Gas vs Electric Heating Cost in North Carolina
In North Carolina, a 2,000 sq ft house with average insulation costs an estimated $980.97 a year to heat with a 92% gas furnace, $2,502.77 with electric resistance heat and $807.34 with a heat pump. In North Carolina, the heat pump beats the gas furnace on running cost by an estimated $173.63 a year.
State data
What North Carolina pays
- Electricity
- 14.9¢/kWhEIA Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A · EIA, August 2026 (data as of 2026-10-25)
- Natural gas
- $1.58/thermEIA, residential natural gas price ($/Mcf ÷ 10.37) · EIA 2025 annual average (data as of 2026-10-25)
- Heating degree-days
- 3,400 °F-days (base 65 °F)NOAA CPC, 1991–2020 normals
- Climate zone
- 3 (IECC 2021)DOE/PNNL · heat pump seasonal COP used: 3.1
At 14.9¢/kWh, electricity in North Carolina is under 15¢/kWh, 18% below the US average of 18.2¢/kWh. At $1.58/therm, North Carolina's gas price is the 23rd-highest of the 51 on this site. North Carolina logs 3,400 heating degree-days a year (NOAA normals), 24% fewer than the US average of 4,500.
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
Heat pump territory: how North Carolina heats
- Main heating fuel
- Natural gas 29% · electricity 62% · propane 4% · fuel oil not reportedEIA RECS 2020, state tables · share of homes
- Main heating equipment
- Furnace 50% · central heat pump 38% · boiler not reportedEIA RECS 2020, state tables · share of homes
- Homes using a secondary heater
- 44%EIA RECS 2020, state tables
- Household energy spend
- $1,731 a year, of which $464 on space heating (26%)EIA RECS 2020, state tables · average per household
- Share of home energy that is space heating
- 73% of natural gas use · 17% of electricity useEIA RECS 2020, state tables
North Carolina is a state where the heat pump is already ordinary equipment. The 2020 survey counted central heat pumps in 38% of homes, about 1,520,000, the 3rd-highest share among the 33 states that report it, where the national figure is 13%. Furnaces are correspondingly less common, at 50%, the 9th-lowest furnace share. Boilers are too few to be reported.
Electricity leads the fuel mix to match. It is the main fuel in 62% of homes, about 2,500,000, the 4th-highest electric share in the country, against 34% for the US. Natural gas heats 29%, the 7th-lowest gas share, and propane 4%, in line with the national 4%. Oil is not reported.
Heating is a modest cost here. Households spend $464 a year on it, the 14th-lowest among the states and under the US figure of $519, and it is 26% of a $1,731 energy bill, matching the national share of 26%. Water heating, at $311, and cooling, at $283, are both sizable lines next to it. Because so much heat is electric, 17% of household power goes to space heating, above the US share of 12%.
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 North Carolina. Use the rate on your bill if you know it.
Rate used: 14.9¢/kWh · North Carolina · EIA, August 2026 · gas $1.58/therm (EIA 2025 annual) · 3,400 heating degree-days · climate zone 3 (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: $2,502.77 a year · Gas furnace: $980.97 a year, for 57.1 MMBtu of heat.
- Yearly heating load
- 57.1 MMBtu
- Electric resistance, $ per MMBtu
- $43.82
- Gas furnace, $ per MMBtu
- $17.17
- Electric resistance, per year
- $2,502.77
- Gas furnace, per year
- $980.97
- Difference per year (Gas furnace − Electric resistance)
- −$1,521.79
- Seasonal heat pump COP used
- 3.1
- Prices used
- electricity 14.9¢/kWh · gas $1.58/therm · propane $3.00/gal · oil $3.60/gal
- Heat pump, per year (for reference)
- $807.34
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 North Carolina
A 2,000 sq ft house with average insulation in North Carolina needs about 57.1 MMBtu of heat a year (3,400 heating degree-days). At $1.58/therm in a 92% furnace, gas delivers that heat at $17.17 per MMBtu; resistance heat at 14.9¢/kWh costs $43.82, and a heat pump at seasonal COP 3.1 (zone 3) costs $14.13. The year comes to $980.97 on gas, $2,502.77 on resistance heat and $807.34 on a heat pump. That puts the heat pump $173.63 a year below the gas furnace in North Carolina, running cost only.
