U.S. energy companies added one active drilling rig in the week ending April 24, bringing the combined oil and natural gas rig count to 544, energy services firm Baker Hughes (NYSE:BKR) reported on Friday. The increase marks the first week-over-week rise after three weeks of declines and represents the highest total since mid-April.
Despite the modest weekly uptick, the overall rig count remains below last year. Baker Hughes said the current total is down by 43 rigs, or about 7%, compared with the same week a year earlier. The weekly breakdown shows contrasting movements by commodity: oil-directed rigs decreased by three to 407, a level Baker Hughes identifies as the lowest since February, while gas-directed rigs rose by four to reach 129, the highest count since early April. Miscellaneous rigs were unchanged at eight.
The Baker Hughes rig count is published every week and is commonly used as an early barometer of prospective U.S. hydrocarbon output. The company’s data tracks the number of drilling rigs actively operating across the United States and is used by market participants to gauge near-term changes in production capacity.
Baker Hughes' report also highlights recent annual trends in U.S. rig activity. The combined oil and gas rig count declined by about 7% in 2025, fell 5% in 2024, and dropped 20% in 2023. In commentary accompanying these trends, lower U.S. oil prices have been cited as encouraging energy firms to prioritize boosting shareholder returns and reducing leverage over expanding drilling activity.
As a weekly dataset, the rig count offers a timely snapshot of drilling activity, but it is an early indicator rather than a direct measure of immediate production levels. This week's numbers show gas drilling momentum partially offsetting declines in oil-directed activity, while the year-on-year reduction in total rigs underscores an ongoing shift in operator capital allocation decisions.
Source note: Report based on the weekly rig count release from Baker Hughes.