health care ; and high-speed internet access in rural , tribal and high-poverty areas . For more information , visit www . rd . usda . gov .
To subscribe to USDA Rural Development updates , visit GovDelivery subscriber page .
Note : The above USDA news release has been edited for space and clarity .
SPACE HEATING CONSUMED THE MOST ENERGY IN HOMES
Space heating continued to be the top energy-consuming end use in U . S . homes in 2020 according to the Residential Energy Consumption Survey ( RECS ). Heating homes accounted for 42 % of energy consumption in the residential sector . Space heating in U . S . households cost $ 519 on average . Energy consumption and expenditures varied across the country , depending on the climate and energy source used .
“ For the first time , RECS estimates allow us to compare household end uses across all 50 states and the District of Columbia ,” said EIA Administrator Joe DeCarolis . “ We now have the opportunity to compare household energy uses from state to state .”
Households in New Hampshire , one of the coldest states in the United States , spent an average of $ 981 on space heating . Fuel oil is the most common primary heating fuel used in New Hampshire households ( 40 %). In Louisiana , one of the warmest states , households spent just $ 244 on average to heat their homes . Electricity is used more than any other fuel as the primary heating source for households in that state ( 62 %).
Additional takeaways from the 2020 RECS energy end-use consumption and expenditures results include :
• In the Midwest , 70 % of households used natural gas as their primary heating fuel , but natural gas consumption varied across states in that region . Households in Michigan , for example , were among the highest natural gas consumers for space heating with an average use of 72.7 million British thermal units ( MMBtu ) in 2020 . During the same time period , households in Kansas used an average of only 50.9
MMBtu .
• Households that used fuel oil or kerosene as their primary space-heating fuel spent an average of $ 1,164 on space heating in 2020 . These households spent more on space heating than homes that used propane ($ 1,010 ), natural gas ($ 519 ), or electricity ($ 396 ) as their primary spaceheating fuel . Fuel oil is most likely to be used by households in cold climates that have high heating demand , leading to higher bills for those households .
• Air conditioning accounted for 9 % of total site energy across all U . S . households , but that percentage varied widely across states ; for example , air conditioning accounted for 28 % of total site energy usage in Florida but just 2 % in Maine .
• Households spent an average of $ 91 on lighting in 2020 , compared with $ 147 in the 2015 RECS . Households consumed an average of 654 kilowatthours ( kWh ) in 2020 , down from the estimate of 1,105 kWh reported in 2015 . Households used more light-emitting diode ( LED ) lightbulbs in 2020 than in 2015 . In 2020 , 47 % of households reported that they used LED bulbs for all or most of their indoor lighting , compared with only 4 % of households in 2015 .
• Households with one member spent an average of $ 96 on refrigeration in 2020 , compared with households with four members , which spent an average of $ 128 on refrigeration . Only 16 % of households with one member had two or more refrigerators compared with 44 % of households with four members .
• Electricity consumption for refrigeration varied by state . At the lower end , households in Washington , DC , consumed an average of 610 kWh for refrigeration , whereas on the higher end , households in Georgia consumed an average of 928 kWh for refrigeration annually . In addition , households in Georgia were more likely to report having a second refrigerator ( 37 %) than households in DC ( 15 %).
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