Tables Comparing Current Home Heating Costs

2021 & Historic Prices per BTU for Oil, LP & Natural Gas, Electricity, Firewood

Note: these prices will vary by individual geographic area or market.

History of No. 2 Home Heating Oil Prices - residential prices to Sept. 2021

[Click to enlarge any image]

Source: U.S. Energy Administration, U.S. Weekly No. 2 Heating Oil Residential Price in dollars per gallon, retrieved 5 Feb 2015, and 21 Sept 2021, original source: http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=PET&s=W_EPD2F_PRS_NUS_DPG&f=W

History of LPG or Propane Prices in the U.S. - residential prices to Sept. 2021

[Click to enlarge any image]

Source: U.S. Energy Administration, U.S. Weekly U.S. Propane Residential Price in dollars per gallon, retrieved 5 Feb 2015 & 2021/09/21, original source: http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/LeafHandler.ashx?n=PET&s=W_EPLLPA_PRS_NUS_DPG&f=W

The US EIA table below illustrates the range of propane prices by U.S. State, as of March 2021

[Click to enlarge any image]

Source: U.S. EIA, retrieved 2021/09/21 original source: https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/pet_pri_wfr_a_EPLLPA_PRS_dpgal_w.htm

Percentages of U.S. Homes Using Different Heating Fuels

Currently in the U.S. about

• 49% of homes are heated by natural gas,
• 6% by heating oil or "fuel oil",
• 5% by LP gas or propane,
• 4% by electricity,
• 2% by wood and
• 1% by other means (such as heat pumps or solar heating).

- 2011 data - Source: Buildings Energy Data Book 2011, 2.1.1 Residential Primary Energy Consumption, by Year and Fuel Type (Quadrillion Btu and Percent of Total).

Increasing Home Heating Fuel Prices

By January 2012, the price of home heating oil had risen well above the price of natural gas as a heating fuel, though it remaind below the price of propane (LP gas). For homes in the Northeastern United States for the winter of 2011-2012, the New York Times reported that the average winter heating cost for a home would be a summarized in our list below.

The NY Times indicated that the gap between gas and oil prices was expected to continue to widen.[1]

• Propane gas: $2,723
• Heating oil: $2,383
• Electric heat: $1,337 [Note that this figure will vary widely by variation in area electricity rates]
• Natural gas: $951. [Note that natural gas is not available to homes located in rural and many other areas]

Typical Home Heating Fuel Prices

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, "Average household expenditures for all space-heating fuels are projected to be $1,137 this winter (October 1 to March 31), a 15-percent increase over the estimated $986 spent last winter.  The largest increases will be in households using heating oil and natural gas.

The projected increases primarily reflect higher prices, although colder weather than last winter will also contribute to higher fuel use in many areas. During 2008, the cost of natural gas and coal for electric utilities is projected to be 36 percent higher and 12 percent higher, respectively, than last year.

As electricity providers continue to pass along these increased costs, U.S. residential electricity prices are expected to grow by 6.2 percent this year and 9.4 percent in 2009.  Price increases are expected to be especially pronounced in the Middle and South Atlantic regions."

Tables Comparing Latest Home Heating Energy Costs in the U.S. for Oil, Gas, Wood, Electricity

Below beginning at Table 1 we give Comparisons of Current vs Previous Home Heating Costs per BTUh by Fuel Type in the United States. First let's look at some basic facts about heating fuel properties.

The heat content of a gallon of home heating oil, a cubic foot of natural gas, and a cubic foot of firewood are compared in Carson Dunlop's sketch.

To make sense of these numbers we also need to include an estimate of the relative costs of these fuels [see table below] - with the warning that energy costs vary widely by geographic area, using firewood is a bad idea in some areas where wood is not plentiful nor renewable, and energy content and efficiency of heating appliances can vary widely too.

Look at heating equipment state of tune, heating efficiency and building heat loss rates, not just fuel cost

The efficiency of delivery of heat into the living area of a building varies widely depending on the heating equipment and heat distribution system design.

If 50 % of the heat produced by a fuel we are using goes up the chimney rather than into our building, our heating efficiency is just 50%, and regardless of our fuel cost we are probably spending too much on heat. A heating furnace that is 85% efficient is delivering 85 cents of heat into the building for every dollar spent on heating fuel.

Some "heating" methods are so inefficient that they are not recommended. For example, attempting to heat an older home with an open fireplace is likely to draw so much fireplace combustion air into the building that the home operates at a net heat loss when operating the fireplace even though right in front of the fireplace we feel warm.

