Chapter 2 - Residential Sector
The Data Situation
Aggregate data on residential energy use are reported by Statistics Canada in its Report on Energy Supply and Demand in Canada (RESD) (Cat. No. 57-003-X). The RESD presents Canada’s energy balance sheets by compiling data on the production, trade, stocks, and consumption for the various forms of energy, based on data from Statistics Canada surveys and administrative sources. These data are made available annually, by fuel type, and at both the national and the provincial/ territorial levels.
To provide more detailed data on residential energy use, the Office of Energy Efficiency (OEE) has developed the Residential End-Use Model (REUM). This stock accounting model allocates RESD residential energy use to end uses at more detailed levels, based on annual stocks of households, stocks of home equipment and appliances, unit energy consumptions, and other energy use drivers. These initial estimates are added up and calibrated to match the aggregated data in the RESD. The detailed data cover six fuel types, four building types, five end uses, and ten vintage categories (house age categories). In some cases, energy end-use are further disaggregated by equipment type.
Data on household characteristics for Canada and the provinces are derived from Statistics Canada’s Survey of Household Spending, Households and the Environment Survey and other programs. Certain datasets can be found in the following Statistics Canada tables:
- Statistics Canada. Table 34-10-0126-01 Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, housing starts, under construction and completions, 2025.
- Statistics Canada. Table 46-10-0053-01 Canada Housing Statistics Program, Ownership type and property use by residential property type and period of construction, 2025.
- Statistics Canada. Table 25-10-0061-01 Household energy consumption, by type of dwelling, 2024.
- Statistics Canada. Table 11-10-0228-01 Dwelling characteristics and household equipment at time of interview, 2025.
Data on household characteristics for the territories are estimates, based mainly on Statistics Canada Census data, as the Survey of Household Spending does not cover the territories. Data on floor space are estimated based on housing stock numbers and data from Statistics Canada’s Building Permits Survey and the Survey of Household Energy Use.
Data on annual sales and unit energy consumptions for residential equipment, appliances and devices are from the various industry associations, external studies, and internal expertise of OEE. These sources include the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers Canada, the Heating, Refrigeration and Air Conditioning Institute of Canada, and the Energy Technology Database developed by Marbek Resource Consultants Ltd.
The REUM also takes into account the influence of weather on residential energy demand. To estimate energy use for space heating and space cooling, the model uses the number of heating degree-days in Monthly Values of Degree-Days Below 18.0°C and the number of cooling degree-days in Monthly Values of Degree-Days Above 18.0°C, respectively. The data source for weather related variables is reports from Environment and Climate Change Canada.
The prices of heating oil and natural gas for the residential sector are weighted averages of regional prices from Statistics Canada’s Table 18-10-0001-01 (2024) for heating oil price and Tables 25-10-0033-01 and 25-10-0059-01 (2024) for natural gas price. The price of electricity for the residential sector is a weighted average of the data from Hydro-Québec’s Comparison of Electricity Prices in Major North American Cities (2024).