Is Gas Stove Cheaper to Run than Electric Stove?

figarow on 18/03/2024 - 10:53
Last edited 18/03/2024 - 11:37

Not sure which is cheaper, after searching around thought best to ask some smarter people. We have a gas stove that uses 9kg bottles @ $23 per refill, our electricity is 33.25 cents per kWh. Is it more efficient to stick with gas or go electric, assuming all cooking at night (no solar).

Edit..

I'm only interested in the running costs, not the added cost of equipment. Assume I have both of these stoves running on lowest setting to keep water simmering.
https://www.harveynorman.com.au/chef-540mm-freestanding-elec…
vs
https://www.harveynorman.com.au/chef-540mm-freestanding-natu…

Home & Garden Stovetop

Comments

  • jv on 18/03/2024 - 11:02
    +5

    Is Gas Stove Cheaper to Run than Electric Stove?

    It would depend on their efficiency.

        • borrisz0r on 19/03/2024 - 11:32
          +27

          Good god, the irony….

      • ripesashimi on 19/03/2024 - 14:12
        +1

        I can confirm this is correct. We still got a relic from our ancient ancestors and if you look from a certain angle, it has the shape of what might be a fan-forced oven.

    • iDroid on 20/03/2024 - 10:08

      Though, the most efficient gas stove will cost more to run than the least efficient electric stove if the price of gas outweighs the efficiency gains.

      Efficiency is only one small part of the equation.

    • vid_ghost on 20/03/2024 - 22:22
      -1

      Is It Time To Start Cooking with electric? This is a great video on the subject :)
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X440BHdy35g
      EMF is not anything to worry about but I'm not a fan of induction.. its the equivalent in EMF as holding around 1000 mobile phones to your head but all your doing is standing near a cook top

      • MessyG on 21/03/2024 - 19:39
        +1

        If EMF is nothing to worry about then why are you worried?

        • vid_ghost on 22/03/2024 - 15:52
          -1

          If they find out sometime in the future it was a health risk… best to reduce risk now.. also people used to drink plutonium as a health tonic.. we now know its not :)

          • BEAB on 03/04/2024 - 10:57

            @vid_ghost: Gas stoves significantly reduce the air quality in your house and produce carcinogens.

            Meanwhile you're surrounded by EMF and there's no studied carcinogenic effects.

            I'd honestly recommend you read some of the science behind this prior to spewing bullshit. But if you're too arrogant to listen to anyone, cheers for giving more real estate supply in the future mate

  • geekcohen on 18/03/2024 - 11:03

    I think it is going to depend on the size of the Electric Stove Top you get and what its power consumption is.

    • djsweet on 18/03/2024 - 11:06
      +4

      of course.. its always going to depend on the power consumption.
      I think OP wants some general advice based on like-for-like stoves. Ie if both are a four burner stove top, is gas or electric cheaper. Maybe also worth noting if induction is more efficient than ceramic and other types for instance.

      • figarow on 18/03/2024 - 11:15

        Thanks, more clarification below

  • pizzip on 18/03/2024 - 11:05
    +13

    well since you already have a gas stove, you'd have to factor in the replacement electric stove cost and how long it would take for any savings to actually pay off the cost.

  • dogboy on 18/03/2024 - 11:08
    +4

    Not sure about price but cooking on gas is far superior to cooking on electric.

    • JimB on 18/03/2024 - 11:13
      +59

      Only for wok cooking.

      For everything else induction is far superior to gas.

        • JimB on 18/03/2024 - 11:35
          +37

          Perhaps electric element but I'm talking about induction (electric).

          will heat up the oil in a pot much faster than gas.

          A stock V8 Commodore would destroy an Electric Prius, but would see the tail lights of an electric MG 4 XPower

        • Save Medicare on 20/03/2024 - 10:44
          +1

          Deep frying on the breville control freak is godly. I've only done it once for pork katsu (couldn't get over the wasteage of oil), but it worked really well. It even has a temperature probe for the oil to maintain the oil within 0.5C of your target temperature.

          In addition to that, pretty much all stand alone domestic deep fryers that you might get from an appliance store run off electricity rather than gas

      • dogboy on 18/03/2024 - 11:48
        +32

        Apologies - I meant traditional electric. You are correct that Induction is better than gas.

        • schwinn on 20/03/2024 - 17:41
          +5

          Upvoted for the show of humility on the internet.

