Propane-heated homes in the Northeast are forecast to carry the largest propane bills of the regions the agency reports this winter. The U.S. Energy Information Administration, the Energy Department’s statistics agency, projects that households there will spend about $1,687 on propane from November through March, compared with $1,164 in the South. The figures come from the agency’s Winter Fuels Outlook, published Oct. 6, 2026.

Propane costs by region

The agency’s table gives these winter totals for homes that use propane as their main heating fuel, along with how much each is expected to change from last winter:

• Northeast: $1,687, down 15 percent, based on about 515 gallons at $3.28 a gallon
• Midwest: $1,305, down 4 percent, based on about 641 gallons at $2.04 a gallon
• South: $1,164, unchanged, based on about 365 gallons at $3.19 a gallon
• U.S. average: $1,246, down 3 percent, based on about 494 gallons at $2.52 a gallon

The national average is a weighted figure for the Northeast, Midwest and South, so the table has no West number. The agency counts about 6.4 million U.S. households with propane as the main heating fuel: roughly 1.3 million in the Northeast, 2.2 million in the Midwest, 1.9 million in the South and 974,000 in the West.

For those households, the forecast is a first look at the bill that arrives with each delivery. A household in the Northeast that fills a tank several times between November and March is the one the $1,687 figure describes, and it is also the household most likely to ask whether any help with that bill exists before the first fill.

A forecast $1,687 for November through March is a large share of a fixed income, and heating help is income-based and set state by state. The Senior Property Tax & Home-Cost Relief Kit covers heating, cooling and home-repair help for older homeowners.

Find heating, cooling and home-repair help in the Senior Property Tax & Home-Cost Relief Kit →

Why the Northeast pays more

Price is only part of it. The South’s propane price, $3.19 a gallon, is close to the Northeast’s $3.28. The gap in the totals comes mostly from gallons: the agency expects Northeast homes to burn about 515 gallons, compared with about 365 in the South, where winters are milder. The Midwest has the cheapest propane at $2.04 a gallon, but its homes are expected to use the most, about 641 gallons, which puts the region’s total between the other two.

The Northeast number is also falling the fastest. The agency expects lower prices and lower use to bring Northeast propane spending down 15 percent from last winter. That follows the agency’s forecast for a warmer Northeast, and its own caution applies: the figures are a broad guide for comparing this winter with the last, and home size, insulation and heating equipment all change what a given household actually spends.

Propane against other fuels

Propane is one of four main heating fuels in the outlook. The agency’s national averages for the winter are $640 for natural gas, down 9 percent; $1,196 for electricity, up 4 percent; $1,246 for propane, down 3 percent; and $2,115 for heating oil, up 21 percent. In its news release, the agency says households that mainly heat with natural gas or propane, about half of all U.S. households, are expected to spend less than last winter. Heating oil homes, about 3 percent of households, face the biggest increase.

The agency also warns against reading the table as a reason to switch fuels. Housing differs too much from one fuel group to the next, and a lower average for one fuel does not mean a lower bill for any one home.

What can change the forecast

Weather is the largest swing. The outlook assumes temperatures close to last winter’s nationally, with a warmer Northeast and a much colder West, and it runs side cases in which every region is 10 percent colder or 10 percent warmer. A colder Northeast winter than assumed would mean more gallons burned. The agency’s next monthly outlook is due Nov. 10, 2026, and will update the numbers.

Lining up heating help before the first fill

The federal Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, known as LIHEAP, is the main public route. USAGov says it can help pay heating or cooling bills or provide emergency services during an energy crisis, and in some places electric bills. Eligibility is based on income, each state sets its own requirements, and applications go through the state or territory LIHEAP office, some online and some in person.

USAGov also notes that every state has its own policy on when a utility can disconnect electricity or natural gas for non-payment, and that the rules may weigh weather, age, disability or the utility. Households that heat with delivered propane or oil should ask the state office whether fuel deliveries are covered, since the page does not say.

A short list helps at the application: receipts from last winter’s propane fills with gallons and price, proof of household income, and the current supplier’s name and account number. Comparing last winter’s gallons with the agency’s regional figure, 515 in the Northeast, shows quickly whether a home runs above or below the forecast.

A $1,687 propane winter needs a plan

The forecast is about prices, but a household still has to pay the delivery, and applying for help late can mean a tank running low first. The Senior Property Tax & Home-Cost Relief Kit points to heating, cooling and home-repair help and includes an application log and renewal calendar, so each application and its renewal date stay in one place. It runs 64 pages.

Start an application log for winter heating help with the relief kit →

This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.