Gas vs Electric Heating Cost in Kentucky
In Kentucky, a 2,000 sq ft house with average insulation costs an estimated $1,100.77 a year to heat with a 92% gas furnace, $2,991.90 with electric resistance heat and $1,068.53 with a heat pump. Between gas and a heat pump, Kentucky is a close call: the cheaper one, a heat pump, wins by $32.23 a year at average prices.
State data
What Kentucky pays
- Electricity
- 13.8¢/kWhEIA Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A · EIA, July 2026 (data as of 2026-09-28)
- Natural gas
- $1.37/thermEIA, residential natural gas price ($/Mcf ÷ 10.37) · EIA 2025 annual average (data as of 2026-09-28)
- Heating degree-days
- 4,400 °F-days (base 65 °F)NOAA CPC, 1991–2020 normals
- Climate zone
- 4 (IECC 2021)DOE/PNNL · heat pump seasonal COP used: 2.8
Kentucky's rate of 13.8¢/kWh is the 8th-lowest among the 50 states and DC; every electric option on this page is priced from it. Residential gas in Kentucky is $1.37/therm, 7% below the US average of $1.48/therm. A winter of 4,400 heating degree-days means the 2,000 sq ft example in Kentucky needs about 73.9 MMBtu of heat a year.
Prices are statewide averages. Type the rate and gas price from your own bill into the calculator above to replace them.
Gas vs electric heat
B04Scenario A
Sets the electricity rate. Pick US average if you're not sure.
From EIA for Kentucky. Use the rate on your bill if you know it.
Rate used: 13.8¢/kWh · Kentucky · EIA, July 2026 · gas $1.37/therm (EIA 2025 annual) · 4,400 heating degree-days · climate zone 4 (data as of 2026-09-28) ·
On the furnace label: 0.80 older, 0.90–0.98 condensing.
Gas furnace costs less per year by
Electric resistance: $2,991.90 a year · Gas furnace: $1,100.77 a year, for 73.9 MMBtu of heat.
- Yearly heating load
- 73.9 MMBtu
- Electric resistance, $ per MMBtu
- $40.47
- Gas furnace, $ per MMBtu
- $14.89
- Electric resistance, per year
- $2,991.90
- Gas furnace, per year
- $1,100.77
- Difference per year (Gas furnace − Electric resistance)
- −$1,891.13
- Seasonal heat pump COP used
- 2.8
- Prices used
- electricity 13.8¢/kWh · gas $1.37/therm · propane $2.50/gal · oil $3.60/gal
- Heat pump, per year (for reference)
- $1,068.53
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 Kentucky
A 2,000 sq ft house with average insulation in Kentucky needs about 73.9 MMBtu of heat a year (4,400 heating degree-days). At $1.37/therm in a 92% furnace, gas delivers that heat at $14.89 per MMBtu; resistance heat at 13.8¢/kWh costs $40.47, and a heat pump at seasonal COP 2.8 (zone 4) costs $14.46. The year comes to $1,100.77 on gas, $2,991.90 on resistance heat and $1,068.53 on a heat pump. That is a near-tie: a heat pump comes out ahead by $32.23 a year, and a price change of about 10% on either side could reverse it.
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.
Questions
FAQ
Which is cheaper in Kentucky, gas or electric heat?
Electric resistance heat is the most expensive of the three in Kentucky: $2,991.90 a year for the 2,000 sq ft example, $1,891.13 more than gas. Between gas ($1,100.77) and a heat pump ($1,068.53), the two are within about 10% per unit of heat ($14.46 vs $14.89 per MMBtu), so your own rates decide. These are estimates at 13.8¢/kWh and $1.37/therm; your bill's prices can change the answer.
How much gas does a furnace use in Kentucky?
About 803 therms a year for a 2,000 sq ft house with average insulation and a 92% furnace, at Kentucky's 4,400 heating degree-days. That averages 67 therms a month over 12 months, but almost all of it is burned in the heating months. At $1.37/therm, the year costs an estimated $1,100.77.
Electric furnace vs gas furnace cost in Kentucky?
An electric furnace is resistance heat: every kWh gives 3,412 BTU. At 13.8¢/kWh, that heat costs $40.47 per MMBtu in Kentucky, against $14.89 from a 92% gas furnace at $1.37/therm, 2.7 times as much. For the 2,000 sq ft example that's $2,991.90 a year against $1,100.77.
Bordering states
Nearby states
Same calculator, same house, each state's own prices and winter:
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