Propane vs. Natural Gas vs. Heating Oil: Burlington Home Heating Fuel Comparison
Households have a choice of fuels to choose from when it comes to heating. Natural Gas is the preferred choice in Burlington, used by 2,627,206 or 74% of homeowners. The next most popular primary heating fuel for Burlington residents is Electricity, used by 617,773 homes (17%). The remaining homes are heated with Heating Oil (5%), Propane (2%), Other (0.4%), and Solar (0.3%).
Burlington County Residential Primary Home Heating Fuel (No. of Households)
| Year | Natural Gas | Propane | Electricity | Oil | Wood | Solar | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2,627,206 | 70,406 | 617,773 | 185,324 | 10,688 | 11,798 | 14,006 |
| 2024 | 2,623,428 | 66,233 | 592,186 | 198,050 | 10,223 | 10,926 | 13,381 |
| 2023 | 2,552,593 | 95,605 | 606,537 | 215,314 | 10,749 | 9,388 | 20,755 |
| 2022 | 2,560,329 | 89,511 | 568,299 | 231,690 | 10,054 | 7,925 | 17,145 |
| 2021 | 2,545,038 | 87,258 | 555,363 | 240,765 | 9,820 | 7,643 | 19,506 |
| 2020 | 2,509,666 | 79,338 | 501,738 | 241,254 | 10,094 | 6,464 | 16,414 |
| 2019 | 2,474,295 | 71,419 | 448,114 | 241,742 | 10,368 | 5,284 | 13,323 |
| 2018 | 2,435,183 | 67,930 | 437,888 | 258,889 | 12,069 | 4,626 | 14,313 |
| 2017 | 2,425,008 | 62,490 | 415,119 | 271,265 | 11,994 | 4,801 | 12,938 |
| 2016 | 2,389,530 | 59,916 | 423,650 | 271,179 | 13,466 | 3,212 | 14,924 |
| 2015 | 2,398,744 | 61,082 | 385,792 | 299,222 | 14,398 | 1,781 | 12,721 |
| 2014 | 2,393,423 | 62,396 | 384,329 | 309,236 | 14,471 | 1,748 | 13,957 |
| 2013 | 2,354,824 | 60,943 | 388,226 | 329,733 | 17,421 | 1,270 | 10,710 |
| 2012 | 2,368,222 | 60,990 | 377,997 | 356,378 | 13,974 | 1,002 | 10,889 |
| 2011 | 2,342,608 | 58,315 | 360,855 | 376,568 | 11,869 | 332 | 7,917 |
| 2010 | 2,344,455 | 63,241 | 343,112 | 392,540 | 11,886 | 325 | 8,439 |
Heating Oil (Fuel Oil) Use in Burlington
Heating oil has become losing popularity in Burlington. In the 10 years since 2015, the number of households using oil dropped from 299,222 to 185,324, a 38% drop.
Propane vs. Natural Gas use for home heating in Burlington
Between 2015 and today, the number of homes using propane as the primary space heating fuel ramped up from 61,082 to 70,406, a 15% change. Comparing 2015 and today, the number of homes using natural gas as the primary space heating fuel jumped from 2,398,744 to 2,627,206, a 10% change.
Electricity use for home heating in Burlington
Electric heat pump systems for home heating are more prevalent in Burlington. Since 2015, the number of homes heating with electricity ramped up from 385,792 to 617,773, a 60% change.
Adoption of solar home heating systems in Burlington
The most eco-friendly heating option is solar. 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. Today, 11,798 homes in Burlington are heated with active solar arrays. This is a 562% gain from 2015, when 1,781 homes incorporated active solar heating.
Burlington County Heating Oil Trends
Last year, Burlington County homeowners purchased a total of 11 million gallons of heating oil.
Short Term Trends
Burlington’s overall oil use fluctuates each year depending on winter temperatures. As the temperature outside gets colder, homes’ furnaces need to burn increasing amounts of heating oil to keep the house warm inside. Last winter, the average outside temperature in Burlington was 33.5°F, which was 4.7°F colder than the prior winter's average outside temperature.
Burlington County Average Winter Temperature
| Heating Season | Average Temperature |
|---|---|
| 2024 - 2025 | 33.5° F |
| 2023 - 2024 | 38.2° F |
Burlington County Homeowner’s Guide to Selecting an Oil Company
For Burlington residences heating with fuel oil, selecting which of the 13 heating oil companies that serve Burlington can drastically impact the cost of home heating.
Full Service Oil Companies: Homeowners who can afford a “set-it-and-forget-it” heating system select one of the 17 “full-service” oil companies that serve Burlington. Full service companies such as PFO Heating & Air Conditioning or PFO Heating & Air Conditioning offer homeowners annual contracts which consist of a combined package of both automatic number two heating oil delivery and boiler repair. With an automatic heating oil delivery contract, the company tracks your home’s fuel 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 referred to as “COD Fuel” or “Cash Heating Oil” companies, discount oil companies are for clients who are looking to save money. With discount oil companies, in exchange for lower prices, you monitor the fuel oil level in your tank, and you place an oil order when you're running low. Some of the 2 Burlington cash heating oil companies serving Burlington include Bottom Dollar Heating Oil and Lineman Management Inc.
Burlington Fuel Oil Company Statistics: Fuel oil Companies Serving Burlington: 13 companies .
Average Number of Burlington Homes Served per Heating Oil company : 14256
Burlington Heating Oil Delivery Overview
185,324 houses in Burlington heat their homes with heating oil. This makes oil delivery essential, especially when Burlington temperatures drop as low as 28.8° F each winter. 5.2% of Burlington homes are reliant on number two heating oil delivery each winter.
2.6% of Burlington County Households Rely On Heating Oil Delivery Each Winter
| Burlington County Households | Burlington County Heating Oil Households |
|---|---|
| 7.1M | 185,324 |
212 Burlington Oil Companies Serving The Community
With 169,797,916 gallons of number two heating oil delivered to Burlington families the last heating season, the Burlington community depends on its 212 oil companies to keep warm throughout the winter. 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 Burlington, two of the closest terminals are Sunoco in Linden, NJ and Sunoco in Linden, NJ. Then, the truck delivers the number two heating oil to homes and businesses throughout Burlington and the surrounding area.