Have your heating system inspected, cleaned, and tuned. When servicing oil heating systems we often found that the efficiency of a dirty, poorly tuned oil boiler or furnace might be as low as 60% or even worse. But thorough cleaning and tuning of the same system would bring older equipment up to aroudn 78% efficient (a 30% reduction in heating costs) and on newer higher efficiency systems we could see efficiencies in the low 90% range.

Factors Considered in Calculating building Heating Cost

Back in 1971 Hank Spies (Small Homes Council)[2] pointed out that estimating the seasonal cost of heating fuel is complicated because actual building heating cost depends on a collection of variables besides just the cost of the fuel, including:

• The building heat loss rate
• Efficiency of the heating system in use
• Variations in the efficiency of the heating system in use as a function of outdoor or indoor conditions. See our discussion of heat pump operating efficiency & cost variables in note (7) to Table 4 below.[2]
• The building occupancy level, times, etc (people emit heat)
• Solar orientation of the building
• Usage of other heat-producing activities such as cooking, hot water making, appliances, even lighting
• Variations in fuel price that may occur as a function of the volume of fuel purchased

In comparing heating fuel costs Spies noted that we have to assume that we are comparing homes operating under the idential conditions. Where heating fuel cost varies as a function of the volume purchased, one must also use the average purchase price for that individual building - which can be tricky to know when preparing general tables comparing fuel costs.

See HEAT LOSS in BUILDINGS to consider the effects of building heat loss rate on home heating costs.

See HEATING COST SAVINGS METHODS for expert advice on how to significantly reduce your home heating costs.

Look at hidden heating costs not just heating efficiency and heating fuel costs

If changing from one heating fuel to another means you also have to install new heating equipment, fuel storage tanks, piping, heat distribution pipes or ducts, or perhaps build a chimney for a new woodstove, then be sure to consider the cost of those items when comparing heating fuel costs. In the 1970's we heated our home with "free" firewood from a state forest, but we had to buy a truck, chain saw, woodstove, and chimney as well.

Table 1 - Comparisons of Current vs Previous Home Heating Costs per BTUh by Fuel Type in the United States

Our calculations and formulas are shown below so that readers can plug in local fuel costs to calculate local cost per 1000 BTUs of energy for their building.

It's inaccurate to only compare heating fuel costs if you want to know how much it may cost to heat your building among alternative fuels.

Notes to the table above

Thanks to reader R.M. for technical critique on errors in decimal placing on costs of electricity and BTUs delivered by electric heat. January 2015

Heating Fuel Cost Data Sources

2012 home heating oil prices: New York State, NYSERDA, web search 02/24/2012, original source: http://www.nyserda.ny.gov/Page-Sections/Energy-Prices-Supplies-and-Weather-Data/Home-Heating-Oil/Average-Home-Heating-Oil-Prices.aspx

2012 Propane heating costs: U.S Energy Information Administration EIA, web search 02/24/2012, original source: http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/pet_pri_wfr_dcus_nus_w.htm

Gas and oil and wood prices from various sources listed at the end of this page, including the U.S. Energy Information Administration - October 2008 data.

Efficiency warning: this table does not (yet) reflect the differences in efficiency of various types of heating equipment, nor do we reflect the enormous differences among buildings insulation and draft proofing condition, nor differences in the set temperatures to which people adjust their thermostats.

[1] How do we calculate fuel cost per thousand BTUs: In the boxes of our table above, we note in smaller font the HC and UC values computed to assure that the scale is the same in both heat content and unit cost before calculating the cost per thousand BTUs in cents.

A BTU (British Thermal Unit) is a measure of heat energy defined as the quantity of heat that would be required to increase the temperature of one pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit.

Since we convert all of our fuel costs into cost per 1000 BTUs we can then make an "apples to apples" comparison among fuels.

See HEAT LOSS: HOW TO CALCULATE HEAT LOSS IN A BUILDING for more details.

Unit Cost (UC)__ x 100 = Heat Cost per 1000 BTUs
Heat Content (HC)

(We multiply (UC / HC) x 100 to express our final number in "cents" per 1000 BTUs just for ease of reading.)

Example - heating oil cost per 1000 BTUs: for No. 2 home heating oil, to obtain the heating oil cost per thousand BTUs, we divide 3.71 (cost per gallon) by 140 (thousands of BTUs in a gallon).    (3.71 / 140) x 100 = 2.65 cents per 1000 BTUs of oil heat

Example - propane cost per 1000 BTUs:

Example - natural gas cost per 1000 BTUs:

Example - electricty cost per 1000 BTUs: for Electric heat, to obtain the electricity cost per thousand BTUs, we divide .11 (cost per KWH) by 3.413 (thousands of BTUs in one KWH). Incidentally, FYI the number of KWH needed to provide 1000 BTUs of electric heat = 1 / 3.413 or 0.29 KWH.     (0.11 / 3.413) x 100 = 3.22 cents per 1000 BTUs of electric heat

Contact Us by email to suggest content additions or corrections to this table comparing building heating fuel costs.