      • AustriaBargain on 18/03/2024 - 13:05
        -6

        Not superior if you need to buy all new pots and pans.

        • SydStrand on 18/03/2024 - 15:35
          +13

          I swapped to induction 2 years ago and only one nonstick had to be replaced. All stainless steel and cast iron is induction-ready.

          • Save Medicare on 20/03/2024 - 10:46
            +4

            @SydStrand: To be honest, nonstick isn't very good for you anyway. Stainless, cast iron, and carbon steel are the way to go

            • SydStrand on 23/03/2024 - 13:58

              @Save Medicare: I have a non-stick for simple and lazy things, like a single fried egg, because it's foolproof. Stainless you need to wait for oil to get up to temp or things will stick, same with cast iron, except you also you need to evaporate moisture for a minute on a stove after rinsing or it'll rust, etc. 95% of the time, I cook with stainless or cast iron, but there's always a space in my pantry for a non-stick.

      • surg3on on 20/03/2024 - 09:05
        +1

        less cancer too

    • reactor-au on 19/03/2024 - 08:28
      -4

      Gas also superior for cast iron, the only way to do smash burgers without the BBQ.

      • stjep on 20/03/2024 - 21:56
        +3

        Cast iron will get sufficiently hot on even regular electric, not to mention induction, to smash a burger.

    • iDroid on 20/03/2024 - 10:08

      Unless you're not using a wok and you're using induction.

      • infinite on 20/03/2024 - 20:27

        Why would you deep fry something in anything else other than a wok though ?

        • iDroid on 21/03/2024 - 12:56

          Dunno, a dedicated deep fryer is a reasonable option though.

          • infinite on 21/03/2024 - 17:05

            @iDroid: That's already what a wok does, but better.

      • MessyG on 21/03/2024 - 19:40

        Stainless steel wok plus induction gets pretty damn hot…

  • figarow on 18/03/2024 - 11:16
    +1

    Please forget cost of equipment for this, I'm after the cost of running only. Keeping water simmering on lowest setting of both stoves;
    https://www.harveynorman.com.au/chef-540mm-freestanding-elec…
    vs
    https://www.harveynorman.com.au/chef-540mm-freestanding-natu…

    • crowleysimon on 19/03/2024 - 12:09
      +3

      Neither of your stoves seem to state how much gas or electricity they use so a quick 30 seconds of googling and just clicking on the first results:

      A low gas burner uses 4MJ of gas per hour: https://www.energynetworks.com.au/resources/fact-sheets/1-of…
      1KG of gas is 49MJ of energy: https://www.elgas.com.au/elgas-knowledge-hub/residential-lpg…
      So 4MJ of a 9KG bottle at $23 is about 20.7c

      A small electric stove element uses about 1kw per hr: https://www.energysage.com/electricity/house-watts/how-many-…
      Your electricity is 33.25c per kw, so it's 33.25c for the electric burner.

      • Zephyrus on 19/03/2024 - 12:27
        +6

        This doesn't take into account efficiency of heating into account. Gas is less efficient, you don't get 100% of that energy into your pot.

        • crowleysimon on 19/03/2024 - 12:41
          +5

          If they're both capable of simmering water (OP's example) on a low setting, it doesn't matter to the end user which one is more efficient only the cost.

          I mostly just did this out of curiosity, it's not an endorsement of gas, I would not recommend a gas stove.

          • Zephyrus on 19/03/2024 - 13:00
            +1

            @crowleysimon: I understand what you mean, but I think it's important to understand what the difference.

            At a low setting, it's not going to be using the same power necessarily. I agree that whatever the setting for simmering a pot of water is a reasonable choice

            • cadwalader on 19/03/2024 - 17:24
              +1

              @Zephyrus: Its the same for the gas though. If you read their link, a 4MJ/hour rate is enough to bring a pot with 3 eggs to a boil and sustain it while 6MJ/hour is enough to cook a pot of pasta in 15 mins. I would say its a good comparison without someone doing a better controlled experiment.

