Dutch turn to electric heaters amid highest natural gas prices in years

More and more Dutch people are looking for ways to provide extra heating for their homes this winter, RTL Nieuwspanel found. Nearly half of the panel members plan to use electric supplementary heating this winter. In the meantime, the average gas price rose to 1.77 euros per cubic meter in October 2026.

Of all the panel respondents, 30 percent have already been using an electric heater, a heating unit, or an air conditioner for some time as supplementary heating. Another 15 percent say they bought an electric heater after last winter or still plan on it.

About 13 percent of Dutch people say that last winter they were unable, or barely able to, keep their homes as warm as they wanted. More than 26 percent of respondents say heating their home adequately in winter is not really possible.

The same pattern reportedly appears among those earning less than the modal income. Additionally, nearly a quarter of this group say they cannot heat their homes properly because of the high gas prices.

Hardware stores are seeing mixed results. Intergamma, the organization behind Gamma and Karwei, reported explosive growth in sales of electric heaters and heating elements. So far this month, their stores have sold 82.4 percent more of such heaters and heating elements.

Almost all chains reportedly recognize that insulation materials are becoming more popular. Consumers are reportedly more often choosing insulation solutions because they can save more on energy costs in the long term.