Table 2 - 1982 Heating Fuel Cost per BTU

Heating costs became a great concern to Americans during the 1973 oil embargo when home heating oil costs soared from 1972 prices of $ 0.20 per gallon to a new high of $1.73 a gallon in 1973. Homeowners rushed to find alternative ways to keep warm. S

ome people tried heating with wood (the author); portable kerosene heaters became popular (and very dangerous when not properly used, leading to fires and deaths).

Coal stoves, and solar energy saw renewed interest. About a decade later in 1982 debate continued among energy suppliers about whose fuel was most cost-efficient. Oil heating companies argued that electricity was the most costly way to heat a home; electric companies rebutted that heat pumps were efficient.

Coal and woodstoves improved in energy efficiency and ease of use. In the Hudson Valley area of New York State coal usage increased at one coal dealer from 40 customers and 1000 tons in 1980 to 600 customers and 3000 tons of coal in 1982.

Tables 2 and 3 below provide comparable heating cost data for 1982. In 1982 we suggested and currently in 2008 we still recommend that people wanting to save on home heating costs start by making their home properly insulated and sealed against drafts.

1. Poughkeepsie Journal, 11/28/1982

Table 3 - Comparison of the Cost of Heating Fuels with Efficiency of the Heating Devices that Use Them

The basic cost of heating fuel per BTU is not enough data to determine the most cost efficient way to heat a home because even with a lower-cost fuel in hand, if the efficiency of the heating equipment is low you may be sending a high portion, up to 50%, of your heating fuel dollars up the chimney instead of into the building.

For example, because an indoor kerosene heater requires extra combustion air to avoid potentially fatal carbon monoxide hazards, some folks tried increasing the safety of their heater by leaving a window open.

But drawing more cold air into the building can result in a net increase in heating cost. (Portable kerosene heaters may be both unsafe and illegal for indoor heating use - check with your local fire officials and building officials.)

1. These efficiency factors were calculated as the percentage of energy extracted from the fuel (compared with the amount of energy in the fuel itself).

If a heating appliance were 100% efficient, 100% of the heat energy in a given unit of heating fuel would be extracted by the heater and delivered to the heat distribution system (hot water baseboards, radiators, warm air supply ducts, electric heating baseboards). What the table and data also do not reflect are efficiency losses in the heating distribution system itself, such as leaky air ducts or improperly routed hot water heating pipes. -- DF.

2. This data is for un-vented kerosene heaters (a safety concern).

3. Central Hudson Gas and Electric estimate, 11/28/1982

Table 4 - Other Fuel Cost Factors that should be Weighed When Comparing Home Heating Costs

In addition to comparing the current cost per BTU of heating fuels in your area (Table 1), and comparing the relative efficiencies with which your heater converts the BTUs to heat delivered into the building (Table 3), we also need to consider other costs associated with each fuel including those listed below:

Notes to Table 4: General comment: be sure that your home has working smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors regardless of choice of heating fuels.

(1) Delivery cost is normally included in the price for this fuel.

(2) Delivery cost may be included in the price for firewood; variation in actual amount of BTUS delivered varies significantly depending on the species and dryness of the firewood and the tightness of stacking of the cord or face cord that is delivered.

(3) Maintenance must include daily stove cleaning and removal/disposal of ash and slag waste

(4) Annual inspection and maintenance recommended for safety; gas fired equipment generally requires less cleaning and adjustment than oil-fired equipment; improperly operating equipment or a damaged or blocked chimney is dangerous and can produce carbon monoxide hazards.

(5) Annual maintenance is necessary; failure to maintain oil fired equipment is likely to result in significantly lowered heater efficiency, increased heating cost, and possible loss of heat.

(6) We have not considered environmental cost associated with pollutants depending on the utility company's choice of fuels to be consumed at the power generating plant, such as high vs low sulphur content coal, acid rain, cost of nuclear site protection, disposal of nuclear waste, nor of plant replacement costs which will affect current or future utility company rates

(7) Heat Pump operating cost variables & COP Calculations:

Where a heat pump is used to provide part of the building's heat requirements, the efficiency of the air-to-air heat pump will be less at lower temperatures. Spies (1971, 1977) [2] notes that heat pump efficiency when outdoorr air is warm is quite different from at cold temperatures, making its use of electricity more complex.

