Residences have a host 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 residents. The 2nd most popular primary heating fuel for Essex families 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%).

Essex 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 Essex

Oil has become less frequently used in Essex. In the 10 years since 2015, the number of households using number two heating oil dropped from 299,222 to 185,324, a 38% drop.

Propane vs. Natural Gas use for home heating in Essex

Between 2015 and today, the number of houses using propane as the primary space heating fuel grew 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 grew from 2,398,744 to 2,627,206, a 10% change.

Electricity use for home heating in Essex

Electric heat pump systems for home heating are increasing in demand in Essex. Since 2015, the number of homes heating with electricity shot up from 385,792 to 617,773, a 60% change.

Adoption of solar home heating systems in Essex

Solar is the most environmentally friendly of all heating fuels. With an “active” solar heating system, liquid flows 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 Essex are heated with active solar arrays. This is a 562% gain from 2015, when 1,781 homes used 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 oil consumption changes annually depending on winter temperatures. As the temperature outside gets more chilly, homes’ boilers need to burn additional fuel oil to maintain a constant interior temperature. 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 homeowners heating with heating oil, selecting which of the 26 heating oil companies that serve Essex is an important decision.

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 21 “full-service” oil companies that serve Essex. Full service companies such as Advantage Oil or Advantage Oil offer customers annual contracts which consist of a combined package of both automatic heating oil delivery and HVAC repair. With an automatic number two heating oil delivery contract, the company tracks your home’s number two heating oil consumption and makes deliveries when your tank is running low. The client 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 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 Essex cash heating oil companies serving Essex include Affordable Oil and Deinrich Fuel Oil Inc.

Essex Heating Oil Company By The Numbers: Fuel oil Companies Serving Essex: 26 companies .
Average Number of Essex Houses Served per Fuel Oil company : 7128

Essex Heating Oil Delivery Overview

185,324 houses in Essex heat their homes with oil. This makes oil delivery essential, especially when Essex temperatures drop as low as 28.8° F each winter. 5.2% of Essex residences rely on fuel 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 Number Two Heating Oil Companies Homeowners Can Count On

With 169,797,916 gallons of number two heating oil delivered to Essex families last winter, the Essex community relies on its 464 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 Essex, two of the closest terminals are Sunoco in Linden, NJ and Sunoco in Linden, NJ. Then, the truck delivers the #2 heating oil to homes and businesses throughout Essex and the surrounding region.

Heating Oil Near You In These Adjacent Counties