Propane vs. Natural Gas vs. Heating Oil: Rockingham Home Heating Fuel Comparison

Homeowners have a host of fuels that can be used when it comes to heating. Heating Oil is the most popular choice in Rockingham, used by 212,831 or 37% of homeowners. The next most popular primary heating fuel for Rockingham households is Natural Gas, used by 124,974 homes (22%). The other homes are heated with Propane (21%), Electricity (12%), Wood (6%), and Other (2%).

Rockingham County Residential Primary Home Heating Fuel (No. of Households)

Year	Natural Gas	Propane	Electricity	Oil	Wood	Solar	Other
2025	124,974	121,512	70,926	212,831	32,268	2,474	11,835
2024	126,691	116,162	68,090	211,416	29,746	2,147	11,751
2023	118,533	112,909	64,436	221,554	35,424	1,544	10,170
2022	121,267	103,967	61,455	223,612	30,964	909	10,992
2021	121,966	102,208	58,765	218,724	30,381	890	10,002
2020	118,607	98,116	56,313	223,224	32,446	761	9,755
2019	115,248	94,024	53,861	227,725	34,512	632	9,508
2018	113,986	86,695	50,260	232,152	35,632	411	8,224
2017	111,070	90,341	47,927	227,681	37,912	575	8,850
2016	110,428	81,949	48,677	229,187	35,047	666	9,880
2015	103,292	78,670	46,002	232,674	42,472	488	10,268
2014	100,601	76,212	46,268	230,361	49,555	275	10,068
2013	101,529	76,485	42,038	239,542	44,711	334	9,251
2012	104,858	72,091	39,257	245,324	43,948	593	7,870
2011	100,958	74,416	40,613	252,159	37,084	280	7,019
2010	100,857	70,863	41,909	253,772	40,272	85	4,752

Heating Oil (Fuel Oil) Use in Rockingham

Number two heating oil has become less popular in Rockingham. In the 10 years since 2015, the number of families using fuel oil dipped from 232,674 to 212,831, a 9% drop.

Propane vs. Natural Gas use for home heating in Rockingham

Between 2015 and today, the number of homes using propane as the primary space heating fuel ramped up from 78,670 to 121,512, a 54% change. Comparing 2015 and today, the number of homes using natural gas as the primary space heating fuel increased from 103,292 to 124,974, a 21% change.

Electricity use for home heating in Rockingham

Electric heat pump systems for home heating are more popular in Rockingham. Since 2015, the number of homes heating with electricity grew from 46,002 to 70,926, a 54% change.

Adoption of solar home heating systems in Rockingham

Out of all fuels, solar is the safest for the environment. With an “active” solar heating system, liquid is circulated between solar panels on a home’s roof and a heat energy storage tank (similar to a hot water heater) in the basement. Currently, 2,474 homes in Rockingham are heated with active solar arrays. This is a 407% gain from 2015, when 488 homes utilized active solar heating.

Rockingham County Heating Oil Trends

Last year, Rockingham County homeowners purchased a total of 52 million gallons of heating oil.

Short Term Trends

Rockingham’s overall fuel oil use changes yearly as winter conditions change. As the temperature outside dips, homes’ heating systems need to burn increasing amounts of fuel oil to maintain a constant interior temperature. Last winter, the average outside temperature in Rockingham was 24.1°F, which was 5.3°F colder than the prior winter's average outside temperature.

Rockingham County Average Winter Temperature

Heating Season	Average Temperature
2024 - 2025	24.1° F
2023 - 2024	29.4° F

Rockingham County Homeowner’s Guide to Selecting an Oil Company

For Rockingham families heating with fuel oil, picking which of the 63 heating oil companies that serve Rockingham makes a big difference.

Full Service Oil Companies: Homeowners who are willing to pay a premium for a “set-it-and-forget-it” heating system select one of the 119 “full-service” oil companies that serve Rockingham. Full service companies such as NiBROC Oil or Palmer Gas Co Inc offer households annual contracts which consist of a combined package of both automatic number two heating oil delivery and furnace repair. With an automatic fuel oil delivery contract, the company tracks your home’s number two heating oil consumption and makes deliveries when your tank is running low. The household does not need to monitor the level of the oil tank or place individual orders.

Discount Oil Companies: Also known by the names “COD Fuel” or “Cash Heating Oil” companies, discount oil companies are for families who are on a budget. With discount oil companies, in exchange for lower prices, you monitor the heating oil level in your tank, and you place an oil order either when the level runs low or just before a major snowstorm. A few of the 2 Rockingham cash heating oil companies serving Rockingham include Rockingham Oil LLC and Chapman Fuel.

Rockingham Number Two Heating Oil Company Statistics: Number two heating oil Companies Serving Rockingham: 63 companies .
Average Number of Rockingham Homes Served per Fuel Oil company : 3378

Rockingham Heating Oil Delivery Overview

212,831 homes in Rockingham heat their homes with heating oil. This makes oil delivery essential, especially when Rockingham temperatures drop as low as 16.9° F each winter. 36.9% of Rockingham houses are reliant on fuel oil delivery each winter.

18.4% of Rockingham County Households Rely On Heating Oil Delivery Each Winter

Rockingham County Households	Rockingham County Heating Oil Households
1.1M	212,831

1005 Rockingham Oil Companies Go The Distance

With 199,461,865 gallons of number two heating oil delivered to Rockingham households during this past winter, the Rockingham community depends on its 1005 oil companies to keep warm throughout the winter. Oil delivery has two parts to it: First, an oil truck picks up oil at the nearest bulk fuel terminal (also known as a “rack”). In the case of Rockingham, two of the closest terminals are Sprague in Newington, NH and Gulf in Chelsea, MA. Then, the truck delivers the number two heating oil to homes and businesses throughout Rockingham and the surrounding vicinity.