Survey of Household Energy Use, 2019

Survey of Household Energy Use

The Survey of Household Energy Use (SHEU) is a joint project between Statistics Canada and Natural Resources Canada (NRCan). It collects data on the energy use characteristics of private dwellings in Canada and on household use of energy resources. This report provides highlights from the survey and insights on household energy use and energy efficiencies.

The SHEU gathers information on energy use and factors affecting energy use in households, which assists in the delivery of programs to support Canadians as they seek to achieve greater energy efficiency and reduce their greenhouse gas (GHG) footprint. In 2019, about 15 million Canadian households consumed 1.5 billion gigajoules (GJ) of energy to power activities inside the home, with the average Canadian household consuming just under 100 gigajoules of energy. This is a decrease of about 1.5% from the 2015 SHEU, demonstrating that energy efficiency has helped curb energy use increase arising from higher activity levels, more appliances, and slightly colder temperatures in the home.

Household
Energy Use

Household Energy Use in 2019

  • Canadians used more than 1.5 billion GJ of energy, an increase of approximately 56 million GJ from 2015. Ontario was the most energy-consuming province with 554.7 million GJ (38%) of energy use, an increase of just over 5 million GJ from 2015.
  • The Atlantic provinces consumed the least amount of energy with only 87.2 million GJ (6%). This was a decrease of almost 22 million GJ from 2015.
  • Natural gas was the most consumed fuel in Canada with 723.9 million GJ (49%), followed by electricity with 594.9 million GJ (41%), and oil/wood with 149 million GJ (10%).
  • Quebec was the largest consumer of electricity (236.5 million GJ, 40%).
  • Ontario consumed the most natural gas with 362.7 million GJ (50%). Meanwhile, the Atlantic provinces utilized the least amount of natural gas, using 2.5 million GJ (0.3%).
  • Quebec was also the largest consumer of oil and wood with 74.3 million GJ (50%) used.
fig_01.png - Figure 1: Energy Consumption by Region, 2019
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Figure 1: Energy consumption by region, 2019

Region Energy consumption (%) Number of households (million)
Atlantic 6 1.0
Quebec 22 3.7
Ontario 38 5.6
Manitoba/Saskatchewan 8 1.0
Alberta 14 1.6
British Columbia 12 2.0
fig_02.png - Figure 2: Energy Consumption by Region and Type, 2019
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Figure 2: Energy consumption by region and type, 2019 (%)

Region Electricity Natural Gas Other (including Oil and Wood)
Canada 41 49 10
British Columbia 35 59 6
Alberta 19 79 1
Manitoba/Saskatchewan 33 65 2
Ontario 30 65 4
Quebec 73 5 23
Atlantic 56 3 41
Note: numbers may not add up to 100% due to rounding.
Household
Characteristics

General Characteristics of Canadian Households

  • There were about 15 million households in Canada, an increase of 0.8 million homes from 2015. The most households are in Ontario (5.6 million), whereas Manitoba/Saskatchewan had the least (950 thousand).
  • Single detached homes were the most common type of dwelling in Canada and mobile homes were the least common.
  • Two-member households were the most common (35%), followed by one-member households (31%).
  • Households with only seniors (aged 65 or over) was the most common age demographic (20%).
  • The average heated area per household was 177.7 m2, a decrease from 194.8 m2 in 2015. Alberta continued to have the largest average heated area with 188.3 m2, whereas Quebec had the smallest with 158.1 m2.
fig_03.png - Figure 3: Distribution of Dwellings by Type, 2019
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Figure 3: Distribution of Dwellings by Type, 2019 (%)

Type of Dwelling Percent
Single detached house 60
Double / Row or Terrace / Duplex 13
Low-rise apartment 12
High-rise apartment 10
Mobile home 1
Don’t know/Not stated 4
fig_04.png - Figure 4: Distribution of Dwellings by Year of Construction, 2019
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Figure 4: Distribution of Dwellings by Year of Construction, 2019 (%)

Year of Construction Percent
Before 1946 10
1946 – 1960 12
1961 – 1977 23
1978 – 1983 10
1984 – 1995 15
1996 – 2000 6
2001 – 2010 13
2011 or later 8
Not stated 3
Energy
Intensity

Energy Intensity

  • Alberta had the highest energy intensity, with 124.8 gigajoules per household (GJ per household), while the Atlantic provinces had the lowest with 85.2 GJ per household. The national average was 98.1 GJ per household, a decrease from 99.6 GJ per household back in 2015.
  • In Canada, household income is positively correlated with energy intensity.
  • By dwelling type, single detached homes had the highest energy intensity, with 122.8 GJ per household, whereas high-rise apartments had the least energy intensity (39.3 GJ per household).
  • The average energy intensity for electricity in Canada was 39.8 GJ per household.
  • Quebec households consumed the most electricity, with 63.9 GJ per household; more than double the consumption in Alberta (24.2 GJ per household) and Ontario (29.8 GJ per household).
  • Canadians that own their homes had higher energy intensity (112.3 GJ per household) compared to those that rented (55.4 GJ per household).
fig_05.png - Figure 5: Energy Intensity per Household, 2019
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Figure 5: Energy Intensity by Region, 2019 (GJ per Household)

Region Energy Intensity (GJ per Household)
Canada 98.1
Atlantic 85.2
Quebec 88.1
Ontario 98.3
Manitoba/Saskatchewan 119.3
Alberta 124.8
British Columbia 91.2
fig_06.png - Figure 6: Energy Intensity per Household by Income, 2019
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Figure 6: Energy Intensity by Income, 2019 (GJ per Household)

