Comparing Energy Prices: Cost of Heating With a Woodburner, Oil, Gas & Electricity in 2024

With all the cost-of-living increases we’ve experienced in recent times, it’s well worth comparing energy prices to work out the cheapest way of heating your home.

Is it cheaper to heat your home with a woodburner, oil, gas or electricity? Would a standalone appliance be more cost-effective than switching on the central heating? Could you change the way you heat your home to be more energy efficient?

In this article, we will help you work out the best option for heating your home by creating like-for-like cost comparisons for different types of heating.

At the moment, the average energy prices for each heating option look like this:

Average Cost of Fuel for Heating

When comparing fuel prices, you can’t look solely at the cost per kWh (though of course that is important). You also need to consider efficiency and the context of use. Electricity sits at the top of the table for cost but also for efficiency. Coal is precisely the opposite: the cheapest option to buy but also the least efficient.

Let’s explore the cost factors affecting each form of heating in a bit more detail.

Electricity Prices

While electricity has the highest cost per kWh of all the forms of heating featured here, it also has the advantage of being 100% efficient at the point of use. Since no fuel is being burned inside your home to generate the heat you’re using, all of the energy you pay for goes towards heating your home.

You also only pay for exactly the amount of heat you need. Electric heating is turned on and off at the press of a button, so you use only what you need and this is very easy to control.

It’s also worth considering that modern electric fires often have the option to use LED flame effects independently of the heater, which means you can create a cosy atmosphere with virtually no expense.

And if you’re able to generate your own electricity, such as by using solar panels, this will significantly reduce your energy costs.

Gas and Oil Prices

Amid rising prices across the board, a cost of living crisis and rapidly changing geopolitical situations, both gas and oil prices spiked dramatically. Although they have dropped from their peak, the cost of running both oil and gas central heating systems has increased substantially.

Even the most modern boilers lose at least 10% of the heat generated — while older models lose much more — so energy efficiency is also a factor.

Perhaps the key consideration for both fuels is the potential for prices to continue to rise over the coming months and years, and the lack of flexibility and control that end users will have over their prices. With the UK dependent on imports of both gas and oil, customers bear the brunt of price spikes caused by events around the world.

Wood Pellet Prices

Pellet stoves offer greater control over your heating costs, as well as incredible efficiency. Some of the best pellet stoves offer up to 97% efficiency. Pellets are also protected from the harshest global energy price rises given the wide array of options domestically and overseas when it comes to sourcing wood.

That said, wood prices globally have also risen in the last few years and that has led to a knock-on increase in the cost of wood pellets.

Seasoned Logs Prices

Seasoned or kiln-dried logs are the best option for your wood-burning stove, the environment and energy efficiency. But if you’re able to source unseasoned wood and season it yourself before use, that will deliver a big saving on the cost per kWh we’ve quoted here. 

Similarly to wood pellets, a rise in the cost of wood has led to an increase in the average price of seasoned logs.

Logburners also have the benefit of providing reliable heat and light even if there are power cuts or problems with your central heating.

Smokeless Fuel and Coal Prices

Seasoned or kiln-dried logs are the best option for your wood-burning stove, the environment and energy efficiency. But if you’re able to source unseasoned wood and season it yourself before use, that will deliver a big saving on the cost per kWh we’ve quoted here. 

Similarly to wood pellets, a rise in the cost of wood has led to an increase in the average price of seasoned logs.

Logburners also have the benefit of providing reliable heat and light even if there are power cuts or problems with your central heating.

Energy Cost Comparison Summary

That concludes our overview of current energy prices. After comparing energy prices, it might come as something of a surprise to see that coal currently offers the cheapest form of heating in the UK based on price per kWh. As we mentioned earlier, efficiency also has to be taken into account and an open coal fire will be very inefficient in comparison to other energy sources.

We also discussed that control is a key factor at the moment. There is value in being able to have consistency and certainty over both fuel costs and availability. With that in mind, pellet stoves, woodburners, multi-fuel stoves and other heat sources that don’t have a monthly bill and are not dependent on an international supply chain typically offer greater control.

Electricity offers a different sort of control: precision over the quantity used, 100% efficiency and, in the case of electric fires, the option to create a cosy atmosphere without using the heater.

Frequently Asked Questions

Ready to upgrade your heating?

If our energy price comparison has shown you there’s a better option for heating your home, check out our full range of wood-burning stoves, multi-fuel stoves, pellet stoves and electric fires.