  • North Dakota
  • Oklahoma
  • Colorado

In recent years, about 60% of the crude oil that U.S. refineries run comes from U.S. oil fields , thanks to shale and tight oil in places like the Permian Basin (Texas/New Mexico) and the Bakken (North Dakota).

2. Main Foreign Suppliers (Imports)

Even though the U.S. produces a lot, it still imports oil because refineries are built to handle different types of crude and need specific blends.

Top foreign sources in recent data:

  • Canada – By far the largest supplier (roughly half or more of total petroleum imports in recent years).
  • Mexico – A significant neighbor supplier.
  • Saudi Arabia – The largest Middle Eastern source, but much smaller than Canada.
  • Iraq and Brazil – Additional notable suppliers.

Middle Eastern/OPEC barrels are now a minority of total U.S. imports compared with past decades.

Simple view in words

Think of U.S. oil supply as:

  • A big domestic base (U.S. wells and offshore production), plus
  • A huge chunk from Canada ,
  • A moderate share from Mexico ,
  • Smaller but still important amounts from countries like Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Brazil.

3. Why Import If We Produce So Much?

Refineries are like specialized factories: some are tuned for heavy, sour crude; others for light, sweet crude.

  • The U.S. produces a lot of light oil.
  • Many refineries were historically built to run heavier grades imported from Canada, Mexico, and others.

So the U.S. both exports some of its own crude and refined products and imports other types of crude that better match refinery configurations.

4. Has This Changed Over Time?

Yes, quite a bit:

  • In the 1990s–2000s, more oil came from places like Venezuela and the Persian Gulf.
  • Over the 2010s and 2020s, Canadian imports surged, Venezuelan imports collapsed, and overall dependence on OPEC declined.

Today, North America (U.S. + Canada + Mexico) dominates the U.S. oil supply picture.

5. Quick HTML Table for Clarity

Below is a simple, non-exact illustration of who supplies U.S. petroleum imports in recent years (shares rounded and simplified for clarity, but directionally accurate).

html

<table>
  <thead>
    <tr>
      <th>Source</th>
      <th>Role for U.S. Oil Supply</th>
    </tr>
  </thead>
  <tbody>
    <tr>
      <td>United States (domestic)</td>
      <td>Largest single source; around 60% of crude run in U.S. refineries comes from U.S. fields.[web:2][web:3][web:6]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Canada</td>
      <td>Main foreign supplier, providing roughly half of total U.S. petroleum imports in recent years.[web:5][web:7][web:9]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Mexico</td>
      <td>Important neighbor supplier and second‑tier source behind Canada.[web:3][web:7][web:9]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Saudi Arabia</td>
      <td>Largest Middle Eastern supplier, but much smaller share than Canada.[web:7][web:9]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Iraq</td>
      <td>Additional Middle Eastern source with a modest share of imports.[web:7][web:9]</td>
    </tr>
    <tr>
      <td>Brazil and others</td>
      <td>Smaller but meaningful suppliers that help diversify types of crude.[web:7][web:9]</td>
    </tr>
  </tbody>
</table>

TL;DR

  • Most U.S. oil: from U.S. wells + Canada + Mexico.
  • Middle East: still relevant, but no longer the dominant source of U.S. oil.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.