Heating is becoming more expensive again

24.09.2025

Source: E & M powernews

After the end of the energy crisis, heating costs in Germany initially fell. Now it is becoming significantly more expensive again.

According to the latest heating index for Germany from the consultancy CO2online, the average heating costs for households with gas heating will rise by 15 percent in 2025 compared to the previous year. This is according to a recent press release from the consultancy. The analysis is based on consumption and cost data from more than 90,000 residential buildings.

However, gas customers are not the group most affected by price increases: for wood pellets, the heating index even shows an increase of 20 percent compared to the previous year. The costs for heat pumps (+5 percent), heating oil (+3 percent) and district heating (+2 percent) are rising moderately. According to CO2online, the main reasons for the price increases are higher energy prices and the cold winter at the beginning of the year.

In 2024, heating costs were still falling in many households: heat pumps (-19%) and wood pellets (-20%) in particular benefited from falling energy prices. Gas heating systems also became cheaper (-16%), while district heating (+1%) and heating oil (-1%) hardly changed.

For a 70-square-metre apartment in an apartment building, the average heating costs in 2025 will be EUR 715 with a heat pump, EUR 1,180 with natural gas, EUR 1,055 with heating oil and EUR 1,245 with district heating, according to the heating index.

(calculated for a 70-square-meter apartment in an apartment building. Source: CO2online)

Heating with fossil fuels therefore remains more expensive than before the energy crisis. And according to CO2online's forecasts, this is unlikely to change: Heating costs for gas and oil could be around three times higher in the next 20 years than they are today, writes the consultancy, basing its forecasts on the heating index and the calculations of the Ariadne project.

For example, an unrenovated detached house with gas heating would incur heating costs of around 120,000 euros over a period of 20 years. By modernizing energy efficiency and switching to a heat pump, the costs could be reduced to around 16,000 euros over the same period.

Significant savings potential

The main reasons for the continuing rise in the cost of fossil heating systems are rising CO2 prices, higher grid charges and structural market changes. However, the savings potential in most private households remains high: according to the heating index, 90 percent of households could reduce their heating costs by an average of 400 euros per year by changing their behavior and implementing simple technical measures. Extrapolated, this results in a nationwide savings potential of around 22 billion euros per year.

In the short term, optimizations such as adjusting the heating curve, airing the room in bursts or reducing hot water consumption can save up to ten percent energy. In the medium and long term, however, investments in efficiency measures such as hydraulic balancing, pipe insulation or replacing windows are crucial.

"Energy costs are high (...) especially in old buildings with poor energy efficiency," comments Melanie Weber-Moritz, President of the German Tenants' Association, on the figures. "Sustainable savings can therefore primarily be achieved by investing in the buildings themselves, for example in the heating system, insulation or replacing windows. Politicians must set the right course here to ensure that such investments in rented buildings are tenant-friendly and socially acceptable."

CO2online offers further information and an interactive heating cost comparison on its website.

Author: Katia Meyer-Tien