Details about heat pump COP and operating efficiency variation are

at HEAT PUMP COP.

Coal Price Details

Below: Average weekly coal spot price per mmBTU. Note that the BTU content of coal varies depending on its mining source.

- Retrieved2021/09/212 original source: US EIA, https://www.eia.gov/coal/markets/#tabs-prices-2

Below: Average weekly coal spot price per short ton

Additional heating cost factors

• Building air leaks and insulation defects: we assume that this value is constant when comparing heating fuel costs.
• Installation cost for the heating equipment, varies by type of equipment and geographic area
• Heating equipment life expectancy or durability of different types of heating equipment; longer-lived equipment provides a longer payback period before it has to be replaced. Heater life is also affected by the level of maintenance it receives. For example, unattended leaks on a heating boiler can destroy it.
• Heating distribution system efficiency differences, which vary by type of distribution (hot water, warm air, electric baseboard) and also by the condition of the system (leaks in a hot air duct, hot water heating pipes routed through cold spaces).
• Heating fuel availability (and price) varies by type of fuel and geographic area;
• Heating fuel source choice alternatives among suppliers which varies by fuel and geographic area, i.e. competition
• Renewable vs non-renewable energy sources;
• Solar and Wind energy alternatives and payback time for purchasing & installing such new equipment;
• Heating system comfort: opinions vary among occupants who may prefer hot water heat, steam heat, warm air heat, radiant heat, etc. While this is a subjective judgment, differences in opinion will indirectly impact heating cost.
  
  For example if someone feels uncomfortable with a particular type of heating system and fuel they may set their thermostat higher in compensation, thus using more energy than they might with a different delivery system.
  
  Evenness of building temperature and thus comfort can vary by heating system type as well as by how the heating system is used (for example keeping a warm air furnace blower fan on continuously or running it intermittently).

A Concise History of changes in estimates of U.S. Oil & Gas Reserves

Increasing Estimates of U.S. Oil & Natural Gas Reserves

Exxon CEO Rex Wilson (quoted in Newsweek Magazine, October 2010), provided a nicely succinct history of estimates of United States oil and natural gas reserves and usage from 1979 to the present. Here are some of the facts listed by Mr. Wilson, who said that he expects U.S. reliance on oil as well as an adequate supply of oil to continue for some time yet:

• 80% of worlds energy is currently drawn from oil, natural gas, or, coal
• 1879 the first commercial light bulb was sold, 75% of energy produced in the U.S. was from burning wood
• 1880's coal surpassed timber
• 1950's oil surpassed coal - also
  
  see AGE of HEATERS, BOILERS, FURNACES
• 1914 bureau of mines said oil reserves would be gone by 1924
• 1939 interior Dept said oil reserves would last 13 years to 1952
• 1951 interior said world had 13 years of proven reserves
• 1970 per oven reserves estimated at 62 billion
• 1977 Jimmy carter said proven oil reserves would be gone by 1990
• 2006 the U.S. had pumped 767 billion barrels and had proven reserves of 1.2 trillion barrels of oil
• 2010 world consumption has used 3 times the proven reserves of 1977
• 2010 rock shale in TX, LA, MT,ND, NY, PA and other eastern states may contain 2000 trillion cu ft of natural gas
• Modern city of 1 million uses 6 million btus of energy per second, 1000 gallons of oil per minute,
• 2019 U.S. Oil Reserves: At 47.1 billion barrels, U.S. proved reserves of oil in 2019 remain at the record level set in 2018. - Source: U.S. EIA, retrieved 2021/09/21 original source: https://www.eia.gov/naturalgas/crudeoilreserves/
• 2019 U.S. Gas Reserves: Proved reserves of natural gas decreased 1.9%, from 504.5 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) at year-end 2018 to 494.9 Tcf at year-end 2019 (Table 10).
  This is the first annual decrease in proved reserves of natural gas in the United States since 2015, but reserves remain at their 2nd highest level ever. - source: U.S. EIA, Op. Cit.

Significantly, Mr. Wilson also pointed out that as of 2010,

• 1.5 billion people still have no electricity
• 2.5 billion people burn wood, dung or other biomass
• That combustion is harmful to health and air quality [but of course so is burning coal, and in some conditions other fuels - Ed.]
• By 2035 china and India will have pushed energy demand 35% above 2005
• By 2035 economies of developed nations will be 50% larger than 2005 but energy demand will be slightly lower due to efficiencies driven by higher prices

Decreasing Estimates of Some U.S. Oil & Natural Gas Reserves

Here is a different view of oil and gas reserves, showing downwards, not upwards estimates, dramatically different from the picture one might take from Mr. Wilson's comments above:

According to a very brief news report appearing in The New York Times, 27 October 2010, in turn reporting from AP,

“the U.S. Geological Survey says that the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska contains less than one-tenth of the amount of oil it previously estimated... the new estimate is 896 million barrels compared with the ... 2002 ... estimate of 10.6 billion barrels The agency ... cut ... estimates of natural gas ... to 53 trillion cu. ft. from 61 trillion cu. ft.” (AP)

...

