Gas vs Electric Heating Cost in District of Columbia
In District of Columbia, a 2,000 sq ft house with average insulation costs an estimated $1,234.80 a year to heat with a 92% gas furnace, $5,372.65 with electric resistance heat and $1,918.80 with a heat pump. Gas heat costs $17.50 per MMBtu here, against $27.19 from a heat pump at seasonal COP 2.8.
State data
What District of Columbia pays
- Electricity
- 26.0¢/kWhEIA Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A · EIA, August 2026 (data as of 2026-10-25)
- Natural gas
- $1.61/thermEIA, residential natural gas price ($/Mcf ÷ 10.37) · EIA 2025 annual average (data as of 2026-10-25)
- Heating degree-days
- 4,200 °F-days (base 65 °F)NOAA CPC, 1991–2020 normals
- Climate zone
- 4 (IECC 2021)DOE/PNNL · heat pump seasonal COP used: 2.8
District of Columbia is in the over-20¢ band on this site: 26.0¢ a kWh, 43% above the US average of 18.2¢/kWh. District of Columbia pays $1.61/therm for natural gas, which puts furnace heat at $17.50 per MMBtu. District of Columbia is in IECC climate zone 4, with 4,200 heating degree-days a year; the heat pump line uses a seasonal COP of 2.8.
Prices are statewide averages. Type the rate and gas price from your own bill into the calculator above to replace them.
How homes here heat
How homes in the District of Columbia heat
- Main heating fuel
- Natural gas 56% · electricity 41% · propane not reported · fuel oil not reportedEIA RECS 2020, state tables · share of homes
- Main heating equipment
- Furnace 47% · central heat pump 14% · boiler 22%EIA RECS 2020, state tables · share of homes
- Homes using a secondary heater
- 32%EIA RECS 2020, state tables
- Household energy spend
- $1,197 a year, of which $320 on space heating (26%)EIA RECS 2020, state tables · average per household
- Share of home energy that is space heating
- 62% of natural gas use · 12% of electricity useEIA RECS 2020, state tables
Households in the District spend less on energy than in any state: $1,197 a year in the 2020 survey, the lowest total among the 51, against $1,884 nationally. Space heating is $320 of that, the 8th-lowest heating bill, and its share of the total, 26%, matches the US share of 26%. In other words, the bill is small across the board rather than light on heat in particular. Water heating takes 19% of it, against 15% for the country.
Gas and electricity are the only fuels the survey can measure here. Natural gas is the main heat for 56% (about 180,000) and electricity for 41% (about 130,000), a higher electric share than the national 34%. Propane and fuel oil are too rare for the survey to report a share.
The equipment is less furnace-bound than elsewhere. 47% of homes rely on a furnace, the 7th-lowest share among the 50 that report one, while 22% use a boiler, against 8% nationally, and 14% a central heat pump, close to the US 13%. Secondary heaters are less common than in the country as a whole: 32% of homes, against 42%.
EIA RECS 2020, state tables: shares of all occupied homes in the state and average spending per household in the survey year. "Not reported" means EIA's sample was too small to publish a figure.
Gas vs electric heat
B04Scenario A
Sets the electricity rate. Pick US average if you're not sure.
From EIA for District of Columbia. Use the rate on your bill if you know it.
Rate used: 26.0¢/kWh · District of Columbia · EIA, August 2026 · gas $1.61/therm (EIA 2025 annual) · 4,200 heating degree-days · climate zone 4 (data as of 2026-10-25) ·
On the furnace label: 0.80 older, 0.90–0.98 condensing.
Gas furnace costs less per year by
Electric resistance: $5,372.65 a year · Gas furnace: $1,234.80 a year, for 70.6 MMBtu of heat.
- Yearly heating load
- 70.6 MMBtu
- Electric resistance, $ per MMBtu
- $76.14
- Gas furnace, $ per MMBtu
- $17.50
- Electric resistance, per year
- $5,372.65
- Gas furnace, per year
- $1,234.80
- Difference per year (Gas furnace − Electric resistance)
- −$4,137.85
- Seasonal heat pump COP used
- 2.8
- Prices used
- electricity 26.0¢/kWh · gas $1.61/therm · propane $3.30/gal · oil $3.80/gal
- Heat pump, per year (for reference)
- $1,918.80
Cost by month, in season only
The yearly cost spread across the months using a typical heating degree-day pattern from NOAA 1991–2020 normals. Months outside the season show $0.
Estimate. Formula and sources are under “How it works”. Change any input; the result updates as you type.
2026 note: The federal 25C and 25D tax credits ended for installations after Dec 31, 2025. Our numbers use 2026 rules. State rebates, HEAR/HOMES programs and utility programs may still apply.