            • infinite on 20/03/2024 - 20:37

              @Zephyrus: Electric stove tops and ovens (Normal or Induction) are 65% more expensive to run than Gas is. That's true when directly comparing the cooking of an item at any temperature, for any standard or long period of time.

              https://www.energynetworks.com.au/resources/fact-sheets/1-of…
              https://www.elgas.com.au/elgas-knowledge-hub/residential-lpg…
              https://www.energysage.com/electricity/house-watts/how-many-…

              As the demand for electricity continues to rise and our networks become less and less reliable, thanks to idiot governments trying to wedge useless renewable's into it, the price of electricity is only going to get higher, while gas becomes cheaper in comparison. So the cost of having a gas oven and stove top is only going to get less and less over time compared to electric options.

      • parabola3410 on 19/03/2024 - 12:54
        +3

        You should be comparing with induction and not traditional electric stoves.

        • johnno07 on 20/03/2024 - 08:14

          Induction is MILES more efficient than gas (~80% vs ~30%). I used to swear by gas, but when we inherited an induction top I quickly became a convert. The only think I miss is the ability to chuck a capsicum directly on the burner to char it :(

          • placard on 20/03/2024 - 14:37

            @johnno07: You can always buy a portable gas stove for outside to do wok cooking and or charring like this.

            That way the grease/smells are outside too.

            For everything else, induction is more efficient. So much easier to clean too. I hate cleaning gas stoves.

      • ItsMeAgro on 20/03/2024 - 09:37
        -1

        Also, when are you doing this boiling?

        Don't forget many people have solar these days: if you often cook during daylight, and you have solar (and you don't live in the top 1% cloudiest parts of Australia) the electricity is free.

        • infinite on 20/03/2024 - 20:40
          -1

          The vast majority of people only cook at night, so that's kind of irrelevant.

          Most of the country works too, so they aren't home until after their solar panels have stopped taking in a useful amount of energy, with the exception of the summer months.

          • ItsMeAgro on 21/03/2024 - 09:28
            -1

            @infinite: A significant proportion of office workers are still working from home, and in summer, most of Australia still has daylight until 7 or 8pm.

            Cooking lunch and dinner during enough daylight for solar to matter is possible for a fair chunk of Australians.

            • infinite on 21/03/2024 - 17:04
              -1

              @ItsMeAgro:

              A significant proportion of office workers are still working from home

              LOL, this isn't 2001. The world has long since moved on from that self-imposed disaster.

    • rickdwp on 19/03/2024 - 21:25

      If you just want warm/hot water, get an urn

  • JimB on 18/03/2024 - 11:16
    +5

    In terms of cost, gas cooking on your current equipment will be cheaper.

    It will take decades to recoup the savings to replace your gas cooktop with the upfront cost to replace with an induction cooktop.

    FYI there are 3 types of electric cooktops. By far the best is induction and arguably better than gas. The other two are terrible at best.

  • MrThing on 18/03/2024 - 11:35
    +9

    lol electric…………ahem induction plz

    and then an outdoor jet gas burner with gas bottle for wok cooking

    • CrispyChrispy on 18/03/2024 - 11:37
      +7

      dad?

    • Save Medicare on 20/03/2024 - 10:54

      This is one of the main reasons we're looking to buy a place with even a tiny bit of back yard.
      So I can be classic asian dad one day

  • eug on 18/03/2024 - 11:44
    +18

    I did a basic water-boiling test a few years ago. With your current electricity tariff (you should shop around), an electric induction stove would have cost 4.73c and gas at $23/9kg would cost 7.15c. I didn't do a cooking test though, but hopefully that provides some indication.

    edit: I just saw the electric stove you were considering, I don't have one of those resistive ones but they won't be as efficient as the $69 Ikea one I used.

    • freefall101 on 18/03/2024 - 13:25
      +9

      I was doing some back of the napkin costs and came out somewhere similar.

      Gas bottle has about 120 kwh of energy so 19c per kwh on a $23 gas bottle. Probably looking at about 30% conversion to heat, so about 6c to bring a litre of water from 20C to 100C. Maybe worse than 30%, depends on how well the flame is going into the pot and other losses that would be hard to measure.

      Meanwhile a stove is probably closer to 70% conversion, 33c per kwh would be about 4.3c.

      So all OP needs to do is boil about 30,000 litres of water and they'll pay for their new stove. Personally, I'm looking to get rid of my stove as the last step of dumping gas entirely so there can be a real saving of removing the gas line. Otherwise it barely makes a difference.

    • cloudy on 21/03/2024 - 20:05

      Hey, I’m wondering how you conducted your test… I’m interested in finding out the efficiency of my rice cooker and kettle in boiling water too and how it compares to my gas storage system.