Reader Q&A - also see RECOMMENDED ARTICLES & FAQs

On 2021/09/21 by Moderator & Anon: Updating Current Building Energy Costs

Re-posted from private email:

I was happy to come across your site when researching price comparison numbers for various heating sources. However, your data is too old to be of use. I wonder if you have current data on costs? Thank you in advance for your help on this. - Anonymous

Editor's Note: the correspondent works with a company who aids commercial and multi-family residential Con Edison customers save energy and money through the Con Edison rebate programs

Moderator reply:

I'd be glad to help but your question is a bit too broad for me. Costs of what: equipment, methods, fuels, technologies, energy sources?

Reader follow-up:

Sorry about that. Basically, cost to heat/ac via electric (ductless mini-splits) versus conventional methods—gas, electric, oil. Thank you!

Moderator reply: OPINION on finding true building energy costs needs to go beyond cost per BTU of fuel

We need to separate heating and cooling, and to consider the location of the property; for example, heat pumps can make very efficient use of electricity for both heating and cooling except in very cold climates (of which soon we won't have many), but electricity rates vary enormously by country and e.g. for the U.S., by state.

So in some States and provinces oil remains a dominant fuel (Northeast) while in others gas fuel is so inexpensive it's the dominant fuel for heating. So while I agree that my old article on this is obsolete in specific numbers, to make a meaningful statement that isn't wild arm-waving IMO we need to get down to specifics. 

To be more accurate and complete we'd should include building efficiency.

Where a building is old and leaky we'd opt for the cheapest fuel or energy source, but where we've already spent on making a building highly energy efficient, with insulation, air tightness, low-E glass, optimizing solar gain (or avoiding it), etc., we might opt for an entirely different energy source, e.g. going for an inexpensive to install and maintain electric heat system in an area of high electric rates but in a building that uses almost no electricity because of its construction. 

Our (yours & mine) analysis, and IMO that of some other consultants in your business, may be missing amortization of fixed costs over the life of a building as a component of energy cost (or savings).

Eg. a friend spent significantly on a gut renovation of a 1940s home in upstate NY, making it well-insulated and air tight, installed a tiny gas-fueled boiler for heating, and a big solar panel farm for electricial energy; their monthly utility bills are miniscule.

When we amortize the cost of the rebuild (which of course has other benefits and reasons) or some percentage of that rebuild ascribed to saving energy, the owners won't recoup their investment over their remaining life.

They know this and made their decisions as a matter of principle: admirable but not available to many homeowners of less means. 

On 2019-07-01 by mod)

Lloyd

***IF*** your steam heat system is a TWO PIPE system - two pipes come to each radiator, one bringing steam and the other returning condensate to the boiler -
THEN
You can convert to forced hot water heat using any hydronic boiler to make the hot water; you'll need to add one or more circulators and to remove and plug steam vents and possibly other traps and controls.

IF your steam heat is a one pipe system - steam rises up through and condensate returns thorugh a single common pipe, then converting is more cost and trouble as you'd need to add hot water piping.

On 2019-06-29 by Lloyd Conaway

The city is shutting off steam heat and we have to put our own heating system in. Can we use electric furnace water system using the baseboard heaters we have now for the steam? The house is a 1 story 3 bedroom home. I'm thinking a 3600 btu heater may do it?
Thank you for any help.
E-Mail: LCECIL02@YAHOO.COM..
Lloyd..

On 2019-02-09 by (mod)

Heating efficiency if you are measuring cost per BTU is a very risky measure in the factors such as building heat loss or insulation May swamp any decision that you make simply based on fuel. Similarly heating efficiency needs to be adjusted for the cost trouble and probability of actually performing required maintenance. What I mean to say is that the condition and maintenance of the heating Appliance itself in the heat delivery system probably dominate the heating cost.

On 2018-12-16 by Frank Robison

This website has good charts but needs to be updated. i want to find heating system efficiencies by fuel types for residential and the unit costs. 121518. thanks and Merry Christmas!

...

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• HEATING COST FUEL & BTU COST TABLES - Comparison of Current Energy Costs: Heating Oil, Natural Gas, Firewood for a table comparing the cost per BTU of different heating fuel

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