Cost to heat a home in New Mexico: electricity vs gas
With electricity at 14.85 cents per kWh and natural gas at $9.83 per Mcf in 2025, one MMBtu of heat costs $9.99 from a gas furnace, $14.51 from a heat pump and $43.52 from resistance heating in New Mexico.
Your New Mexico heating cost
New Mexico inputs: 14.85 ¢ per kWh, $9.83 per Mcf, fuel only; the need is an illustration. Method.
The numbers
- Electricity 2025
- 14.85 ¢/kWhrank 26 of 45 states by price
- Natural gas 2025
- $9.83 per Mcfrank 42 of 45 states by gas price
- Gas furnace
- $9.99 per MMBtu95% efficiency, rank 42 of 45
- Heat pump
- $14.51 per MMBturank 20 of 45 states, COP 3.0 assumed
- Electric resistance
- $43.52 per MMBtu4.4 times a furnace
- Break-even COP
- 4.36a heat pump above it beats gas; rank 39 of 45
- Annual cost at 50 MMBtu
- $725 heat pumpfuel only
- Homes heated by electricity
- 23%62% utility gas, 7% propane, 0% oil
- Electricity since 2024
- +4.6%
- Gas since 2024
- +8.6%
- Winter load
- +20% over spring and fallsummer +57%: a summer-peaking state
- Heating degree-days, normal year
- 4,4621991 to 2020; 2025 had 3,947, rank 28 of 42 states by normal HDD
- Occupied homes in New Mexico (ACS 2023)
- 825,021190,676 electric, 509,079 utility gas, 55,017 propane, 1,419 oil; 5 of 33 counties are over half electric
- Generating capacity in New Mexico
- 12,767 MWEIA-860 2025; 4,873 MW under construction
New Mexico charts
One MMBtu of heat in New Mexico
$9.99 gas, $14.51 heat pump, $43.52 resistance.
New Mexico, Cost of one MMBtu of heat in New Mexico: EIA retail sales and natural gas prices.
CSVPrices since 2015, New Mexico
Electricity $43.52 and gas $9 per MMBtu of energy in 2025.
Fuel cost per MMBtu, New Mexico, 2015 to 2025: 11 rows
| Year | New Mexico electricity | New Mexico gas |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 36.5 | 8.3 |
| 2016 | 35.3 | 7.8 |
| 2017 | 37.7 | 8.9 |
| 2018 | 37.2 | 7.6 |
| 2019 | 36.7 | 6.2 |
| 2020 | 37.9 | 6.8 |
| 2021 | 39.6 | 9.4 |
| 2022 | 40.6 | 12.1 |
| 2023 | 40.6 | 11.3 |
| 2024 | 41.6 | 8.7 |
| 2025 | 43.5 | 9.5 |
11 rows from EIA retail sales and natural gas prices.
CSVHow New Mexico heats
23% electric.
New Mexico, How New Mexico homes are heated: Census ACS 2023, table B25040.
CSVBreak-even COP by month, New Mexico
2.71 to 7.22 across the months shown.
Break-even COP by month, New Mexico: 12 rows
| Month | 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 4.22 | No data |
| Feb | 4.98 | 4.63 |
| Mar | 4.13 | No data |
| Apr | 7.22 | No data |
| May | 4.12 | No data |
| Jun | 2.84 | No data |
| Jul | 2.85 | 3.51 |
| Aug | 2.71 | No data |
| Sep | 3.17 | No data |
| Oct | 3.62 | No data |
| Nov | 4.57 | No data |
| Dec | 3.76 | No data |
12 rows from EIA retail sales.
CSVHow New Mexico homes heat
| New Mexico main fuel | New Mexico homes | New Mexico share | New Mexico rank among states |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electricity | 190,676 | 23.1% | 34 of 45 |
| Utility gas | 509,079 | 61.7% | 10 of 45 |
| Propane | 55,017 | 6.7% | 17 of 45 |
| Fuel oil | 1,419 | 0.2% | 30 of 45 |
| Wood | 50,059 | 6.1% | 3 of 45 |
New Mexico has 12,767 MW of operable generating capacity (EIA-860, 2025), largest in wind at 4,429 MW; 4,873 MW is under construction and 2,192 MW planned, which matters if heat pumps add winter load.
