How to Read EIA's 2024 Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS) Highlights — Preliminary Shares, Different Bases and 2020 Comparisons
EIA 2024 RECS preliminary highlights: 66% of households used a streaming device (56% in 2020); 27% of homes had a primary refrigerator with a bottom freezer (21% in 2020).
Key figures (2024 RECS household characteristics highlights)
As of 5 November 2026, 00:57 KST (retrieved by this page at that time); most recently published results: the 2024 Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS) housing characteristics highlights from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), last updated September 17, 2026, which present preliminary estimates. EIA schedules the final household characteristics tables and the consumption and expenditures tables for March 2027, and its RECS page says the entire set of 2024 data will come in spring 2027. Primary source: https://www.eia.gov/consumption/residential/data/2024/pdf/RECS%20HC%20Flipbook%202026.pdf[1][2]
| Indicator (U.S. households; RECS rounds named in each row) | Previous period (2020 RECS unless named) | Current period (2024 RECS, preliminary) | Change vs previous | Change vs year ago: not applicable (periodic survey); this column gives an additional historical comparison or note | Evidence type |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Homes whose primary refrigerator has a bottom freezer (percent of homes) | 21% | 27% | +6 points (calculated) | 2009: 7%; +20 points over 2009 to 2024 (calculated) | U.S. Energy Information Administration survey estimates as printed in the highlights; point differences: this page's calculation unless marked as text |
| Homes whose primary refrigerator has a top freezer (percent of homes) | 2009: 49% | 29% | -20 points over 2009 to 2024 (calculated) | note: the 2020 share is not printed in the highlights text | U.S. Energy Information Administration survey estimates as printed in the highlights; point differences: this page's calculation unless marked as text |
| Households using any streaming device (percent) | 56% | 66% | +10 percentage points (text) | none | U.S. Energy Information Administration survey estimates as printed in the highlights; point differences: this page's calculation unless marked as text |
| Households using more than one television (percent) | 70% | 65% | -5 points (calculated) | none | U.S. Energy Information Administration survey estimates as printed in the highlights; point differences: this page's calculation unless marked as text |
| Primary television watched seven hours a day or more (percent of households) | 39% | 36% | -3 points (calculated) | none | U.S. Energy Information Administration survey estimates as printed in the highlights; point differences: this page's calculation unless marked as text |
| Households with a smart speaker (percent) | 32% | 36% | +4 percentage points (text) | none | U.S. Energy Information Administration survey estimates as printed in the highlights; point differences: this page's calculation unless marked as text |
Source of the table. Every value in the table above is from [1], EIA's 2024 RECS household characteristics highlights (the refrigerator, television and smart speaker slides), retrieved by this page at 2026-11-05 00:57 KST.[1]
Comparison basis: shares are as printed in the highlights, rounded to whole percents, so point differences here are between rounded shares; changes marked "text" are EIA's own wording. The 2024 values are preliminary and the 2020 values come from the earlier survey round as shown in the same highlights. The table uses household and home shares; the pool measures discussed below use different bases.[1]
In three lines
1. The RECS is EIA's periodic survey of the energy-related features of U.S. homes; the 2024 round is the 16th since 1978.
2. Preliminary 2024 results show 66% of households using a streaming device, up from 56% in 2020.
3. 27% of homes had a primary refrigerator with a bottom freezer, up from 21% in 2020.[1]
What EIA says about the survey
Who answered. "The 2024 RECS Household Survey collected responses from nearly 17,000 households in all 50 states and the District of Columbia." They were statistically selected to represent the 132.5 million housing units occupied as a primary residence in 2024, and answered through web and mail forms. "Housing characteristics data were collected in late 2024 and early 2025." "The 2024 RECS is the 16th iteration." "All figures are sourced from Form EIA-457, 2024 Residential Energy Consumption Survey."[1][2][3]
Preliminary status. The highlights cover the Household Survey only; EIA also collects energy usage data from suppliers of electricity, natural gas, fuel oil and propane for the same homes, and says it will release space heating, water heating and air-conditioning estimates with the consumption and expenditures tables. "EIA will be releasing the entire set of data from the 2024 RECS in spring 2027."[1][2]
Precision. The cited highlights do not print standard errors or confidence intervals for these shares. Differences of a few points between 2020 and 2024 are differences between survey estimates, and this page does not test whether they are statistically significant.[1]
Reading in pairs
Three LED measures. The highlights say 63% of households used LED bulbs for all or most indoor lighting; the RECS data page says 90% reported using LED bulbs at all, and: "Over one-third of households (37%) used LED bulbs for all indoor lighting." All three are shares of households, at three different thresholds (any, all or most, all), so they are not alternative estimates of one figure.[1][3]
Different bases for pools and hot tubs. Swimming pool estimates exclude apartments (about 10% of single-family and mobile homes had a pool), while hot tub estimates include all housing types (8% of households). 36% of pools were heated, a share of pools rather than of homes.[1]
Share of the total vs share within a state. Florida held 19% of all U.S. homes with swimming pools, while 28% of homes within Florida had one; New York held 6% of U.S. pool homes, and 15% of homes within New York had one. The five largest states together held 54% of U.S. homes with pools.[1]
Having vs using. 74% of homes had a dishwasher and about 14% of homes had one that was not used, which leaves roughly 60% that had and used one (this page's calculation from rounded shares). Non-use was highest, 20%, among apartments in buildings with five or more units.[1]
Heated vs cooled space. In New England the average heated area was 1,616 square feet and the average cooled area 912 square feet; EIA notes the gap between heated and cooled area was smaller in the warmer South Atlantic, East South Central and West South Central divisions. In this page's reading, the cooled-area gap may partly reflect climate; these figures do not establish how much.[1]
Verified facts
Each fact is labelled with its evidence typeEach fact in this section carries its evidence type — either cross-checked against independent sources, or confirmed from a single authoritative record.
