Despite record prices: How can you save on heating costs?
Heating costs have risen sharply across Germany, with prices nearly doubling in just four years. According to the latest report from Techem Heizreport 2025, energy costs have increased by 82% compared to 2021, while heating expenses per square meter have risen by 40%. Despite this significant increase, energy consumption has remained almost stable, indicating that households have already exhausted all their potential for savings.
The CEO of Techem, Matthias Hartmann, explained that most of the 'savings potential in consumer behavior' has already been exhausted, and in fact, some areas have seen an increase in energy consumption. The report included an analysis of over a million apartments across the country, providing an accurate view of areas where heating costs are high and those that remain less expensive.
The cities with the highest heating costs per square meter in 2024 are: Chemnitz (€19.01/m²), Potsdam (€18.61/m²), and Offenbach (€17.86/m²). Meanwhile, the cheapest prices were in Bavaria, especially in the Rosenheim area. The data also showed that more than 87% of multi-story residential buildings in Germany still rely on fossil fuels, while central heating through networks (Fernwärme) is becoming more widespread. This method produces only 166 grams of carbon dioxide per kilowatt-hour, much less than natural gas (201 grams), and has already surpassed the climate targets for 2030.
However, there is an increasing problem with the way carbon dioxide emission costs are distributed. Currently, tenants bear about 73% of these costs, which reduces landlords' incentive to invest in more environmentally friendly systems. Techem estimates that through digital building management and smart monitoring, up to one ton of carbon dioxide emissions can be reduced per apartment annually. These systems have already led to a reduction in operating costs of approximately 16 million euros during the year 2024.
Heat pumps play a key role in the energy transition, as nearly 90% of multi-story buildings with central heating can adopt them after a simple replacement of radiators. On the positive side, the construction sector is on the right track to achieve Germany's climate goals, with the average emissions per apartment decreasing to 1.5 tons of CO2 equivalent in 2024, which is below the interim target of 1.8 tons.
In short, heating in Germany has become extremely expensive, and saving alone is no longer enough to solve the crisis. The future depends on more efficient heating systems, modern digital management, and a fairer distribution of emission costs between landlords and tenants.