11 New Mexico utilities report meters to EIA-861: 28.4% of 971,201 home meters are smart (AMI), 8 offer a home time-of-use rate and 8,061 homes are on dynamic pricing.
New Mexico counties by electric heating
Largest electric share first, then the smallest; 19 counties.
| New Mexico county | New Mexico residents | New Mexico electric heat | New Mexico utility gas | New Mexico propane | New Mexico median income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eddy County | 61,114 | 54% | 41% | 3% | $79,605 |
| Curry County | 47,932 | 52% | 42% | 3% | $56,259 |
| Chaves County | 64,446 | 51% | 42% | 5% | $52,029 |
| Lea County | 73,154 | 51% | 40% | 6% | $68,750 |
| Luna County | 25,420 | 47% | 39% | 9% | $37,917 |
| Grant County | 27,856 | 34% | 41% | 13% | $45,921 |
| Doña Ana County | 221,665 | 31% | 59% | 6% | $55,663 |
| Otero County | 68,235 | 24% | 52% | 12% | $52,717 |
| Bernalillo County | 674,357 | 20% | 74% | 3% | $66,514 |
| Santa Fe County | 155,175 | 17% | 66% | 8% | $74,689 |
| Lincoln County | 20,227 | 15% | 63% | 6% | $51,643 |
| San Miguel County | 27,036 | 14% | 33% | 21% | $47,400 |
| Sandoval County | 151,538 | 13% | 75% | 5% | $84,053 |
| Valencia County | 77,382 | 12% | 68% | 11% | $58,333 |
| Cibola County | 27,059 | 12% | 44% | 14% | $51,765 |
| San Juan County | 121,178 | 11% | 61% | 12% | $53,020 |
| Taos County | 34,516 | 10% | 47% | 14% | $58,908 |
| McKinley County | 71,172 | 9% | 39% | 7% | $44,496 |
| Rio Arriba County | 40,165 | 8% | 61% | 6% | $53,901 |
New Mexico month by month
| Month | New Mexico electricity ¢/kWh | New Mexico gas $/Mcf | Heat pump $/MMBtu | Gas furnace $/MMBtu | New Mexico break-even COP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 2026 | 16.09 | $13.21 | $15.7 | $13.4 | 3.51 |
| Feb 2026 | 15.07 | $9.38 | $14.7 | $9.5 | 4.63 |
| Dec 2025 | 14.47 | $11.11 | $14.1 | $11.3 | 3.76 |
| Nov 2025 | 15.38 | $9.70 | $15.0 | $9.9 | 4.57 |
| Oct 2025 | 14.72 | $11.73 | $14.4 | $11.9 | 3.62 |
| Sep 2025 | 16.26 | $14.78 | $15.9 | $15.0 | 3.17 |
| Aug 2025 | 15.98 | $16.98 | $15.6 | $17.3 | 2.71 |
| Jul 2025 | 15.61 | $15.82 | $15.2 | $16.1 | 2.85 |
| Jun 2025 | 14.50 | $14.71 | $14.2 | $14.9 | 2.84 |
| May 2025 | 14.28 | $9.99 | $14.0 | $10.2 | 4.12 |
| Apr 2025 | 14.14 | $5.65 | $13.8 | $5.7 | 7.22 |
| Mar 2025 | 14.38 | $10.05 | $14.0 | $10.2 | 4.13 |
| Feb 2025 | 13.98 | $8.10 | $13.7 | $8.2 | 4.98 |
| Jan 2025 | 13.65 | $9.32 | $13.3 | $9.5 | 4.22 |
Heating season
A normal year in New Mexico brings 4,462 heating degree-days and 1,002 cooling degree-days (1991 to 2020). Months above 300 heating degree-days in a normal year: Jan, Feb, Mar, Apr, Nov, Dec. 2025 had 3,947, 12% below normal; the highest of 2015 to 2025 was 4,584 in 2022.
