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

Homes have a variety of fuels that can be used when it comes to heating. Natural Gas is the preferred choice in Westchester, used by 4,725,574 or 61% of residents. The next most popular primary heating fuel for Westchester families is Electricity, used by 1,365,710 homes (18%). The remaining homes are heated with Heating Oil (14%), Propane (5%), Other (1%), and Wood (1%).

Westchester County Residential Primary Home Heating Fuel (in Number of Households)

YearNatural GasPropaneElectricityOilWoodSolarOther
20254,725,574377,9221,365,7101,103,32392,05416,434100,232
20244,679,558370,9101,292,8681,143,78396,14715,25997,524
20234,581,041402,3351,263,7001,212,850100,01511,208104,369
20224,542,443400,9691,190,8801,279,26099,08011,314103,810
20214,489,009388,3111,118,0151,293,770108,2028,85898,952
20204,504,504353,9441,014,7301,343,665111,1068,77889,024
20194,519,999319,576911,4451,393,560114,0118,69779,096
20184,397,917308,020890,5541,459,976120,1596,02282,621
20174,339,349294,973867,9251,496,843122,0885,98877,386
20164,227,422273,838860,8561,540,787126,8906,53579,479
20154,202,413265,224808,3701,649,860141,0163,12078,999
20144,186,666258,775770,5771,752,656145,0122,57376,963
20134,074,510259,367764,4001,802,442148,4222,52581,841
20124,044,389237,738775,3901,901,118155,6032,16861,429
20114,014,222222,634707,0161,979,067143,2872,72863,609
20103,961,085227,607676,2622,068,004143,2421,82361,664

Heating Oil (Fuel Oil) Use in Westchester

Number two heating oil has become losing popularity in Westchester. In the 2 years since 2023, the number of homeowners using number two heating oil declined from 1,212,850 to 1,103,323, a 9% drop.

Propane vs. Natural Gas use for home heating in Westchester

Between 2023 and today, the number of households using propane as the primary space heating fuel decreased from 402,335 to 377,922, a 6% change. Comparing 2023 and today, the number of homes using natural gas as the primary space heating fuel grew from 4,581,041 to 4,725,574, a 3% change.

Electricity use for home heating in Westchester

Electric heat pump systems for home heating are more popular in Westchester. Since 2023, the number of homes heating with electricity shot up from 1,263,700 to 1,365,710, a 8% change.

Adoption of solar home heating systems in Westchester

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. Now, 16,434 homes in Westchester are heated with active solar arrays. This is a 47% gain from 2023, when 11,208 homes had active solar heating.

Westchester County Heating Oil Trends

Last year, Westchester County homeowners purchased a total of 57 million gallons of heating oil.

Short Term Trends

Westchester’s overall number two heating oil use fluctuates yearly correlating with how cold it gets each winter. As the temperature outside dips, homes’ furnaces need to burn additional heating oil to maintain a constant interior temperature. Last winter, the average outside temperature in Westchester was 28.1°F, which was 5.4°F colder than the prior winter's average outside temperature.

Westchester County Average Winter Temperature

Heating SeasonAverage Temperature
2024 - 202528.1° F
2023 - 202433.5° F

Westchester County Homeowner’s Guide to Selecting an Oil Company

For Westchester homeowners heating with oil, picking which of the 157 heating oil companies that serve Westchester plays a big role in determining how much money is spent on heating each winter.

Full Service Oil Companies: Homeowners who value a “set-it-and-forget-it” heating system pick one of the 2315 “full-service” oil companies that serve Westchester. Full service companies such as Superior Fuel Oil Inc or Action Fuel Oil Corp offer households 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 client does not need to monitor the level of the oil tank or place individual orders.

Discount Oil Companies: Often called “COD Fuel” or “Cash Heating Oil” companies, discount oil companies are for families 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 when you're running low. A few of the 2 Westchester cash heating oil companies serving Westchester include Emergency Services Fuel Corp and Prestige Oil Inc.

Westchester Heating Oil Company By The Numbers: Fuel oil Companies Serving Westchester: 157 companies .
Average Number of Westchester Households Served per Heating Oil company : 7028

Westchester Heating Oil Delivery Overview

1,103,323 families in Westchester heat their homes with fuel oil. This makes oil delivery essential, especially when Westchester temperatures drop as low as 22.4° F each winter. 14.2% of Westchester houses are reliant on heating oil delivery each winter.

7% of Westchester County Households Rely On Heating Oil Delivery Each Winter

Westchester County HouseholdsWestchester County Heating Oil Households
15.6M1.1M

3889 Westchester Heating Oil Companies Homeowners Can Count On

With 664,748,714 gallons of heating oil delivered to Westchester houses last winter, the Westchester community depends on its 3889 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 Westchester, two of the closest terminals are Sprague in Bridgeport, CT and N.h.term in New Haven, CT. Then, the truck delivers the fuel oil to homes and businesses throughout Westchester and the surrounding region.