Electric Consumer

Editor: Katerine G., Editor & Data Researcher · Research & publishing: Electric Consumer Editorial Team · Data retrieved · Sources named on this page: EIA-861, EIA retail sales, EIA-860/923, Census ACS, NOAA · How we got these numbers · Report an error

Cost to heat a home in Tennessee: electricity vs gas

With electricity at 13.18 cents per kWh and natural gas at $11.84 per Mcf in 2025, one MMBtu of heat costs $12.03 from a gas furnace, $12.88 from a heat pump and $38.63 from resistance heating in Tennessee.

Your Tennessee heating cost

    Tennessee inputs: 13.18 ¢ per kWh, $11.84 per Mcf, fuel only; the need is an illustration. Method.

    The numbers

    Electricity 2025
    13.18 ¢/kWhrank 35 of 45 states by price
    Natural gas 2025
    $11.84 per Mcfrank 30 of 45 states by gas price
    Gas furnace
    $12.03 per MMBtu95% efficiency, rank 30 of 45
    Heat pump
    $12.88 per MMBturank 11 of 45 states, COP 3.0 assumed
    Electric resistance
    $38.63 per MMBtu3.2 times a furnace
    Break-even COP
    3.21a heat pump above it beats gas; rank 20 of 45
    Annual cost at 50 MMBtu
    $644 heat pumpfuel only
    Homes heated by electricity
    63%31% utility gas, 4% propane, 0% oil
    Electricity since 2024
    +6.1%
    Gas since 2024
    +10.1%
    2026 to date
    power +4.9%, gas +10.3%January to Jul against 2025
    Winter load
    +50% over spring and fallsummer +51%: a summer-peaking state
    Heating degree-days, normal year
    3,9611991 to 2020; 2025 had 3,549, rank 31 of 42 states by normal HDD
    Occupied homes in Tennessee (ACS 2023)
    2,768,7431,751,307 electric, 854,198 utility gas, 101,220 propane, 7,851 oil; 77 of 95 counties are over half electric
    Generating capacity in Tennessee
    23,342 MWEIA-860 2025; 1,202 MW under construction

    Tennessee charts

    One MMBtu of heat in Tennessee

    $12.03 gas, $12.88 heat pump, $38.63 resistance.

    $ per MMBtu

    • Electric resistance38.6
    • Heat pump, COP 3.012.9
    • Gas furnace, 95%12.0

    Tennessee, Cost of one MMBtu of heat in Tennessee: EIA retail sales and natural gas prices.

    CSV

    Prices since 2015, Tennessee

    Electricity $38.63 and gas $11 per MMBtu of energy in 2025.

    Fuel cost per MMBtu, Tennessee, 2015 to 2025: 11 rows
    YearTennessee electricityTennessee gas
    201530.29.3
    201630.58.9
    201731.410.0
    201831.49.1
    201931.99.1
    202031.58.7
    202132.49.9
    202235.912.0
    202335.711.3
    202436.410.4
    202538.611.4

    11 rows from EIA retail sales and natural gas prices.

    CSV

    How Tennessee heats

    63% electric.

    % of homes

    • Electricity63.3
    • Utility gas30.9
    • Propane3.7
    • Fuel oil0.3
    • Wood1.2

    Tennessee, How Tennessee homes are heated: Census ACS 2023, table B25040.

    CSV

    Break-even COP by month, Tennessee

    1.73 to 3.92 across the months shown.

    Break-even COP by month, Tennessee: 12 rows
    Month20252026
    Jan3.923.36
    Feb3.502.82
    Mar3.452.80
    Apr2.882.87
    May2.392.48
    Jun2.092.05
    Jul1.801.94
    Aug1.73No data
    Sep1.87No data
    Oct1.85No data
    Nov2.95No data
    Dec3.28No data

    12 rows from EIA retail sales.