Income Level Energy Intensity (GJ per Household)
<$20k 72.5
$20k – $40k 76.3
$40k – $60k 85.3
$60k – $80k 96.4
$80k – $100k 97.4
$100k – $150k 111.4
>$150k 127.7

Energy Intensity by Heated Area

  • In Canada, the average energy consumption per heated square metre was 0.55 GJ/m2, an increase from 0.51 GJ/m2 in 2015.
  • Manitoba/Saskatchewan had the highest energy intensity per heated square metre with 0.67 GJ/m2, while the least energy intensive provinces were the Atlantic with 0.47 GJ/m2.
  • Renters consumed more energy per heated area (0.58 GJ/m2) than owners did (0.55 GJ/m2).
Household
Improvements

Major Household Improvements

  • Approximately 1.5 million Canadian households conducted an energy audit within the last 10 years, with 95% of those households making energy efficient changes as a result.
  • Since the beginning of 2015, more than 6.1 million households made improvements that reduce energy consumption.
  • The most common type of improvement made to a dwelling was with water heating equipment, followed by space heating equipment and windows.
  • Approximately 934 thousand households received a government grant as part of a home energy retrofit program.
fig_07.png - Figure 7: Households by Major Household Improvement, 2019
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Figure 7: Number of Households by Major Household Improvement, 2019 (million)

Major Household Improvement Number of Households (million)
Space heating equipment 2.0
Water heating equipment 2.4
Windows (including patio doors) 1.9
Caulking or weather-stripping 1.3
Exterior doors (includng garage doors) 1.4
Installed a programmable thermostat 1.8
Ventilation or central AC equipment 1.3
Heating
Systems

Heating Systems

  • The most common main energy source for heating was natural gas (44%), followed by electricity (31%) and wood (3%).
  • Furnaces were the most common type of main heating equipment, with 54% of Canadian households using this equipment.
  • Almost 6.7 million households (45%) have a supplemental heating system. Among these, gas fireplaces are the most common.
  • When present and awake, Canadian households preferred to have their dwelling temperature between 20°C and 22°C.
  • In general, Canadian households preferred to have their dwelling around the same temperature or lower when they were awake compared to asleep.
fig_08.png - Figure 8: Household Heating by Energy Source, 2019
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Figure 8: Household Heating by Energy Source, 2019 (%)

Main Energy Source Percent
Electricity 31
Natural Gas 44
Heating Oil 3
Wood 3
Propane 1
Other 2
Dual Source 5
Don’t know / Not stated 10
Note: numbers may not add up to 100% due to rounding.
fig_09.png - Figure 9: Household Heating by Heating Equipment, 2019
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Figure 9: Household Heating by Heating Equipment, 2019 (%)

Main Heating Equipment Percent
Furnace 54
Boiler 10
Heating stove (wood, pellet, corn pan, charcoal…) 3
Electric radiant heating 3
Electric baseboards 23
Gas fireplace 1
Heat pump 4
Other 2
Note: numbers may not add up to 100% due to rounding.

Appliances

Appliances

  • Almost 4.7 million households have a second refrigerator, and about 465 thousand have three or more.
  • Electricity was still the most common energy source for cooking appliances, with more than 7.3 million households.
  • The majority of household appliances, including refrigerators, freezers, cooking appliances, dishwashers, clothes washers, and dryers, are 10 years old or less.
fig_10.png - Figure 10: Distribution of Appliances by Age, 2019
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Figure 10: Distribution of Appliances by Age Footnote 1 , 2019 (%)

Appliance Age (years)
≤ 5 6 – 10 11 – 15 ≥ 16
Main refrigerator 31 35 20 14
Second refrigerator 10 9 5 76
Main freezer 24 27 20 29
Cooking appliances Footnote 2 36 32 18 14
Dishwasher 40 34 16 10
Washer 36 33 18 13
Dryer 31 34 20 15
Electronic
Devices

Electronic Devices

  • Televisions (14.6 million households), computers/tablets (13.8 million households), and cellphones (13.7 million households) were the most popular electronic devices. Meanwhile, smart home devices were the least popular, with only 3.2 million households using this type of device.
  • The average use of most electronic devices in a week was less than or equal to four hours. However, cellphones and network devices were typically always turned on.
fig_11.png - Figure 11: Use of the most frequent electronic devices in an average week, 2019
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Figure 11: Use of the most frequent electronic devices in an average week Footnote 1 , 2019 (%)

Device Usage (hours)
≤ 4 5 – 10 11 – 20 ≥ 21 Always turned on
Television 19 23 15 42 1
Devices used with a TV 37 19 11 29 4
Cellphone 22 13 9 16 40
Computer / Tablet 25 20 13 33 9
Network device 10 8 6 14 62

Lighting

Lighting

  • Light-emitting diodes (LED) were the most used lightbulbs across Canada, with almost 9.9 million households using them, followed closely by incandescent with 9.7 million households.
  • The number of households using LEDs increased by 68% since 2015 (5.9 million households).
  • The average number of hours of use increases during the winter compared to the summer.
fig_12.png - Figure 12: Lightbulb Usage by Type, 2019
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Figure 12: Lightbulb Usage by Type, 2019 (%)

Type of Lightbulb Percent
Incandescent 65
Compact fluorescent 44
Halogen 47
Other fluroescent 43
LED 66
Other 11
Electric
Vehicles

Electric Vehicles

  • There are approximately 655 thousand households (4%) that own an electric or hybrid vehicle in Canada.
  • Household income is positively correlated with owning an electric or hybrid vehicle.
Additional sources
and data tables

Additional sources and data tables