Log Burners vs Gas Central Heating - Which is Cheaper in 2025?

Due to rising energy costs, more and more households in the UK have been looking for ways to escape their reliance on the grid.

As a result, many reports have highlighted demand for log burners or wood-burning stoves has skyrocketed in recent months. 

But is wood actually cheaper than gas central heating? 

This guide will discuss the cost of log burners and gas central heating and explore all of the key factors you need to account for. 

Let’s dive in!

Log Burners vs. Natural Gas Heating Key Points:

• Wood fuel costs can be lower than gas or electricity, but availability and cost depend on location. 

• Wood stoves can not replace central heating - in terms of functionality and convenience e.g. they can't provide hot water.

• Wood burners typically cost more to install and maintain. 

• Gas central heating systems are generally more energy-efficient.

• Stoves typically heat one room, while gas central heating can heat multiple rooms or the entire house. 

• Stoves require regular maintenance and fuel sourcing - this is an added cost and inconvenience to consider. 

• The environmental impact depends on fuel type and stove efficiency.

• Consider house size, insulation, and personal preferences when choosing between the two.

Wood Stoves vs Gas Central Heating: A Fair Comparison 

When it comes to determining the running costs of a wood-fuelled heating appliance vs. gas central heating, it is not as straightforward as you might think.

This is because, while we can look at the average costs of wood vs gas (which we’ll do shortly), there are a range of factors and added costs that need to be considered including the cost of installation and maintenance. 

It's also important to note that just like gas and electricity, wood fuel is not immune to supply and demand and prices can vary depending on location and they can fluctuate. 

It's also important to remember that, unlike central heating, log burners can create a lot of mess, require storage space for the logs and typically won't be able to heat multiple zones of your property. 

Average Costs of Gas & Wood per kWh

Overall, the average cost of running a wood-burning stove can range from approximately £0.10 to £0.20 per kWh, whereas the price of running a gas central heating boiler is £0.10 per kWh.

At first glance, it seems clear that wood tends to be more expensive.

However, if you are opting for a wood-burning stove, this appliance will have a lower kilowatt power output than if you were to stick with or purchase a gas boiler.

This means that it will cost less per hour to run an average wood-burning stove than it would for a gas boiler, even if the opposite may be true when it comes to their kilowatt-hour costs.

Also, unlike a gas boiler, a wood-burning stove cannot produce hot water. So, while it costs less to run, it is not as powerful nor useful as gas central heating.

Therefore, you’ll want to set aside time to consider whether or not that is a price you wish to pay in return for keeping your heating bills down.

If you are concerned about keeping warm in other rooms (e.g., when going to bed), you may decide that a log burner is not suitable for your household.

A potential solution would be to install a small electric heater in your bedroom to produce some heat before going to bed.

Just be sure not to leave it on overnight.

For more information on keeping sufficiently warm, check out our ‘ideal room temperature’ guide.

While these are averages (using very broad considerations), how much you’ll actually spend per hour will depend on a wide range of factors.

Other Variables to Consider

So, what are the cost-affecting factors?

Appliance Power Output & Size: 

First and foremost, you’d need to consider the power output of the heating appliance in question.

Let’s take wood-burning stoves, for instance.

The power output of these appliances tends to vary anywhere from 4kW to 10kW.

Naturally, the more powerful the wood-burning stove, the more it will cost to run.

The same logic applies to gas boilers.

Here are the average costs of running different heating systems for each kWh:

• Wood-burning stove: £0.10 to £0.20 per kWh.

• Gas central heating: £0.10 per kWh*

*Current gas prices are limited due to the Energy Price Guarantee which is set to expire in spring 2024.

Type of Fuel Your Appliance Uses: 

The cost of wood also varies depending on the type of wood you opt for.

For example, kiln-dried firewood is about 13% more expensive than seasoned firewood.

While the price we’ve given above for gas applies to natural gas, some households may also wish to opt for an LPG boiler.

If so, you’d be looking at a higher cost per kWh than if you were to go with a natural gas boiler.

LPG boilers also include additional costs since you’d need to rent an LPG storage tank.

This will cost about £250 to install and you’d then have to pay a fee in order to lease the storage tank.

Other Factors to Be Aware Of: 

Moreover, the size/power output of the appliance is a key factor when it comes to the cost per kWh.

Other factors that will shape the kilowatt-hour rate of running a wood-burning stove or gas boiler include the energy efficiency of the appliance and how well it is maintained.

Overall Cost Factors

Your total energy bill will be primarily shaped by your home’s heating demand.

Naturally, the more your household requires heating, the higher your energy bills will be regardless of what appliance you have.

Average Running Costs of Gas & Wood

Now that we have a sense of how much you’d pay per kilowatt hour for any given appliance, we can determine the cost of running it over an extended period of time.

As for the annual running cost, we assume a boiler runs about 130 days per year.

Below, we’ve included the cost of running each appliance on a winter’s day as covering a five-hour period.

However, many households will run their heating for a longer or shorter timeframe.

This will depend on key factors such as how well-insulated your home is and how much time you spend at home. 

Either way, always ensure your home is at a suitable temperature, especially if there is anyone vulnerable to temperature extremes living on the property.

Wood-Burning Stoves/Log Burners:

Natural Gas Boilers/Central Heating:

Pros and Cons of Wood-Burning Stoves

Below we have outlined the pros and cons of wood heating e.g. log burners and wood burning stoves: 

Pros of Wood Heating: 

• As for the options on the modern market, wood-burning stoves most closely resemble traditional open fires.

• Rural regions of the UK susceptible to power outages may benefit enormously from the reliability of log burners.

• Wide range of log burners on the market.

Cons of Wood Heating: 

• Wood-burning stoves may cost a few hundred pounds to install but many models cost several thousand pounds despite offering far less power than gas boilers.

• Lots of modern properties are not built for log-burner installations, thus it may not even be an option.

• The cost of wood can vary significantly (e.g., those in rural areas may have access to free wood on their land in the form of fallen timber and dead trees).

• Space to save wood is also required.

• You can’t use a wood-burning stove to heat your entire home.

• Log burners come with certain safety risks (e.g., you can’t risk falling asleep with a fire on).

Pros and Cons of Gas Central Heating

Below we have outlined the pros and cons of gas central heating: 

Pros of Gas Heating: 

• Central heating is perfect for heating your entire home and providing hot water

• Flexibility in relation to adding new components.

• Gas boilers are generally very safe (so long as you ensure that your boiler is serviced annually).

• Central heating is more convenient than a wood-burning stove when it comes to turning it on and off.

Cons of Gas Heating: 

• May be more expensive to install in some cases.

• Not an option for those off the gas grid i.e. those in rural locations.

Is Wood Cheaper Than Gas?

Technically gas is cheaper than wood.

This is if you measure it by its cost per kilowatt hour.

With that said, if you opt for a wood-burning stove, you will probably spend a lot less to run it on a daily or annual basis than gas central heating.

However, this is primarily down to the use difference between log burners and gas central heating, with the former being designed for heating a single space and the latter for heating much of, if not all of a property at once.

If you want a clear sense of the cost of wood vs. gas for your specific circumstances, you could work out the price differences in running a suitable wood-burning stove vs. an appropriate gas boiler for your home.

Again though, you’d need to think about whether or not a log burner is the right choice for you, due to its limited ability in terms of how much of a home it can heat up.

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