Natural gas vs. heating oil
Which costs less to run, natural gas or heating oil? Pick your state; the calculator uses this week's EIA prices and shows both fuels as dollars per million BTU of heat delivered.
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Prices and efficiencies used (edit to match your bill)
| Fuel and system | Price | Efficiency | BTU per unit |
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When the answer flips
If gas is available at your street, it is almost always cheaper than oil, and often by half. At $16 per thousand cubic feet in a 92% furnace, gas delivers a million BTU for about $17; oil at $3.70 in an 83% boiler is about $32. The gap is large enough that the conversion cost, typically $5,000 to $12,000 for the equipment plus the utility's connection fee, pays back in three to six years for a house burning 700 gallons.
The comparison flips only when gas is unusually expensive or oil unusually cheap. California's gas prices get close to oil parity; so did much of the country during the 2022 spike. Check the current numbers above.
What you give up: oil heats whether or not the gas main is working and lets you shop dealers, while gas is a utility monopoly with a regulated rate. What you gain: no deliveries, no tank, no cleanings, and a fuel the heat pump can share a thermostat with later.
Full method and sources on the methodology page. Compare every fuel at once in the main calculator.