Households have a choice of fuels to choose from when it comes to heating. Natural Gas is the preferred choice in Essex, used by 2,627,206 or 74% of families. The next most popular primary heating fuel for Essex families is Electricity, used by 617,773 homes (17%). The other homes are heated with Heating Oil (5%), Propane (2%), Other (0.4%), and Solar (0.3%).

Essex County Residential Primary Home Heating Fuel (in Number 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 Essex

Number two heating oil has become less popular in Essex. In the 12 years since 2013, the number of families using fuel oil dropped from 329,733 to 185,324, a 44% drop.

Propane vs. Natural Gas use for home heating in Essex

Between 2013 and today, the number of houses using propane as the primary space heating fuel increased from 60,943 to 70,406, a 16% change. Comparing 2013 and today, the number of homes using natural gas as the primary space heating fuel increased from 2,354,824 to 2,627,206, a 12% change.

Electricity use for home heating in Essex

Electric heat pump systems for home heating are more popular in Essex. Since 2013, the number of homes heating with electricity shot up from 388,226 to 617,773, a 59% change.

Adoption of solar home heating systems in Essex

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. Now, 11,798 homes in Essex are heated with active solar arrays. This is a 829% gain from 2013, when 1,270 homes had active solar heating.

Essex County Heating Oil Trends

Last year, Essex County homeowners purchased a total of 10 million gallons of heating oil.

Short Term Trends

Essex’s overall heating oil consumption varies from year to year correlating with how cold it gets each winter. As the temperature outside gets colder, homes’ HVAC systems need to burn additional heating oil to maintain the temperature that the thermostat is set to. Last winter, the average outside temperature in Essex was 33.5°F, which was 4.7°F colder than the prior winter's average outside temperature.

Essex County Average Winter Temperature

Heating Season	Average Temperature
2024 - 2025	33.5° F
2023 - 2024	38.2° F

Essex County Homeowner’s Guide to Selecting an Oil Company

For Essex homes heating with oil, picking which of the 26 heating oil companies that serve Essex plays a big role in determining how much money is spent on heating each winter.

Full Service Oil Companies: Homeowners who prefer a “set-it-and-forget-it” heating system select one of the 21 “full-service” oil companies that serve Essex. Full service companies such as Advantage Oil or Advantage Oil offer families annual contracts which consist of a combined package of both automatic fuel oil delivery and furnace repair. With an automatic fuel 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 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. Examples of 2 Essex cash heating oil companies serving Essex include Affordable Oil and Deinrich Fuel Oil Inc.

Essex Oil Company Fast Facts: Heating oil Companies Serving Essex: 26 companies .
Average Number of Essex Houses Served per Number Two Heating Oil company : 7128

Essex Heating Oil Delivery Overview

185,324 residences in Essex heat their homes with number two heating oil. This makes oil delivery essential, especially when Essex temperatures drop as low as 28.8° F each winter. 5.2% of Essex families rely on number two heating oil delivery each winter.

2.6% of Essex County Households Rely On Heating Oil Delivery Each Winter

Essex County Households	Essex County Heating Oil Households
7.1M	185,324

464 Essex Fuel Oil Companies You Can Bank On

With 169,797,916 gallons of number two heating oil delivered to Essex homeowners the last heating season, the Essex community depends on its 464 oil companies to keep their oil tanks full. Oil delivery can be summed up in two steps: First, an oil truck picks up oil at the nearest bulk fuel terminal (also known as a “rack”). In the case of Essex, two of the closest terminals are Sunoco in Linden, NJ and Sunoco in Linden, NJ. Then, the truck delivers the fuel oil to residences and companies throughout Essex and the surrounding area.

Heating Oil Near You In These Adjacent Counties