Worked example
Worked example: 2,000 sq ft in District of Columbia
A 2,000 sq ft house with average insulation in District of Columbia needs about 70.6 MMBtu of heat a year (4,200 heating degree-days). At $1.61/therm in a 92% furnace, gas delivers that heat at $17.50 per MMBtu; resistance heat at 26.0¢/kWh costs $76.14, and a heat pump at seasonal COP 2.8 (zone 4) costs $27.19. The year comes to $1,234.80 on gas, $5,372.65 on resistance heat and $1,918.80 on a heat pump. At seasonal COP 2.8, the heat pump's heat still costs more than $1.61/therm gas in District of Columbia.
Load = sq ft × 0.35 × heating degree-days × 24 ÷ 1,000,000. Gas $/MMBtu = $/therm ÷ 0.1 ÷ 0.92. Resistance $/MMBtu = $/kWh × 293.07. Heat pump = resistance ÷ COP.
What the numbers say
What the numbers say in the District of Columbia
Expensive electricity is what decides the calculator's answer here. The residential rate is 26.0¢/kWh, 43% above the US average of 18.2¢/kWh and the 9th-highest among the states and DC, while gas at $1.61/therm is 9% above the US average of $1.48/therm. The winter is milder than average, 4,200 heating degree-days or 7% fewer than the US average of 4,500, which favors a heat pump's efficiency: climate zone 4 earns a seasonal COP of 2.8. It is not enough to offset the rate. The estimate favors gas by $684.00 a year, and the heat pump would tie only at 16.7¢/kWh, against the District's average of 26.0¢/kWh.
The distance between 16.7¢/kWh and 26.0¢/kWh is wide, but both sides of the comparison rest on averages. If your building or your utility account carries a different price per kilowatt-hour or per therm, the calculator above accepts both; the yearly figures move in proportion.
For the 41% of homes that heat with electricity, the more pressing comparison is resistance against a heat pump. At 26.0¢/kWh, baseboards or an electric furnace cost 4.4 times what gas does per unit of heat, $5,372.65 a year for the example house, against $1,918.80 with a heat pump. Homes on a boiler have no ducts to reuse, so a heat pump there often means ductless units; the heat pump sizing calculator gives the capacity to ask for.
The survey's $320 a year sits far below the calculator's $1,234.80 for gas because the calculator models a 2,000 sq ft house with average insulation, and the survey averages every home in the District. If you live in a smaller space, change the size in the calculator to match. For a rough monthly picture of the whole electric bill, try the electric bill estimator; for a room heated on its own, the space heater vs central heat page compares the two.
Questions
FAQ
Which is cheaper in District of Columbia, gas or electric heat?
Electric resistance heat is the most expensive of the three in District of Columbia: $5,372.65 a year for the 2,000 sq ft example, $4,137.85 more than gas. Between gas ($1,234.80) and a heat pump ($1,918.80), gas comes out $684.00 a year ahead; a heat pump would match it at about 16.7¢/kWh. These are estimates at 26.0¢/kWh and $1.61/therm; your bill's prices can change the answer.
How much gas does a furnace use in District of Columbia?
About 767 therms a year for a 2,000 sq ft house with average insulation and a 92% furnace, at District of Columbia's 4,200 heating degree-days. That averages 64 therms a month over 12 months, but almost all of it is burned in the heating months. At $1.61/therm, the year costs an estimated $1,234.80.
Electric furnace vs gas furnace cost in District of Columbia?
An electric furnace is resistance heat: every kWh gives 3,412 BTU. At 26.0¢/kWh, that heat costs $76.14 per MMBtu in District of Columbia, against $17.50 from a 92% gas furnace at $1.61/therm, 4.4 times as much. For the 2,000 sq ft example that's $5,372.65 a year against $1,234.80.
Does the mild winter in the District of Columbia help a heat pump?
It helps the efficiency, not enough to change the result. With 4,200 heating degree-days, 7% fewer than the US average of 4,500, the calculator uses a seasonal COP of 2.8 for climate zone 4. Electricity at 26.0¢/kWh still puts gas ahead by $684.00 a year for the example house; the heat pump matches gas only at 16.7¢/kWh. Against resistance heat, by contrast, the heat pump is far cheaper.
Why is the survey's heating cost for the District of Columbia so low?
The survey reports $320 a year for space heating, the 8th-lowest among the states and DC, and $27 a month averaged over the year. It averages every household, of every size and fuel. The calculator above prices one 2,000 sq ft house, so set the size and the rates from your own home and bill to get a figure that fits you.
Bordering states
Nearby states
Same calculator, same house, each state's own prices and winter:
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