      • eug on 21/03/2024 - 22:52
        +1

        It was pretty straightforward, I used a data-logging thermometer which logs the temperature every second. The data is then exported to Excel to generate the graphs.

        For gas usage I weighed a 2kg gas tank before and after boiling 1L of water. For electricity I have a Clipsal (now Power-Mate) power meter.

        Your gas storage system will be a little more difficult to measure though!

        • cloudy on 22/03/2024 - 11:58

          Thanks! Didn’t realise these tools exist.

  • barge-in hunter on 18/03/2024 - 12:11
    +40

    Cheapest is the park bbq - great for risotto I hear

    • DashCam AKA Rolts on 18/03/2024 - 15:00
      +11

      Can always run an extension lead from your neighbours' for the kettle and microwave.

    • SuperGreen on 19/03/2024 - 12:39
      +4

      I still go back to that thread for a good laugh. Comedy gold.

    • Poor Ass on 19/03/2024 - 16:55
      +1

      lol like that guy that cooks at his local park and only does number 2's at the local shopping centre to save TP

      • skillet on 19/03/2024 - 20:02
        +1

        Should have collected his weekly TP allowance from shopping centre toilets.

  • bazingaa on 18/03/2024 - 12:56
    +4

    gas supply charge is expensive, so no point of using gas just for cooking. We had electric stoves (not induction) always and our energy bills were cheaper than the mates who had gas for cooking :D

    but if you use gas bottles, it would be alright. you can't get wok hei from electric

    • gyrex on 19/03/2024 - 08:31
      +1

      They make concave induction cookers now and apparently they're quite good.

      • Save Medicare on 20/03/2024 - 10:48
        +1

        I think you lose out on versatility though. You essentially can only ever use one size of wok. I think as a balance of versatility and health concerns, it's best to do induction indoors and a gas burner off a gas cylinder outdoors for when you really want to wok something up. That's assuming you have the outdoor space. (We don't)

        • placard on 20/03/2024 - 14:39

          No space for even a small bench/table and single wok burner? How small is your yard/balcony?

    • skillet on 19/03/2024 - 20:03

      Op is using Gas bottles.

    • kaleidoscope on 20/03/2024 - 00:16
      +1

      I’d simply use large bottles to run. No need to pay daily fees and other bs just for cooking. Ymmv.

    • DiggyWombat on 21/03/2024 - 09:28

      Tbf you're not getting wok hei on a domestic gas stove top either. Induction plus special outdoor asian dad setup is the proper combo.

  • 7ekn00 on 18/03/2024 - 13:07
    +7

    Induction is the most efficient form of electric, you have linked the most inefficient form :/

    • bargaino on 19/03/2024 - 10:13
      -6

      Citation? Efficiency is not the reason for induction.

      • 7ekn00 on 19/03/2024 - 10:18
        +6

        Is it really that hard for you to find citations?

        https://letmegooglethat.com/?q=most+efficient+form+of+electr…

        2nd hit, from energy.gov

        Because induction appliances only create heat through pots and pans on their surfaces, they are much more efficient than traditional cooktop appliances. Induction appliances are up to three times more efficient than gas stoves, and up to 10% more efficient than conventional smooth top electric ranges.

        • bargaino on 19/03/2024 - 10:22
          -6

          10%? Utterly insignificant as a part of your total energy bill, or compared to the cost of the appliance. Cooktops are not big energy consumers, which is why people often run them for many months from a 9kg cylinder.

          The 300% compared to gas matters, but still tends of be offset by connection costs, hardware, lower cost per Mj, …

          • 7ekn00 on 19/03/2024 - 10:24
            +7

            @bargaino: Uh, gone from denier to ignorance ;)

            10% is 10% and it confirms the statement you challenged ..

            People rave on this site over Apple being 10% off … but hey, when it comes to other things at 10% it's insignificant according to the world know it alls!

          • johnno07 on 20/03/2024 - 08:18
            +1

            @bargaino: You're forgetting that traditional electric ranges are absolutely f****ing terrible to use. If you do anything more than occasionally boil pasta water, your only options should be gas or induction. So, IMO, the real comparision is gas vs induction, in which the 3x efficiency of induction is relevant.

      • wimphrel on 19/03/2024 - 11:33
        +7

        Efficiency is not the reason for induction.

