Most serious cooks favor gas because it responds instantly when you adjust the burner and it provides constant visual feedback on the level of heat hitting your pan. If you have gas or propane service at your house already, and an existing hookup where you want to install your new range, then the swap is fairly simple. Call your utility company or gas provider and inquire about having the line and valves tested before hooking up the new appliance. If you have gas service in another part of your house, say the basement for a furnace, but not in your kitchen, a licensed plumber can typically run a new branch line to the kitchen to connect the range. Expect to pay $256 to $790 for labor and materials, according to pricing data from HomeAdvisor, or about $15 to $25 per linear foot of pipe—the exact cost will depend upon the distance and complexity of tapping into an existing line.
If you don’t currently have gas service, you’ll have to install a propane storage tank and pay for delivery. You’ll also have the added expense of running the new pipes from the tank to your house. “A propane company typically works with the plumber to determine who will tackle which parts of the new line for a propane line running to your new range,” says Steve DiDona, a licensed plumber and owner of DMJ Plumbing & Heating in Brewster, New York. Just for the plumber’s portion of exterior and interior pipe, plus the connection, DiDona estimates an added cost of $1,500 to your project, plus whatever you pay to the propane company to install the new tank. The project can quickly climb into the thousands and is generally only cost-effective if you also want to swap out a dated furnace and water heater to more energy-efficient models that run on propane.
Instead of shelling out for a gas conversion, consider swapping out your electric range for an induction range. They use the same electrical connection as your old electric stove, but they boil faster and simmer more steadily than a gas range. You can find some induction options that aren’t much pricier than a traditional smooth-top electric range.