Homeowners have a variety of home heating fuels to choose from. Natural gas is the most popular choice in New York, used by 4,165,386 or 60.88% of homes. The 2nd most popular choice for New York homeowners is heating oil, used by 1,283,110 homes (18.75%). The remaining homes are heated with electricity (911,371), propane (273,665), no fuel (122,306), and other fuels (170,138).
New York Primary Home Heating Fuel Popularity by Number of Households
Fuel | New York Households | % of Households |
---|---|---|
Natural Gas | 4.1M | 60.88% |
Heating Oil | 1.2M | 18.75% |
Electricity | 911,371 | 13.32% |
Propane | 273,665 | 4.00% |
No Fuel | 122,306 | 1.79% |
Other Fuels | 86,892 | 1.27% |
Wood | 66,960 | 0.98% |
Coal | 8,339 | 0.12% |
Solar | 7,947 | 0.12% |
Natural gas (60.88)
Heating oil (18.75)
Electricity (13.32)
Propane (4.00)
No fuel (1.79)
Other fuels (1.27)
Wood (0.98)
Coal (0.12)
Solar (0.12)
Heating oil has become less popular in New York. In the 9 years since 2013, the number of heating oil homes fell from 1,871,296 to 1,283,110, a 31.43% drop.
New York Heating Oil Households (2011 - 2022)
Year | Heating Oil Households |
---|---|
2011 | 2.0M |
2012 | 1.9M |
2013 | 1.8M |
2014 | 1.7M |
2015 | 1.7M |
2016 | 1.6M |
2017 | 1.5M |
2018 | 1.4M |
2019 | 1.4M |
2020 | 1.3M |
2021 | 1.3M |
2022 | 1.2M |
Between 2013 and today, the number of homes using propane as the primary space heating fuel rose from 158,883 to 273,665.
Between 2013 and today, the number of homes using natural gas as the primary space heating fuel rose from 3,591,570 to 4,165,386.
Electric space heating systems are becoming more popular in New York. Since 2013, the number of homes heating with electricity rose from 615,968 to 911,371, a 47.96% increase.
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, 7,947 homes in New York are heated with active solar arrays. This is a 323.39% increase from 2013, when only 1,877 homes had installed active solar heating.