        I'm actually pretty sure that's a big reason we went towards induction.

        This is even an HSC Physics question back in my day (hopefully still is).

        Induction Furnaces are a thing because they are efficient.

        • bargaino on 19/03/2024 - 12:59
          -3

          Big difference between domestic cooktop and industrial furnace!

          People pay extra for induction not because they make it back in 10% energy savings, but because all other electric cooktops "suck" compared to gas.
          A domestic cooktop might use 100kWh/yr, and 10% of that is $3. Double that for heavier use. YMMV.
          Ovens can use more, as they are on longer. Cooktops are only high power for a relatively short time.

          • wimphrel on 21/03/2024 - 12:24
            +2

            @bargaino: I installed the $450 induction cooktop from IKEA into my kitchen & it's on par on cost with most ceramic cooktops.

            (Plus we used the cheaper $69 portable induction cooktop for years instead of our resistive element one)

            $3 saving is $3 saving! This is ozbargain! :D

            • bargaino on 21/03/2024 - 13:10

              @wimphrel: I'd be using Ikea, if I hadn't scored the cheaper Whirlpool here a few years back.
              Saving a few dollars is nice, but the induction is much nicer to use. I guess some people get a bit emotional about these things.
              How was your portable? I tried one, but on low power it was too much alternating on/off/on/off.

        • Jackson on 19/03/2024 - 17:47
          -1

          And are being rolled out because of a lack of emissions in the immediate vicinity

          • infinite on 20/03/2024 - 20:44
            -3

            @Jackson: Pity the materials and processes used to make them are far more damaging to the environment.

  • Dorge on 18/03/2024 - 13:41
    +1

    Your using gas bottles, the gas is not piped in?

    Include the cost/waste of time lugging the bottles around. Possibility of connection failures switching bottles over.

    I've electric stove tops. Much prefer gas personally as a better cooking experience.

    • placard on 20/03/2024 - 14:40

      Traditional electric ceramic stoves are awful, I agree. But have you tried induction? They are completely different - induction works sensationally well, hotter than gas for boiling water, instant temp change like gas.

  • Euphemistic on 18/03/2024 - 14:33
    +10

    Induction is most efficient. If youve got solar and battery, itll be cheapest - excluding equipment installs.

    Gas prices are only ever going to rise. You can make your own electricity.

    Caravanners are converting from gas to induction electric. Something to be said for that.

    • Debaser on 19/03/2024 - 07:34
      +13

      Not to mention the documented issue of burning gas on the home causing higher rates of childhood asthma etc

      https://www.unsw.edu.au/newsroom/news/2023/02/a-heated-debat…

      • fisherfriendman on 19/03/2024 - 10:17

        That's inconclusive though. In the UNSW report, they point to gas stove emissions, while the actual US study points to gas stove usage. Now toxic materials can leak from the use of gas, the quality of gas, or the use of gas and non-stick pots and pans. The US report didn't mention about whether the homes were carpeted completely, household lifestyle, use of allergens, and definitely no comparison to the same cooking pots and pans used over an electric stove and whether the same rates of asthma were observed.

      • bargaino on 19/03/2024 - 10:30
        +2

        Australian homes are ventilated like tents. Unlike more energy efficient homes in cold climates.

  • snapper17 on 19/03/2024 - 02:31
    -1

    you can get 45kg bottles of gas from places like egas and supagas they deliver and pickup the bottles
    that could work out cheaper to use. they are taller bottles obviously.

  • Rob-4x4 on 19/03/2024 - 07:56
    +8

    I could not touch anything from Harvey Norman after their behavior with the government Covid-19 business support grants. They are a truly disgusting business

    • BigBirdy on 19/03/2024 - 09:59
      +4

      And pushing govt to impose GST on sub $1000 imports

      • surg3on on 20/03/2024 - 09:07
        +1

        Plus their poor after sales support

    • MrThing on 19/03/2024 - 20:18
      +1

      Appliances online…thank me later

      • kalithreaver on 20/03/2024 - 11:01
        +2

        not sure why you were negged, appliances online are fantastic. i bought a toaster from them, it died 3 months later and they delivered the replacement and picked up the old one the next morning after i spoke to them.

  • 2esc on 19/03/2024 - 09:21

    As you serious? You cant be using just a 9kg bottle my mum lives on her own and has a 210kg bottle.

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