In 2024, 63% of U.S. households used LED bulbs for all or most of their indoor lighting, according to EIA's preliminary RECS highlights.[1] 1 source · authoritative record
Streaming device usage among U.S. households increased by 10 percentage points between 2020 and 2024, to 66%.[1] 1 source · authoritative record
Most U.S. homes had dishwashers in 2024 (74%), but 14% of homes had a dishwasher that was not used.[1] 1 source · authoritative record
The 2024 RECS Household Survey collected responses from nearly 17,000 households in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.[2] 1 source · authoritative record
Statements and readings
Not counted as facts — each item shows what kind of statement it isFrom here on: statements not counted as facts — single-source reports, the issuing body’s own statements, and this page’s own readings, each labeled.
About 60% of U.S. homes had and used a dishwasher in 2024 (74% with one minus 14% with an unused one).[1] This page’s own calculation or reading · This page's calculation from rounded shares in the EIA highlights
The share of homes whose primary refrigerator had a bottom freezer rose 6 points from 2020 to 2024, and 20 points from 2009.[1] This page’s own calculation or reading · This page's calculation from the EIA highlights
Timeline
What this page could not establish
These are questions this page tried to answer and could not. The gaps are left open rather than filled with a guess.- Are the 2020-to-2024 changes in the highlights statistically significant?
- How much energy did U.S. homes use in 2024?
- Model
- claude-opus-5
- Time
- 11/05/2026, 00:57
- Body characters
- 6,380
- Sources
- 3 sources adopted
- Model
- ChatGPT (checked sources on the web)
- Time
- 11/05/2026, 01:04
- Verdict
- Revision required
Show revision history (3)
| 11/05/2026, 09:00 | First authored (claude-opus-5) | Created |
| 11/05/2026 | First version. Read in full EIA's 2024 RECS household characteristics highlights (26 slides), the RECS program page and the 2024 housing characteristics tables page; quotations are complete sentences matched against the source text. | Updated |
| 11/05/2026 | Revised after review: refrigerator shares are stated as percentages of homes; the streaming and consumption questions are reworded, the latter quoting the highlights on supplier data; the fifth table column is labeled as an additional historical comparison or note; the source of the table is stated right after it, and the note on bases matches the table and the pool measures. | Updated |
Frequently asked
What share of U.S. homes used LED lighting in 2024?
63% of households used LED bulbs for all or most indoor lighting in the 2024 RECS preliminary highlights; 90% used LEDs at all, and 37% used them for all indoor lighting.[1][3]
How many households answered the 2024 RECS?
Nearly 17,000 households in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, selected to represent 132.5 million primary-residence housing units in 2024.[1][2]
Are the 2024 RECS results final?
No: the September 17, 2026 highlights are preliminary; EIA schedules final household characteristics tables for March 2027.[1][2]
What share of homes had swimming pools in 2024?
About 10% of single-family and mobile homes, excluding apartments; 36% of those pools were heated.[1]
Did more households use a streaming device in 2024 than in 2020?
Yes: 66% of households used a streaming device in 2024, up from 56% in 2020, while use of more than one television fell from 70% to 65%.[1]
Have the 2024 energy consumption and expenditures tables been released?
No; EIA schedules them for March 2027, together with space heating, water heating and air-conditioning estimates. The highlights note that energy usage data were also gathered from suppliers: "We collected energy usage data from suppliers of electricity, natural gas, fuel oil, and propane for those same housing units."[1][2]
Official links
Sources
- [1] 2024 Residential Energy Consumption Survey household characteristics highlights (U.S. Energy Information Administration) primary
- [2] Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS) program page (U.S. Energy Information Administration) primary
- [3] 2024 RECS housing characteristics tables page (U.S. Energy Information Administration) primary