    CSV

    How Tennessee homes heat

    Tennessee main fuelTennessee homesTennessee shareTennessee rank among states
    Electricity1,751,30763.3%4 of 45
    Utility gas854,19830.9%39 of 45
    Propane101,2203.7%32 of 45
    Fuel oil7,8510.3%27 of 45
    Wood34,5891.2%26 of 45

    Tennessee has 23,342 MW of operable generating capacity (EIA-860, 2025), largest in natural gas at 7,388 MW; 1,202 MW is under construction and 3,150 MW planned, which matters if heat pumps add winter load.

    73 Tennessee utilities report meters to EIA-861: 95.4% of 3,166,532 home meters are smart (AMI), 6 offer a home time-of-use rate and 9,879 homes are on dynamic pricing.

    Tennessee counties by electric heating

    Largest electric share first, then the smallest; 20 counties.

    Tennessee countyTennessee residentsTennessee electric heatTennessee utility gasTennessee propaneTennessee median income
    Union County20,14187%2%4%$61,858
    Sullivan County159,69386%10%2%$56,802
    Grainger County23,92984%1%7%$51,351
    Claiborne County32,22183%5%4%$46,587
    Greene County70,91983%6%6%$54,071
    Hamblen County64,93082%14%2%$52,794
    Washington County134,69380%15%3%$61,051
    Bradley County109,74379%15%3%$63,789
    Jefferson County55,83579%14%5%$63,084
    Monroe County47,05478%10%6%$56,648
    Hardeman County25,47745%43%9%$46,173
    Hardin County26,93945%39%11%$49,149
    Madison County98,84545%48%5%$58,189
    Morgan County21,19342%44%7%$57,408
    Williamson County254,60942%54%3%$131,202
    Lauderdale County24,93341%52%5%$49,205
    Tipton County61,33937%58%3%$71,736
    Fayette County42,65337%52%9%$84,764
    Henderson County27,90636%59%2%$53,471
    Scott County21,96935%54%6%$42,679

    Tennessee month by month

    MonthTennessee electricity ¢/kWhTennessee gas $/McfHeat pump $/MMBtuGas furnace $/MMBtuTennessee break-even COP
    Jul 202613.71$20.35$13.4$20.71.94
    Jun 202614.07$19.75$13.7$20.12.05
    May 202614.47$16.83$14.1$17.12.48
    Apr 202614.94$15.04$14.6$15.32.87
    Mar 202615.08$15.54$14.7$15.82.80
    Feb 202612.82$13.12$12.5$13.32.82
    Jan 202613.10$11.23$12.8$11.43.36
    Dec 202512.87$11.31$12.6$11.53.28
    Nov 202513.47$13.18$13.2$13.42.95
    Oct 202513.06$20.41$12.8$20.71.85
    Sep 202513.29$20.52$13.0$20.81.87
    Aug 202513.02$21.67$12.7$22.01.73
    Jul 202513.21$21.12$12.9$21.51.80
    Jun 202513.82$19.03$13.5$19.32.09
    May 202513.73$16.54$13.4$16.82.39
    Apr 202513.91$13.92$13.6$14.12.88
    Mar 202513.37$11.18$13.1$11.43.45
    Feb 202512.54$10.34$12.3$10.53.50
    Jan 202512.58$9.26$12.3$9.43.92

    Heating season

    A normal year in Tennessee brings 3,961 heating degree-days and 1,369 cooling degree-days (1991 to 2020). Months above 300 heating degree-days in a normal year: Jan, Feb, Mar, Nov, Dec. 2025 had 3,549, 10% below normal; the highest of 2015 to 2025 was 3,844 in 2018.

    Tennessee degree-days by year

    Heating and cooling degree-days, Tennessee, 2015 to 2025: 11 rows
    Tennessee yearHeating (HDD)Cooling (CDD)Normal HDDNormal CDD
    20153569146039611369
    20163437176439611369
    20173167136839611369
    20183844172239611369
    20193483165139611369
    20203432139139611369
    20213503139939611369
    20223820151939611369
    20233152135639611369
    20243189160639611369
    20253549157139611369

    NOAA nClimDiv degree-days for Tennessee, 2015 to 2025, pulled 2 Oct 2026.

