This page provides a regional price comparison between suppliers of 45 kg liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders within NZ.
If you have mains (reticulated) natural gas use this price comparison instead.
For each region, I have charted yearly gas cost (including bottle rental) against the number of gas cylinders used. The lowest coloured line represents the cheapest supplier.
In most regions, Energy Online (Note: now called Frank Energy) is the clear price winner up to 11 bottles per year, above which the Genesis Energy Value Plans become the cheapest.
Click on each chart to view a larger version.
Contents
North Island Bottled LPG Gas Prices
Northland
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Auckland
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Waikato
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Bay of Plenty
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Hawke’s Bay
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Manawatu
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Taranaki
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Wellington
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
South Island Bottled LPG Gas Prices
Nelson, Marlborough & West Coast
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Canterbury
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Otago
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
Southland
The cheapest gas provider is:
- Energy Online for up to 11 bottles per year (no contract)
- Genesis Energy – Value Plans for 12 or more bottles per year (12 month term)
LPG Gas Bottle Expiry Date
In New Zealand, LPG cylinders are required by law to be tested every ten years. The testing and certification must be undertaken by an authorized LPG testing facility.
It is illegal to fill a gas bottle that is past its expiry date. But if the bottle still contains gas, you are allowed to use it past the expiry date. but you are allowed to use it, past the expiry date, if it still contains gas.
To check last inspection date of the gas cylinder, look for a date stamp on the neck, collar or foot of the gas cylinder. The date will likely be in the format YY/MM, so ’20/02″ would indicate that the cylinder was last tested in February of 2020.
After the 10 year period has elapsed, the cylinder will need to be re-certified against the current standard.
If you are hiring gas bottles from your LPG provider, then you should be aware of the bottle expiry dates but your gas provider will manage these to ensure your cylinders remain in test.
Nathan’s Notes
45 kg gas bottle pricing and charts updated September 2018 from publicly available data. All prices include GST and are after prompt payment discount (if any).
Some suppliers are not included as either I could not obtain a reliable regional pricing list upon which to base the comparison.
I am only human, if you think I have made an error or something looks out of whack, drop me a line.
So about $2.2/kg, and with around 13kWh heat energy per kg (although will always waste some in exhaust), or about $0.17/kWh, given exhaust losses electricity is probably mostly cheaper.
Diesel at about $0.14/kWh is significantly cheaper than propane.
Interesting! I have not thought to calculate the kWh equivalent of bottled LPG before. I think the gas vs electricity tradeoff depends ultimately upon the end use. If water heating, then a modern Rinnai unit is 95-97% efficient from memory and only using energy when you need it, likely to work out cheaper than an older hot water cylinder. Conversely, if you can utilise offpeak or night rate power for water heating you may be onto a winner. Depending upon your lines company and setup. What’s most interesting for me in this calculation is how much more cost effective reticulated gas is (at around 7c / kWh) vs bottled.
I use gas for water heating, stove and one wall heater.
The problem with reticulated (town) gas is the flat fees that are charged whether or not any gas is used. My latest Contact bill for gas for 29 days is $43.38. This includes $4.50 for actual gas used (67kWh @ 6.713 cents per kWh). On top of that there is a Gas Industry Fee of 83cents and a whacking great “Living Smart Daily [Gas] Charge” of $38.05. So, even if I used no gas the cost would be $38.88 per month for the privilege.
As it stands, the total charge worked out at 64.75 cents per kWh.
Now compare this to the electricity portion of my bill for the same 29 days. 177 kWh @ 26.757 Cents per kWh) plus Daily Charge ($9.65) and Elect Auth Levy of 23 cents totaled $57.24. That represents 32.34 cents per kWh.
Effectively, half the cost of gas.
Question: Would it be cheaper if I switched to bottled gas?
Hi Jim,
The first thing I would do is get a couple of quotes from other providers to check your daily charge is fair, and not just expensive with Contact.
Assuming your daily charge is fair. If you are looking to stay in your place long term and your consumption over the year (not just one month) is always this low, then I would definitely investigate bottled gas.
