How much gas do German households use? Which factors drive up private gas consumption and what is natural gas used for in the home? Read more about the development and current gas consumption of private households and small businesses in Germany.
According to the Federal Network Agency, private households and small commercial customers in Germany account for around 40 percent of the gas consumption responsible, the remaining 60 percent are accounted for by industrial customers. This article deals with the gas consumption of so-called standard load profile customers (SLP customers). This includes private households and commercial customers with an annual gas consumption of up to 1.5 GWh. Read here how the natural gas-Consumption has evolved in this sector and how it is influenced by factors such as outside temperature, living space and user behaviour. Have private households managed to save gas?
Gas consumption in private households: Where is gas used in the household?
Gas heaters are the most common type of heating in Germany. In addition to heating living spaces, which accounts for the largest share of gas consumption in private households and small businesses, natural gas is also used in German households for cooking (gas stove) and for heating water (gas boiler). In addition, some households use electricity generated by burning gas.
Monthly gas consumption of private households in Germany
The following table gives an overview of the development of gas consumption in private households and small businesses. Gas consumption is shown as a monthly average in gigawatt hours per day. You can find the distribution of the total gas consumption in Germany in the sectors of private households vs. industrial customers including a weekly breakdown here.
| Month | 2022 (in GWh/Tag) | 2021 (in GWh/Tag) | Ø 2018-2021 (in GWh/Tag) |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 2060 | 2274 | 2111 |
| February | 1858 | 2130 | 2046 |
| March | 1485 | 1691 | 1673 |
| April | 1120 | 1389 | 976 |
| May | 425 | 864 | 660 |
| June | 266 | 270 | 277 |
| July | 212 | 253 | 246 |
| August | 185 | 307 | 242 |
| September | 405 | 411 | 413 |
| October | 587 | 1019 | 953 |
| November | 1184 | 1669 | 1607 |
| December | 1871 | 2032 | 1938 |
Relationship between gas consumption and temperature
The heating behavior (and thus also the gas consumption) is of course strongly temperature-dependent: the lower the outside temperature drops, the more the heating is turned up. And when it gets warmer outside, less heating is required. For this reason, the temperature in the respective observation period must always be taken into account when comparing gas consumption.
Comparison of gas consumption from 2022 and 2018-2021: have German households saved gas?
A calculation follows that compares the gas consumption values for the current year listed in the table above with the average consumption values from the past three years. Was more or less gas used than in the same month of the reference period? In order to be able to better classify this result with regard to the influence of the outside temperature, the relative development of gas consumption in private households is compared with the monthly average temperatures. Savings in gas consumption are particularly noteworthy trotz lower (colder) or the same temperatures.
January
- gas consumption down -2.4%
- 2.6°C in 2022 (Ø 2018-2021: 2.0°C)
- –> 0,6 °C warmer temperatures
February
- gas consumption down -9.2%
- 4.3°C in 2022 (Ø 2018-2021: 2.2°C)
- –> 2,1 °C warmer temperatures
March
- gas consumption down -11.2%
- 5.1°C in 2022 (Ø 2018-2021: 4.7°C)
- –> 0,4 °C warmer temperatures
April
- gas consumption up 14.8%
- 7.7°C in 2022 (Ø 2018-2021: 9.5°C)
- –> -1,8 °C colder temperatures
May
- gas consumption down -35.6%
- 14.4°C in 2022 (Ø 2018-2021: 12.3°C)
- –> 2,1 °C warmer temperatures
June
- gas consumption down -4%
- 18.3°C in 2022 (Ø 2018-2021: 18.2°C)
- –> 0,1 °C warmer temperatures
July
- gas consumption down -13.8%
- 19.1°C in 2022 (Ø 2018-2021: 18.7°C)
- –> 0,4 °C warmer temperatures
August
- gas consumption down -23.6%
- 20.2°C in 2022 (Ø 2018-2021: 18.7°C)
- –> 1,5 °C warmer temperatures
September
- gas consumption down -1.9%
- 13.3°C in 2022 (Ø 2018-2021: 14.7°C)
- –> -1,4 °C colder temperatures
October
- gas consumption down -38.4%
- 12.5°C in 2022 (Ø 2018-2021: 10.3°C)
- –> 2,2 °C warmer temperatures
November
- gas consumption down -26.3%
- 6.4°C in 2022 (Ø 2018-2021: 5.3°C)
- –> 1,1 °C warmer temperatures
December
- gas consumption down -3.5%
- 1.8°C in 2022 (Ø 2018-2021: 3.2°C)
- –> -1,4 °C colder temperatures
Factors influencing the individual gas consumption of private households
The level of individual gas consumption varies and, apart from the outside temperatures, also depends on other factors:
– living space
– Form of housing
– Insulation
– Type and age of the heating system
– Number of people
– user behavior.
The size of the apartment probably has the greatest influence on gas consumption. Because the larger the living space, the more gas is needed to heat it. The type of housing and the age of the building also play a decisive role in individual gas consumption. Residents of apartment buildings benefit from the fact that neighboring apartments insulate each other and heat the neighbors, so to speak. As a result, apartment buildings use less gas than single-family homes. Older buildings usually have poorer insulation of walls and windows. Due to the reduced insulation compared to new buildings, older buildings give off more heat to the outside, which is why more heating is required when temperatures are low. The type and age of the heating system should also be taken into account, because efficient heating technology significantly reduces energy consumption in the long term.
The number of people living in the household usually only plays an indirect role in heating, insofar as it often affects the size of the living space. However, if natural gas is used for heating as well as hot water, the size of the household can make a significant difference. The user behavior of the people living in the household is another relevant influencing factor on gas consumption. For example, a relatively high feel-good temperature of 23°C and a preference for cooking on a gas stove or for taking a full bath can have an impact on your gas bill. This news.de article tells you which tricks you can use to lower your heating costs and save money when showering.
Would you like to find out more about gas consumption in Germany? Then take a look at our other articles on the subject:
Gas consumption in industry
Gas storage level currently in Germany
Maintenance work at German gas storage locations
+++ Editorial note: This text was created automatically based on current data from the Federal Network Agency. The table data can change retrospectively depending on the final billing and is updated every Thursday by the Federal Network Agency. If you have any comments or questions, please contact [email protected]. +++
follow News.de already at Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube? Here you will find the latest news, the latest videos and the direct line to the editors.
roj/news.de