    CSV

    Heating degree-days by month

    Heating degree-days by month, Tennessee: 12 rows
    Month2025Normal
    Jan1000860
    Feb608701
    Mar391520
    Apr133234
    May7177
    Jun03
    Jul00
    Aug00
    Sep1626
    Oct168224
    Nov433519
    Dec729797

    NOAA nClimDiv degree-days for Tennessee by month, 2025.

    CSV
    Tennessee, 2025 by month: 12 rows
    MonthHDD 2025HDD normalCDD 2025CDD normal
    Jan1,00086002
    Feb60870101
    Mar3915202211
    Apr1332344317
    May7177113116
    Jun03330274
    Jul00477378
    Aug00329349
    Sep1626207187
    Oct1682244933
    Nov43351911
    Dec72979700

    NOAA nClimDiv degree-days for Tennessee, 2025 by month.

    CSV

    Analyst note

    Electric heating stands out in Tennessee: 63.3% of 2,768,743 homes, rank 4 of 45. Main heating fuel in Tennessee is electricity (63% of homes); electricity heats 63% and utility gas 31%. Since 2024 electricity moved +6.1% and gas +10.1%; in 2026 to date power is +4.9% and gas +10.3% on a year earlier. A COP 3.0 heat pump trails a furnace here by $0.85 per MMBtu; the break-even COP of 3.21 ranks 20 of 45. The most electric counties of Tennessee with 20,000+ residents are led by Union County at 87% of homes. A normal Tennessee year has 3,961 heating degree-days, and 2025 had 3,549, so heating demand ran 10% below the 1991 to 2020 normal.

    States with a similar break-even

    State near TennesseeBreak-even COP near TennesseeGas, $ per MMBtuHeat pump, $ per MMBtu
    West Virginia3.22$14.02$15.05
    Wyoming3.29$11.93$13.07
    Nebraska3.12$11.58$12.05
    Delaware3.09$16.23$16.73
    Massachusetts3.51$25.46$29.78
    Ohio3.53$14.07$16.57

    Questions on heating in Tennessee

    How electric is heating in Tennessee?

    63.3% of 2,768,743 homes, 1,751,307 in all, ranks 4 of 45 states; 77 of 95 counties are over half electric.

    Is a heat pump cheaper than gas in Tennessee?

    No on fuel cost: $12.88 per MMBtu against $12.03 for gas, break-even COP 3.21.

    Which Tennessee county has the most electric heating?

    Union County: 87% of 7,771 homes among counties with 20,000+ residents, median income $61,858.

    What share of Tennessee homes heat with electricity?

    63% of 2,768,743 occupied homes in ACS 2023, against 31% with utility gas.

    Where does Tennessee rank on heat pump cost?

    11 of 45 at $12.88 per MMBtu; North Dakota is lowest at $11.54.

    Is Tennessee a winter or summer electricity state?

    Summer use runs +51% over spring and fall, winter +50%: cooling drives the load.

    Did gas or electricity get more expensive in Tennessee in 2026?

    January to Jul: electricity +4.9%, gas +10.3% on a year earlier.

    How much generating capacity does Tennessee have?

    23,342 MW operable in 2025, 1,202 MW under construction, 3,150 MW planned (EIA-860).

    How many Tennessee homes have smart meters?

    95.4% of 3,166,532 home meters, 6 of 73 reporting utilities offer time-of-use.

    More on Tennessee

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    With electricity at 13.18 cents per kWh and natural gas at $11.84 per Mcf in 2025, one MMBtu of heat costs $12.03 from a gas furnace, $12.88 from a heat pump and $38.63…