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

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

Rockingham County Residential Primary Home Heating Fuel (in Number 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 losing popularity in Rockingham. In the 11 years since 2014, the number of families using fuel oil declined from 230,361 to 212,831, a 8% drop.

Propane vs. Natural Gas use for home heating in Rockingham

Between 2014 and today, the number of houses using propane as the primary space heating fuel grew from 76,212 to 121,512, a 59% change. Comparing 2014 and today, the number of homes using natural gas as the primary space heating fuel jumped from 100,601 to 124,974, a 24% change.

Electricity use for home heating in Rockingham

Electric heat pump systems for home heating are more popular in Rockingham. Since 2014, the number of homes heating with electricity jumped from 46,268 to 70,926, a 53% change.

Adoption of solar home heating systems in Rockingham

Solar is the most environmentally friendly of all 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 (similar to a hot water heater) in the basement. Currently, 2,474 homes in Rockingham are heated with active solar arrays. This is a 800% gain from 2014, when 275 homes had 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 number two heating oil use changes each year primarily depending on how cold each winter is. As the temperature outside drops, homes’ furnaces need to burn more and more 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 homes heating with oil, picking which of the 62 heating oil companies that serve Rockingham plays a big role in determining how much money is spent on heating each winter.

Full Service Oil Companies: Homeowners who want 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 customers annual contracts which consist of a combined package of both automatic heating oil delivery and HVAC 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 homeowner 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 homeowners who are looking to save money. With discount oil companies, in return for better prices, you monitor the 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 Oil Company Fast Facts: Oil Companies Serving Rockingham: 62 companies .
Average Number of Rockingham Houses Served per Number Two Heating Oil company : 3433

Rockingham Heating Oil Delivery Overview

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

987 Rockingham Heating Oil Companies You Can Trust

With 199,461,865 gallons of fuel oil delivered to Rockingham homeowners the last heating season, the Rockingham community depends on its 987 oil companies when temperatures dip. Oil delivery is a two step process: 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 area.