Choosing the best heating system for a home depends on a lot of factors, and probably the most important is location. That will determine what the cheapest and most reliable heating fuel is.
60% of U.S. homes are heated with natural gas, 25% with electricity. In Canada, 47% of homes are heated with natural gas, and 37% are heated with electricity. The rest are a mix of wood, pellets, oil and propane, and a very small amount of people heat their homes with of coal.
That covers the fuel sources, and costs will vary by region. But I suspect your question is likely about what heat delivery system is best for a home, so first I would look on our page about how to create a comfortable home –
How to design a home for thermal comfort
You will see on that page how there is a lot more to home comfort that we currently consider, and what a difference it can make if you design your home with comfort in mind. We will all have preferences, but from a physiological point of view, the most comfortable heat source is radiant. That is the exchange of heat between our bodies and the surfaces of a home. Various forms of radiant heat can be provided by all those fuel sources.
As for sizing your heating equipment, the amount of heat you will need to provide will be determined by the amount of heat you lose, so a well-insulated and airtight home saves money in fuel use, and often times in allowing for a reduced size of equipment.
Did you have a preferred heat delivery system in mind, or fuel source? And where are you located? We can help more with a bit more info. You can also learn more about the best home heating systems in our guide pages
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