Offsetting your home means covering the emissions from the energy you use there: electricity, and gas, oil or LPG for heating and hot water. Your bills already show how much you use, so this is one of the easier parts of a footprint to estimate. This page is part of our guide to offsetting.
How much CO₂ does a home emit?
Multiply each fuel you use in a year by its emission factor and add them up. The UK government publishes factors in kg CO₂e per kWh of electricity and gas, and per litre of heating oil and LPGSource 1.
As an example, take Ofgem’s typical UK household figures from July 2026: 2,500 kWh of electricity and 9,500 kWh of gas a yearSource 2.
Scrolls sideways to show every column.
| Fuel | Use per year | Factor (kg CO₂e per unit) | Emissions (kg CO₂e) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electricity (UK grid, incl. grid losses) | 2,500 kWh | 0.14395 | 360 |
| Natural gas | 9,500 kWh | 0.18231 | 1,732 |
| Total | — | — | 2,092 |
As of Oct 2026 · Source: [1] DESNZ greenhouse gas conversion factors 2026
That is about 2.1 tonnes of CO₂e, so three credits would cover it in full. More than four-fifths of it comes from gas, which is why heating is where most homes can cut the most.
If you’ve moved recently and have only a few months of bills, ask your supplier for an estimate of annual use rather than multiplying up a summer quarter: heating use rises in winter, so a few warm months will understate the year. If you share the home, you can offset the whole household’s energy or split it by the number of people.
Matched shop
Buy portfolio credits
- Registry serial numbers
- Retirement certificate
- Project documentation
Gas, oil, LPG and electricity
Heating fuel makes a big difference. If you heat with oil or LPG, your bills or deliveries show litres rather than kWh. DESNZ factors are about 2.54 kg CO₂e per litre of heating oil and about 1.56 kg per litre of LPGSource 1, so 1,000 litres of heating oil comes to about 2.5 tonnes.
Electricity depends on where you live. The UK grid factor for 2026 is about 0.131 kg CO₂e per kWh, plus about 0.013 kg for transmission and distribution lossesSource 1. Grids that rely more on coal or gas have much higher factors, so outside the UK use your own country’s grid intensity. Our carbon footprint calculator does this for you when you choose your country.
What about a green tariff?
Two ways to count electricity
Companies that report under the GHG Protocol give two electricity figures. A location-based figure uses the average emissions of the grid you draw from; a market-based figure reflects the contracts you choose, such as a renewable tariffSource 3. For a household, offsetting the grid-average figure is the cautious choice, because it doesn’t depend on how a supplier’s contracts are counted.
Cut what you can first
The Oxford Offsetting Principles start with reducing your own emissions and treat credits as a complement for what remainsSource 4. At home, that means:
- Cut heat loss first. Loft and wall insulation, draught-proofing and better windows reduce the gas or oil you burn every year.
- Turn the thermostat down a little and heat only the rooms you use.
- Plan for low-carbon heat. When your boiler needs replacing, compare a heat pump. It runs on electricity, so its emissions follow the grid factor above rather than the gas factor.
- Use less electricity with efficient appliances and LED lighting.
Our guide to reducing your carbon footprint covers home energy alongside travel and food.
How to offset your home, step by step
Step 1: Collect a year of energy use
Add up the kWh of electricity and gas, or the litres of oil or LPG, from twelve months of bills or meter readings.
Step 2: Convert to tonnes of CO₂e
Multiply each fuel by its emission factor and add the results together.
Step 3: Cut what you can
Insulate, draught-proof, lower the thermostat and plan for low-carbon heating.
Step 4: Work out how many credits you need
One credit covers one tonne of CO₂e, so round the yearly estimate up to whole credits.
Step 5: Buy from a seller you can check
Choose a seller that names the project, standard and registry before you pay.
Step 6: Confirm the retirement
Look up the serial numbers in the public registry and check the quantity and your name.
One credit represents one tonne of CO₂eSource 5. Our credits calculator rounds your estimate up and shows an estimated cost.
Which credits suit a home?
Home emissions recur every year, so many people choose credits they are happy to buy again each year. Avoidance credits are cheaper; removal credits take CO₂ out of the atmosphere. In 2024, removal credits sold for an average of $19.50 per tonne, against $4.05 for reduction creditsSource 6. Our page on removal vs avoidance credits explains the trade-offs.
Whatever you choose, check the project, the standard and the retirement record. Our guide to how to verify carbon credits shows how.
Keep the claim factual
Offsetting your home energy doesn’t make your home zero-emission. Saying how many tonnes you retired, for which year and with a link to the registry record is clearer than a label. For the rest of your footprint, see how to offset your car and how to offset a flight.