The change from reticulated to bottled is a bit unusual, so I would have no idea of the gas-fitting cost. Cost wise, let’s say you went with someone like Energy Online ($99 per bottle with $10/month for rental of two bottles) and kept using only 67/kWh per month, your gas bill should be in the order of $22/month by my calculations. Or approx half your current charge. A saving worth having! 🙂
P.S. It’s not the case in your instance. But reticulated gas is typically the cheapest option for water heating. At around 7c/kWh vs around 17c/kwh for bottled gas (see comment from RobL where he’s calculated this) and 20-30c/kWh for electricity. At our place we use around 350kWh per month in gas – which costs about $53 each month ($28/month for the connection charge, rest for gas usage). I reckon the equivalent power cost would be $150-180/month.
I have purchased a 4 ring Gas top. I just love these gas tops for cooking, having experienced them in AU.
I am retired, Whangarei based and I believe that bottles is what I need for gas supply.
There is no intent to use this gas for anything else other than the top. I must say that I have done very little, next to none, homework on costs, savings or comparisons with Electricity.
This unit is about 4 months away from installation. I have not approached a supplier yet.
Does anyone know if I am on the right track or near enough cost wise? Tell me.
Hi Hugh. For what is likely to be very low gas consumption, gut feeling is that bottles will work out cheaper than reticulated gas. This is because bottled gas has a lower fixed charge (usually around $5/month bottle rental per bottle). I do not think that you will save any money switching your cooktop to gas. I would guess that using gas bottles will over the long-term cost $5-$10 more per month than a modern electric induction cooktop. But it sounds like the choice is more lifestyle driven rather than savings driven. My guidance would be if you enjoy gas hobs for cooking – just do it. Hope this helps? Nathan
To Hugh. we have a 4 burner bosch with the wok burner a really great 5Kw and use a 9 Kg cyl about 3 months always take your (swap) cylinder in and get it purged before filled .
Get a spare cylinder (perhaps from the BBQ ) for when you run out and rotate them.
We think that it is really great , instant heat or off!
Hugh. I had a similar situation in Nelson – no reticulated gas available and supplied bottles were too expensive for just a 4 burner cooktop. I simply bought a 4.5kg bottle and that lasted us 2-4 months between fills depending on use. The rules have changed since then regarding where you can keep bottles, but I’m sure you could buy a standard 9kg bottle it would easily last 6 months or more for about $30-$40 per fill – you will never get a gas retailer to supply bottles for that price per 6 months (they all have daily charges, monthly rentals or minimum use factors that just don’t work for single gas hob users. As long as it’s installed in compliance with the current legislation. Talk to your gas fitter – you WILL need a gas fitter to do all the pipe work legally – there is nothing DIY about this – you will probably need to keep the 9kg bottle outside (ours was inside under old legislation – I advise against this). For what it is worth we found our power bill dropped about $20-$30 per month when we installed the gas – and the gas bottle was costing us less than $10/ month to fill – so there was a saving to go with the more user friendly cooktop.
Hi I compare CONTACT ENERGY (rockgas)& ENERGY ONLINE for 45kg LPG bottles in CHCH city. I add pro-rata rental cost to additional weeks.
ENERGY ON LINE:
$99+$10=$109 per month if it lasts 4 weeks
(($109+($10×1/4))x4/5=$89.20 per month if it lasts for 5 weeks
(($108+($10×2/4))x4/6=$75.33 per month if it lasts 6 weeks
ROCKGAS CHCH:
Base price $103.50 + rental $8.15 =$111.65 per month
$111.65 per month if it only lasts 4 weeks
($111.65+($8.15×1/2))x4/5=$90.95 per month if lasts 5weeks
($111.65+($8.15×2/4))x4/6))=$77.15 if lasts 6 weeks.
So based upon 5 weeks: ($77.15-$75.33)x12 months=$21.84 saving using Energy Online. So Energy Online cheaper.
But ask yourself what the customer service like.?contact (rockgas) is the largest supplier.it offers credits on non empty bottles 11% or more. does energy on line?. though you would run the bottles empty.but that relates to their customer care delivery attitude.
Hi Ron,
Rockgas is a subsidiary First Gas (who purchased the business from Contact Energy during 2018). First Gas own/operate most of the North Island gas pipelines. Energy Online is a subsidiary of Genesis Energy. Genesis Energy own the majority of the Kupe natural gas field off Taranaki. Both are large NZ gas industry participants.
Pricing looks quite similar in Christchurch based upon your calculations (within 2-3 dollars per month) so I would just go with what supplier you are happiest with.
I have tried to include Rockgas in the comparison charts in the past – but they have declined to provide me a nationwide price list. I didn’t know that they refunded partially full bottles – that is a great initiative.
