How Much Does it Cost to Heat with Heating Oil?

Posted on by Hunter Geist

Heating Oil is known to be one of, if not the most popular form of heating in the Northeast United States. It’s also known to be the most cost-effective form of heating. It is readily available and can be found in seven million homes across the United States. But, how much does it cost to heat with heating oil? With oil prices in this day and age, the average home will use around $1,500 to $2,500 worth of heating oil yearly for will-call orders only. Those who use automatic delivery will often spend $1,750-$3,000 a year on heating oil costs. In this blog post, we’ll break this down and more!

Saving Money on Heating Oil

There are a lot of factors that contribute to how much it costs to heat your home. However, I’ve compiled a list of the five biggest factors that you should be aware of when trying to get the best price possible for heating.

  1. Automatic vs Will-Call Delivery: Customers who use will-call delivery will only order oil when they need it. By doing this, they will save an additional $0.50 per gallon compared to customers who get their deliveries automatically. By using various online tools such as the FuelSnap website, you’ll be able to save a lot more money on heating costs Size of Your Home: The bigger your home is, the more oil you’ll have to burn. This is because your furnace has to work harder to heat your home. An average 2,500-square-foot home will use around 570-1,200 gallons of heating oil per year Insulation and Windows: A home that is well-ventilated and has good windows, will usually save up to 50% on heating oil costs. You can also check out our Ten Tips to Save on Heating Oil for more information Interior Temperature: The temperature you set for the interior of your home can have a major impact on how much oil you are burning. But, you can program your thermostat to optimize the temperature settings in your house to ensure that you’re not burning too much Exterior Temperature: The temperature outside can greatly affect how much oil you are burning. The colder it is outside, the more you’ll have to burn which means the more oil you’ll use!
For the average sized home in the Northeast, you’ll see an average usage of around 570-1,200 gallons of oil per year. Will-call buyers will spend about $1,200 to $2,000 yearly on heating oil costs. However, automatic delivery buyers will often spend between $1,500-$2,500 yearly on oil costs.

Average Heating Oil Costs in the Northeast

By ordering heating oil online only when you need, it you’ll save an average of $0.50 per gallon. You can use the FuelSnap website to order heating oil or look elsewhere online to get the best prices available to you. Alternatively, you can order automatic delivery which tends to be more convenient. However, it tends to be more expensive. Dealers will often charge you a more premium price for heating oil if you do automatic delivery. You can also use the Smart Oil Gauge to keep track of your oil level and gain the convenience of automatic delivery and the prices of will-call!

There are a variety of other ways to save money to get the best bang for your buck on heating oil. Some of these include sealing up drafty windows and adding additional insulation where it tends to get cold quickly. Getting a programmable thermostat is also a nice asset to have. That will allow you to optimize your thermostat’s settings to only burn a preset amount of heating oil. However, if your home has forced hot air, then you can turn off your air vents during the day to save on usage. But if you have a boiler, then it’s likely best to keep the temperature at a constant.

According to the America Energy Information Administration (EIA), oil prices were at a low point during 2020 and 2021 due to COVID. While during the 2022 season, prices took a sharp increase because of the high demand for heating oil.

The Best Way to Save Money on Heating Oil

With all this information at your disposal, you should consider which steps to take to save money on heating oil. The most instantaneous and best money-saving change you can make is to switch to will-call-only delivery from automatic. This is because automatic delivery often charges you the premium price which will cost you more. When you order oil through our FuelSnap website, you’ll save an average of 0.50 cents a gallon and sometimes even more!

You can also improve how well your home will retain heat by adding extra insulation and fixing up your drafty windows. Doing so will prevent heat from escaping your home, meaning you’ll have longer lasting heat!

Finally, try programming a thermostat to lower your home’s heat at night. When you’re not home, turn off your heat as well. This will help reduce the amount of heat you are burning and will help reduce energy costs for your home.

Happy Heating,

Hunter