Cheapest way to heat, state by state
Price per gallon, per therm and per kWh can’t be compared directly. Here every fuel is converted to the cost of one million Btu of heat delivered into the house, after the efficiency of the furnace, boiler or heat pump.
- Natural gas is cheapest in 44 states
- Heat pump is cheapest in 5 states: Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Texas
U.S. averages
Cost per million Btu delivered, by state
Cheapest fuel in each row is marked. Italic figures use a regional or U.S. average because EIA does not survey that fuel in the state.
| Alabama | $18.21 | $19.36 | $46.70 | $52.95 | $48.39 | $486 |
| Arizona | $19.51 | $18.01 | $35.12 | $52.95 | $45.02 | $346 |
| Arkansas | $22.05 | $16.11 | $31.86 | $52.95 | $40.27 | $547 |
| California | $24.27 | $38.19 | $35.12 | $52.95 | $95.49 | $683 |
| Colorado | $11.60 | $19.70 | $30.51 | $52.95 | $49.24 | $818 |
| Connecticut | $18.74 | $32.20 | $55.51 | $52.24 | $80.51 | $1,096 |
| Delaware | $18.01 | $21.08 | $48.99 | $54.66 | $52.70 | $807 |
| District of Columbia | $17.30 | $29.14 | $46.81 | $53.64 | $72.86 | $790 |
| Florida | $24.50 | $17.96 | $63.96 | $50.58 | $44.90 | $116 |
| Georgia | $17.66 | $18.15 | $42.18 | $50.58 | $45.37 | $496 |
| Idaho | $7.57 | $15.26 | $34.55 | $52.95 | $38.16 | $520 |
| Illinois | $11.16 | $22.54 | $25.06 | $52.85 | $56.36 | $681 |
| Indiana | $11.58 | $19.98 | $33.67 | $55.23 | $49.94 | $651 |
| Iowa | $10.88 | $17.06 | $22.46 | $50.04 | $42.64 | $742 |
| Kansas | $14.49 | $17.89 | $27.02 | $52.85 | $44.72 | $707 |
| Kentucky | $14.88 | $16.65 | $36.48 | $49.88 | $41.62 | $654 |
| Louisiana | $15.96 | $15.56 | $38.95 | $52.95 | $38.89 | $257 |
| Maine | $19.26 | $35.44 | $47.33 | $51.31 | $88.60 | $1,495 |
| Maryland | $16.61 | $24.98 | $49.64 | $54.58 | $62.46 | $758 |
| Massachusetts | $27.49 | $35.39 | $47.82 | $53.12 | $88.48 | $1,686 |
| Michigan | $11.35 | $25.47 | $31.62 | $52.61 | $63.69 | $766 |
| Minnesota | $11.66 | $19.27 | $26.37 | $50.52 | $48.18 | $995 |
| Mississippi | $15.81 | $17.66 | $40.51 | $52.95 | $44.14 | $378 |
| Missouri | $15.98 | $16.74 | $28.74 | $52.85 | $41.85 | $796 |
| Montana | $9.37 | $16.57 | $28.03 | $52.95 | $41.41 | $801 |
| Nebraska | $11.88 | $15.15 | $23.48 | $48.62 | $37.87 | $746 |
| Nevada | $10.60 | $15.66 | $35.12 | $52.95 | $39.16 | $366 |
| New Hampshire | $20.65 | $31.55 | $50.22 | $51.54 | $78.87 | $1,538 |
| New Jersey | $15.26 | $28.24 | $52.71 | $54.20 | $70.60 | $789 |
| New Mexico | $9.20 | $17.98 | $38.95 | $52.95 | $44.96 | $411 |
| New York | $18.04 | $34.30 | $48.81 | $54.71 | $85.76 | $1,082 |
| North Carolina | $16.90 | $17.51 | $46.80 | $49.62 | $43.79 | $568 |
| North Dakota | $9.34 | $14.61 | $22.45 | $52.85 | $36.52 | $858 |
| Ohio | $13.03 | $22.05 | $34.73 | $54.41 | $55.13 | $741 |
| Oklahoma | $15.29 | $16.19 | $30.66 | $52.85 | $40.47 | $541 |
| Oregon | $17.60 | $18.12 | $35.12 | $52.95 | $45.31 | $927 |
| Pennsylvania | $15.73 | $24.77 | $41.28 | $51.37 | $61.93 | $897 |
| Rhode Island | $22.51 | $34.06 | $52.95 | $54.33 | $85.14 | $1,297 |
| South Carolina | $16.44 | $18.64 | $47.59 | $50.58 | $46.60 | $425 |
| South Dakota | $10.56 | $17.09 | $25.10 | $52.85 | $42.73 | $806 |
| Tennessee | $13.18 | $16.18 | $42.16 | $52.85 | $40.45 | $495 |
| Texas | $20.91 | $18.79 | $40.91 | $52.95 | $46.98 | $342 |
| Utah | $11.67 | $15.46 | $31.71 | $52.95 | $38.66 | $814 |
| Vermont | $17.82 | $28.05 | $50.56 | $51.77 | $70.13 | $1,436 |
| Virginia | $17.70 | $19.87 | $48.82 | $51.31 | $49.68 | $754 |
| Washington | $15.91 | $16.91 | $35.12 | $52.95 | $42.26 | $893 |
| West Virginia | $14.21 | $18.26 | $47.59 | $50.58 | $45.66 | $720 |
| Wisconsin | $12.34 | $22.33 | $25.82 | $52.16 | $55.83 | $929 |
| Wyoming | $11.60 | $16.42 | $30.58 | $52.95 | $41.06 | $954 |
Alaska and Hawaii are left out of the table: NOAA’s statewide degree-day series does not cover them. Their pages still show the per-Btu comparison.