Thanks for your calculations and feedback. Cheers – Nathan
Hi Ron,interesting reading your lpg cost breakdown. I have long wondered about the buildup of things like wax etc in the 45Kg bottles. It would be interesting to have several “empty”bottles weighed and see how that compares with what is stated on the bottles. I can remember a time where upon collection of an empty bottle it would be weighed and recorded.I would suggest perhaps not 1 of the used bottles would weigh what they did when new. (another rort?)
I think customer service really counts. Based on pricing, I chose to go with Energy Online (we are near Queenstown). We’ve been here at the new house for a few days and the gas bottles were supposed to be delivered on Tuesday. It’s now Thursday evening and they’re clearly not arriving today, so I’m rather unimpressed with Energy Online! We still can’t cook.
Hi Nathan,
Thanks for providing this information in one place, it was really helpful.
Anyone in Hamilton for 2*45kg bottles for new hot water installation I was quoted:
Energy online: rental $120 per year; $99 increasing to $115 per bottle ($50 credit refer a friend avail through this website)
On Gas: rental $128, $108 per bottle
Genesis: rental $132, $120 per bottle
but the winner was the Rockgas agent (07 850 6079); rental $128, $105 per bottle when he offered me half price rental for the first year.
I found Mata Gas was consistently cheaper, and the customer service was just as good as any of the big players in Christchurch.
$100 per refill, $10 per month rental.
Thanks Craig. I have not come across Mata Gas before. I’ll update the comparison to include them. Cheers for the info – Nathan
The annual cylinder rental is a joke – a 45kg cylinder costs ~$220 and every 10 years needs a retest which cost me ~$50 the last time I did mine (included the tester taking it 2 1/2 hrs each way to testing shop). Money for old rope for the lpg suppliers at $120/year compared to less than $30 if you own your own. A nice little earner.
How do you refill your 45kgs then?
I don’t understand the logic of this. The bottles are “ owned “ by the gas supplier, you just rent them. Why should the customer pay additional for testing ?
Do you get dedicated bottles every time that are “ yours “ ? I bet you don’t.
If you rent a car the hidden costs are borne by the rental company ie registration , WOF,
Repairs as needed when / where. Sure such costs get rolled into the rental price but we are not talking about renting a Tesla , it’s a gas bottle for Gods sake.
It’s a rip off !
I couldn’t agree more and we all need to counter with an annual cylinder storage fee! But I am interested to know where you can actually purchase your own bottles from?
I would like a price to refill a 9 kg gas refill please.
Hi Leslie. Just pop into your nearest petrol station. Cheers, Nathan
$25 or $26 in christchurch, caltex
What useful information provided by this blog! Thanks for helping me out
Been with Trustpower for over 4 years…This is what I get charge monthly…$109.05 per bottle all inclusive with current contract package power+gas+phone/fibre
prompt payment discount 15%
Located Lower Hutt, Wellington
Thinking of changing providers as I hear that Trustpower is one of the most priciest companies out there.
Would Energyonline be a better option?
Looking at shaving costs off our monthly bill.
Cheers Cam
Awesome info especially for those of us considering changing over to gas. Very valuable resource. Thanks to whomever set this up.
Why is there such a discrepancy between suppliers of 45kg bottled LPG?
Just got another hike from elgas and now pay over $140 per bottle with rental on top of that.
Can I do better?
Cheers
Carl
if you think about it, the 9kg bottle is $26 at all caltex cheaper in some other places.
i use gas only for cooking, but if I make numbers is not worth it to switch to 45kg bottles.
Has anyone heard of Elgas? They seem to look ok.
Elgas is $151 now (going up to $157) per 45kg bottle. Plus steep annual rental I forget the amount. Not sure of my other options here in the Wairarapa
I am with genesis and I pay like $120 per bottle and rental is about $12 per month inc gst. With right plans you get discount on top up to 6% or so.
How/Where can you buy your own 45kg cylinder? Will the retailers then fill it?
Looking around at different prices. Looking for the best price/service for 45kg LPG cylinders.
Currently with frank energy (previously energy online) prices have gone up to $160 per bottle with $10 monthly rental fee. It’s gone up $60 in 3 yrs. Plus the service has turned to shit since they changed to frank energy.
Elgas quoted $145 with new customers getting 12 months free rental (140/year)
Waiting to hear from the companies but if anyone has any suggestions I’m all ears.