Ever more gas-free homes

© CBS
An increasing number of homes in the Netherlands are heated without the use of natural gas. In 2024, 11.2 percent of homes were fully gas-free, up from 8.7 percent in 2022. These homes are usually heated using a heat pump or are connected to a collective district heating system. This means they do not require a gas-fired boiler. Statistics Netherlands (CBS) reports this on the basis of newly released figures.

In addition to completely gas-free homes, there are also ever more almost-gas-free homes. These homes, due to the use of a hybrid heat pump for instance, consume much less natural gas than homes heated by a traditional central heating boiler, whether individual or collective. In 2024, 3.7 percent of homes were in this ‘hybrid home’ category, compared to 1.5 percent in 2022.

Newer homes are more likely to be gas-free

Most gas-free or almost-gas-free homes have been built since 2015. Since 1 July 2018, no construction permits have been issued for new buildings with a gas connection, so the share of gas-free homes will continue to increase.

In 2023, 36 percent of homes built since 2015 are electrically heated. This is usually by means of a heat pump, but other forms of heating are also possible, such as air conditioning and infrared panels. 33 percent of these are completely gas-free. 3 percent still use gas in addition to a main heating source that runs on electricity. Around 20 percent are connected to a collective district heating system.

In the case of homes built before 2015, collective district heating is the main alternative to traditional central heating boilers, and fewer homes are heated electrically. Electrically heated homes built before 2006 usually have a hybrid heating system, using natural gas for supplemental heating, cooking and hot water in addition to the main electrical heating source.

The share of gas-free and almost-gas-free homes also depends on the type of housing in question. 12 percent of apartments are connected to collective district heating systems, while only 1 percent of detached houses are. For homes that are heated electrically, the opposite is true. Nearly 13 percent of de-tached homes are electrically heated, compared with 5 percent of apartments.

District heating systems are mainly in and around large cities

Collective district heating means that homes are connected to a local distribution network for hot water, and these are mainly found in urban areas. By 2023, collective district heating system was the main form of heating in the suburban districts of Purmerend, Almere, Duiven and Nieuwegein.



In the east and north of the country - in Rozendaal, Ameland and Tubbergen, for instance - a relatively large number of homes have hybrid heating. Fully electrically heated homes are common in municipalities in the Randstad, such as Waddinxveen and Rijswijk. Blaricum and Etten-Leur also have relatively large numbers of electrically heated homes.