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
Gas furnace or heat pump at North Carolina rates
The prices line up behind the equipment most homes already have. Electricity costs 14.9¢/kWh, 18% below the US average of 18.2¢/kWh, while gas is a little dear at $1.58/therm, 7% above the US average of $1.48/therm. Winters are mild, 3,400 heating degree-days or 24% fewer than the US average of 4,500, which lets the calculator use a climate-zone 3 seasonal COP of 3.1. Put together, the example house comes out $173.63 a year in favor of a heat pump over a 92% gas furnace.
That lead holds as long as your rate stays under 18.2¢/kWh; the state average is 14.9¢/kWh, which leaves a comfortable cushion. The margin is modest in dollars because the heating season is short, so a rate or gas price on your own bill that differs from the average can tip it; type your own rate and gas price into the calculator above.
For the many households already on a heat pump, the more useful questions are about how it runs. A heat pump with electric backup strips falls back on resistance heat on the coldest days, and resistance costs 2.6 times what gas pays per unit of heat at these prices, so every hour the strips run gives back part of the heat pump's lead. Keeping the strips idle, with a sensible thermostat setback that does not trigger them on recovery, protects the heat pump's advantage. If an older unit is due for replacement, the heat pump size calculator checks capacity and the heat pump payback page turns a running-cost gap into years.
Homes on propane are a smaller group, about 160,000; the heat pump vs propane and oil calculator covers them. The survey's $464 averages every home and fuel, so it will not match the calculator's 2,000 sq ft house, and a heat pump water heater is worth a look given the $311 that water heating takes.
Questions
FAQ
Which is cheaper in North Carolina, gas or electric heat?
Electric resistance heat is the most expensive of the three in North Carolina: $2,502.77 a year for the 2,000 sq ft example, $1,521.79 more than gas. Between gas ($980.97) and a heat pump ($807.34), the heat pump costs less to run in North Carolina, by an estimated $173.63 a year. These are estimates at 14.9¢/kWh and $1.58/therm; your bill's prices can change the answer.
How much gas does a furnace use in North Carolina?
About 621 therms a year for a 2,000 sq ft house with average insulation and a 92% furnace, at North Carolina's 3,400 heating degree-days. That averages 52 therms a month over 12 months, but almost all of it is burned in the heating months. At $1.58/therm, the year costs an estimated $980.97.
Electric furnace vs gas furnace cost in North Carolina?
An electric furnace is resistance heat: every kWh gives 3,412 BTU. At 14.9¢/kWh, that heat costs $43.82 per MMBtu in North Carolina, against $17.17 from a 92% gas furnace at $1.58/therm, 2.6 times as much. For the 2,000 sq ft example that's $2,502.77 a year against $980.97.
Is a heat pump cheaper than gas heat in North Carolina?
At average prices, yes, by $173.63 a year for the example house. The heat pump stays ahead while electricity costs less than 18.2¢/kWh, and the state average is 14.9¢/kWh. Gas at $1.58/therm sits above the US average, which helps the heat pump. Your own rate and gas price can move the result, so check both on your bills.
My heat pump bill jumps on cold nights in North Carolina. Why?
A common reason is the backup heat strips. They are electric resistance, which at 14.9¢/kWh costs $43.82 per MMBtu of heat against $14.13 for the heat pump itself. A large thermostat setback can also bring them on during warm-up. Check your thermostat's auxiliary or emergency heat indicator.
Bordering states
Nearby states
Same calculator, same house, each state's own prices and winter:
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