Total U.S.a

Less 

than 1,000

1,000 

to 1,499

1,500 

to 1,999 

2,000 

to 2,499

2,500 

to 2,999

3,000 

or more

All homes 123.53 30.01 28.08 22.22 15.62 10.31 17.29

Fuel used by main water heater

Natural gas 59.33 12.56 12.18 11.14 7.93 5.91 9.62

Electricity 57.04 16.40 14.86 9.73 6.51 3.66 5.90

Propane 4.12 0.45 0.58 0.80 0.67 0.47 1.16

Fuel oil or kerosene 2.62 0.51 0.35 0.50 0.46 0.23 0.57

Some other fuel 0.41 0.10 0.11 0.06 0.05 0.04 0.04

Size of main water heater

Small (30 gallons or less) 13.28 5.78 3.85 1.93 0.82 0.45 0.45

Medium (31 to 49 gallons) 55.37 12.68 14.53 10.83 7.23 4.38 5.73

Large (50 gallons or more) 46.85 10.18 8.45 7.95 6.32 4.67 9.28

Tankless 8.03 1.38 1.25 1.51 1.24 0.81 1.84

Age of main water heater

Less than 2 years old 17.65 3.13 4.01 3.79 2.39 1.75 2.59

2 to 4 years old 22.49 4.90 4.97 4.34 2.90 1.94 3.43

5 to 9 years old 38.96 10.24 8.91 6.71 4.91 3.07 5.13

10 to 14 years old 25.10 6.46 5.84 3.98 3.32 2.10 3.40

15 to 19 years old 10.35 2.63 2.28 1.95 1.18 0.78 1.53

20 years or more 8.98 2.66 2.07 1.45 0.92 0.68 1.21

Fuel used by secondary water heater

Natural gas 2.34 0.26 0.21 0.18 0.26 0.30 1.12

Electricity 2.92 0.45 0.28 0.38 0.38 0.37 1.07

Some other fuel 0.48 Q Q 0.07 0.06 Q 0.25

Does not have a secondary water 

heater 117.78 29.28 27.56 21.59 14.91 9.59 14.86

Data release date: March 2023

Table HC8.9 Water heating in U.S. homes, by home size, 2020

Number of housing units (million)

Size of home in square feetb

Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Office of Energy Demand and Integrated Statistics, Form EIA-457A of the 2020 Residential 

Energy Consumption Survey

Notes: Because of rounding, data may not sum to totals. See RECS Terminology for the definitions of terms used in these tables.

a Total U.S. includes all primary occupied housing units in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Vacant housing units, seasonal units, second 

homes, military houses, and group quarters are excluded.

b Total square footage includes all basements, finished or conditioned (heated or cooled) areas of attics, and conditioned garage space that is 

attached to the home. Unconditioned and unfinished areas in attics and attached garages are excluded. The square footage of the home is based on 

respondent reports. Previous RECS cycles calculated square footage based on interviewer measurements. For households that did not report an exact 

square footage estimate, the square footage of the home was imputed based on a reported square footage range and/or characteristics of the home. 

See 2020 RECS Square Footage Methodology for full details about data collection and processing.

Q = Data withheld because either the relative standard error (RSE) was greater than 50% or fewer than 10 households were in the reporting sample.

N = No households in reporting sample. 
Total U.S.a

Less 

than 1,000

1,000 

to 1,499

1,500 

to 1,999 

2,000 

to 2,499

2,500 

to 2,999

3,000 

or more

All homes 0.00 1.20 1.54 1.59 2.32 2.55 1.93

Fuel used by main water heater

Natural gas 0.75 2.52 2.74 2.19 3.07 3.75 2.89

Electricity 0.80 1.90 2.11 2.55 3.49 4.09 3.43

Propane 4.44 16.28 11.32 8.81 11.92 14.42 8.00

Fuel oil or kerosene 5.20 14.69 16.28 13.22 10.61 15.88 9.53

Some other fuel 16.08 32.34 27.26 29.93 30.76 31.61 32.83

Size of main water heater

Small (30 gallons or less) 2.50 3.32 5.07 7.05 10.19 14.52 11.28

Medium (31 to 49 gallons) 1.02 2.17 2.48 2.71 3.02 3.64 3.83

Large (50 gallons or more) 1.04 2.75 2.98 3.20 3.65 3.40 2.34

Tankless 3.52 9.78 9.54 7.61 8.10 10.26 5.72

Age of main water heater

Less than 2 years old 2.02 5.40 4.64 4.37 6.25 7.19 4.48

2 to 4 years old 1.87 4.17 5.08 4.20 5.63 6.14 4.66

5 to 9 years old 1.12 2.81 3.32 3.26 3.99 4.77 3.98

10 to 14 years old 1.66 3.66 4.14 4.66 4.20 6.15 4.30

15 to 19 years old 2.95 5.70 6.45 6.46 7.78 9.61 7.35

20 years or more 3.03 6.37 5.91 8.75 9.01 9.76 9.81

Fuel used by secondary water heater

Natural gas 5.83 21.36 21.06 18.34 17.21 14.22 7.97

Electricity 4.87 14.98 17.01 14.90 13.57 13.36 8.25

Some other fuel 12.64 64.18 59.32 30.75 34.82 34.73 17.58

Does not have a secondary water 

heater 0.17 1.23 1.52 1.56 2.48 2.77 2.22

Data release date: March 2023

RSEs for number of housing units

Size of home in square feetb

Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Office of Energy Demand and Integrated Statistics, Form EIA-457A of the 2020 Residential 

Energy Consumption Survey

Notes: See RECS Terminology for the definitions of terms used in these tables.

a Total U.S. includes all primary occupied housing units in the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Vacant housing units, seasonal units, second 

homes, military houses, and group quarters are excluded.

b Total square footage includes all basements, finished or conditioned (heated or cooled) areas of attics, and conditioned garage space that is 

attached to the home. Unconditioned and unfinished areas in attics and attached garages are excluded. The square footage of the home is based on 

respondent reports. Previous RECS cycles calculated square footage based on interviewer measurements. For households that did not report an exact 

square footage estimate, the square footage of the home was imputed based on a reported square footage range and/or characteristics of the home. 

See 2020 RECS Square Footage Methodology for full details about data collection and processing.

Relative standard errors (RSEs) for Table HC8.9 Water heating in U.S. homes, by home size, 2020