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Propane vs. Natural Gas vs. Heating Oil: Anne Arundel County Home Heating Fuel Comparison

Homeowners have a variety of home heating fuels to choose from. Natural gas is the most popular choice in Anne Arundel County, used by 1,036,714 or 43.77% of homes. The 2nd most popular choice for Anne Arundel County homeowners is electricity, used by 1,018,912 homes (43.02%). The remaining homes are heated with heating oil (178,203), propane (89,874), wood (27,892), and other fuels (45,552).

Anne Arundel County Primary Home Heating Fuel Popularity by Number of Households

FuelAnne Arundel County Households % of Households
Natural Gas1.0M43.77%
Electricity1.0M43.02%
Heating Oil178,2037.52%
Propane89,8743.79%
Wood27,8921.18%
No Fuel18,9110.80%
Other Fuels16,0160.68%
Solar9,0980.38%
Coal1,5270.06%

Natural gas (43.77)

Electricity (43.02)

Heating oil (7.52)

Propane (3.79)

Wood (1.18)

No fuel (0.80)

Other fuels (0.68)

Solar (0.38)

Coal (0.06)

#2 Heating Oil (Fuel Oil) Use in Anne Arundel County

Heating oil has become less popular in Anne Arundel County. In the 4 years since 2018, the number of heating oil homes fell from 193,194 to 178,203, a 7.76% drop.

Anne Arundel County Heating Oil Households (2011 - 2022)

YearHeating Oil Households
2011246,964
2012239,039
2013228,525
2014222,212
2015212,903
2016207,818
2017201,205
2018193,194
2019186,662
2020179,727
2021176,310
2022178,203

Propane vs. Natural Gas use for home heating in Anne Arundel County

Between 2018 and today, the number of homes using propane as the primary space heating fuel rose from 75,006 to 89,874.

Between 2018 and today, the number of homes using natural gas as the primary space heating fuel rose from 967,637 to 1,036,714.

Electricity use for home heating in Anne Arundel County

Electric space heating systems are becoming more popular in Anne Arundel County. Since 2018, the number of homes heating with electricity rose from 901,382 to 1,018,912, a 13.04% increase.

Solar use for home heating in Anne Arundel County

Solar is the most environmentally friendly of all space heating fuels. With an “active” solar heating system, liquid is circulated between solar panels on a home’s roof and a heat energy storage tank in the basement.

Currently, 9,098 homes in Anne Arundel County are heated with active solar arrays. This is a 153.57% increase from 2018, when only 3,588 homes had installed active solar heating.