This page brings together clear, citable figures for homeowners, writers, and researchers looking at how homes heat, cool, and use energy. Every figure links to its original source and shows the data year.
The latest detailed national household energy-use figures available from the U.S. Energy Information Administration are from its 2020 Residential Energy Consumption Survey. Newer housing-characteristics releases do not yet replace those detailed consumption figures.
At a glance
52%
of average household energy use went to space heating and air conditioning in 2020.
Heating and cooling are the two biggest energy end uses in the average U.S. home, which is why equipment condition, airflow, and seasonal care can matter so much to comfort and utility use.
Source: EIA, Energy use in homes 2020 data, page updated December 18, 202388%
of U.S. households used air conditioning in 2020.
Air conditioning is common across the country, but use still varies by climate, housing type, and the age of the home.
Source: EIA, Nearly 90% of U.S. households used air conditioning in 2020 2020 data, published May 31, 202267%
of U.S. homes had central air conditioning in 2020.
That share rose from 27% in 1980, according to the EIA's Residential Energy Consumption Survey.
Source: EIA, Electricity use in homes 2020 data, page updated December 18, 202390%
of single-family detached homes used air conditioning in 2020.
The same EIA analysis found lower air-conditioning use in apartments, underscoring how home type affects equipment needs and energy use.
Source: EIA, Nearly 90% of U.S. households used air conditioning in 2020 2020 data, published May 31, 2022254 billion kWh
of household electricity was used for air conditioning in 2020.
That was about 19% of all electricity consumed in U.S. homes, making cooling one of the country's largest household electricity uses.
Source: EIA, How much electricity is used for air conditioning in the United States? 2020 data, page updated March 15, 202461%
of U.S. households used natural gas for at least one home energy use in 2020.
Space heating, water heating, and cooking were the most common uses reported in the EIA survey.
Source: EIA, The majority of U.S. households used natural gas in 2020 2020 data, published March 23, 202374%
of households in the West Census Region used natural gas for at least one end use in 2020.
In the same survey, 60% of Western households used natural gas for space heating. Colorado is part of the Mountain division within the West Census Region.
Source: EIA, The majority of U.S. households used natural gas in 2020 2020 data, published March 23, 202376.7 MMBtu
was the average U.S. household's site-energy use in 2020.
Site energy is the energy that enters a home, including grid electricity, on-site solar generation, natural gas, propane, and fuel oil.
Source: EIA, U.S. households in warmer states consume less site energy than households in colder states 2020 data, published March 9, 2023Colorado homes feel both sides of the system.
National figures cannot diagnose an individual home, but they do show why heating and cooling decisions deserve a full look at the equipment, airflow, controls, and the home itself. For a local conversation about a furnace or air-conditioning concern, ProDiamond Hvac serves Aurora and the Denver metro.
Request a Quote ›How to read this page.
Figures are reported as the source publishes them. Most are from the EIA's 2020 Residential Energy Consumption Survey, a survey of 18,496 households conducted in late 2020 and early 2021. This page does not estimate local costs, predict energy bills, or treat regional results as a substitute for an assessment of a specific home.
- EIA Residential Energy Consumption Survey, data and methodology hub
- EIA Energy use in homes, national household energy-use context
- EIA natural gas use in U.S. households, national and census-region results
Cite this page
ProDiamond Hvac. “Home Heating and Cooling Statistics: 2026 Update.” Accessed October 28, 2026. https://prodiamond-hvac.com/hvac-statistics