New Mexico degree-days by year
Heating and cooling degree-days, New Mexico, 2015 to 2025: 11 rows
| New Mexico year | Heating (HDD) | Cooling (CDD) | Normal HDD | Normal CDD |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 4332 | 1064 | 4462 | 1002 |
| 2016 | 4134 | 1067 | 4462 | 1002 |
| 2017 | 3779 | 1030 | 4462 | 1002 |
| 2018 | 4264 | 1214 | 4462 | 1002 |
| 2019 | 4575 | 1120 | 4462 | 1002 |
| 2020 | 4166 | 1261 | 4462 | 1002 |
| 2021 | 4187 | 1073 | 4462 | 1002 |
| 2022 | 4584 | 1174 | 4462 | 1002 |
| 2023 | 4403 | 1309 | 4462 | 1002 |
| 2024 | 4096 | 1301 | 4462 | 1002 |
| 2025 | 3947 | 1145 | 4462 | 1002 |
NOAA nClimDiv degree-days for New Mexico, 2015 to 2025, pulled 2 Oct 2026.
CSVHeating degree-days by month
Heating degree-days by month, New Mexico: 12 rows
| Month | 2025 | Normal |
|---|---|---|
| Jan | 1038 | 885 |
| Feb | 551 | 683 |
| Mar | 524 | 552 |
| Apr | 319 | 338 |
| May | 148 | 133 |
| Jun | 13 | 20 |
| Jul | 2 | 2 |
| Aug | 2 | 7 |
| Sep | 48 | 55 |
| Oct | 194 | 284 |
| Nov | 467 | 614 |
| Dec | 641 | 889 |
NOAA nClimDiv degree-days for New Mexico by month, 2025.
CSVNew Mexico, 2025 by month: 12 rows
| Month | HDD 2025 | HDD normal | CDD 2025 | CDD normal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 1,038 | 885 | 0 | 0 |
| Feb | 551 | 683 | 0 | 0 |
| Mar | 524 | 552 | 1 | 0 |
| Apr | 319 | 338 | 10 | 8 |
| May | 148 | 133 | 55 | 66 |
| Jun | 13 | 20 | 277 | 237 |
| Jul | 2 | 2 | 314 | 315 |
| Aug | 2 | 7 | 336 | 260 |
| Sep | 48 | 55 | 127 | 109 |
| Oct | 194 | 284 | 24 | 7 |
| Nov | 467 | 614 | 1 | 0 |
| Dec | 641 | 889 | 0 | 0 |
NOAA nClimDiv degree-days for New Mexico, 2025 by month.
CSVAnalyst note
Wood stands out in New Mexico: 50,059 homes, 6.1%, rank 3 of 45. Main heating fuel in New Mexico is utility gas (62% of homes); electricity heats 23% and utility gas 62%. Since 2024 electricity moved +4.6% and gas +8.6%. A COP 3.0 heat pump trails a furnace here by $4.52 per MMBtu; the break-even COP of 4.36 ranks 39th of 45. The most electric counties of New Mexico with 20,000+ residents are led by Eddy County at 54% of homes. A normal New Mexico year has 4,462 heating degree-days, and 2025 had 3,947, so heating demand ran 12% below the 1991 to 2020 normal.
States with a similar break-even
Questions on heating in New Mexico
How many New Mexico homes heat with wood?
50,059 of 825,021 homes, 6.1%, ranks 3rd of 45 states.
Is a heat pump cheaper than gas in New Mexico?
No on fuel cost: $14.51 per MMBtu against $9.99 for gas, break-even COP 4.36.
Which New Mexico county has the most electric heating?
Eddy County: 54% of 23,245 homes among counties with 20,000+ residents, median income $79,605.
What share of New Mexico homes heat with electricity?
23% of 825,021 occupied homes in ACS 2023, against 62% with utility gas.
Where does New Mexico rank on heat pump cost?
20 of 45 at $14.51 per MMBtu; North Dakota is lowest at $11.55.
Is New Mexico a winter or summer electricity state?
Summer use runs +57% over spring and fall, winter +20%: cooling drives the load.
Did gas or electricity get more expensive in New Mexico in 2026?
No monthly gas series here; by annual prices since 2024 electricity moved +4.6% and gas +8.6%.
How much generating capacity does New Mexico have?
12,767 MW operable in 2025, 4,873 MW under construction, 2,192 MW planned (EIA-860).
How many New Mexico homes have smart meters?
28.4% of 971,201 home meters, 8 of 11 reporting utilities offer time-of-use.
More on New Mexico
- New Mexico electricity ratesutilities, map, outages
- Average electric bill in New Mexicotypical bill by month