Gas or induction hob: the maths that settles it

Gas hobs are back: butane holds its own against induction

Cooking with gas is cheaper than cooking with electricity. That is not bar-room opinion: it is what the numbers show for those who have switched back to a gas hob at home after years with a ceramic hob. The core argument is not the price of the kilowatt, but the structure of the bill: butane is prepaid, has no fixed standing charge, requires no contract, does not force you to increase your contracted power and, if you go on holiday, you spend nothing. Electricity, on the other hand, charges for being available even when you don't use it.

The trigger for the conversation is a shift in trend: after two decades in which ceramic hobs first and induction later were sold as the symbol of the modern kitchen, some people are retracing their steps. And not out of nostalgia, but because of the bill. The butane bottle at €17.50 remains frozen while electricity keeps climbing. The calculation, however, has a catch: it depends on whether you have natural gas at home, how many people live in the flat and whether you cook a lot or a little.

What each option really costs

Butane is the only energy supply paid in cash, with no contract, no commitment and no linked bank account. In terms of freedom, that is unbeatable. In terms of price, too: a bottle lasts months if used only for cooking and goes further with a pressure cooker. Some argue that butane is frozen at €17.50 until March 2015, and that even if the subsidy disappeared and the bottle rose to €22.50, it would still be more cost-effective than electricity.

The comparison with ceramic hobs is more nuanced. A user who measured actual consumption with an ammeter claims that induction alone can draw 4 kW with all the rings on, although with 3.3 kW contracted the breaker rarely trips unless you are also using the microwave. Another participant says they have 2,300 W contracted, cook twice a day for four people and have had no problems. The key is how you use it: pressure cookers, putting lids on pans and not switching on rings you won't use.

The residual heat of ceramic hobs divides opinion. For some it is waste: the electricity that heated the element after switching it off was not used for cooking. For others it is an advantage: that heat keeps cooking. Induction has no residual heat, which makes it faster but also less efficient for long cooking times. Cooking with flame, not with little lights, sums up the position of those who defend gas.

The problem with butane: bottles, cold and dirt

Butane has hidden costs that do not appear on the bill. You have to carry bottles, keep a spare one and deal with the cold, which makes the gas sluggish. Laying the bottle on its side when nearly empty helps use up the last grams, but doing it upside down is dangerous. And cleaning gas burners is more laborious than a quick wipe over the glass of an induction hob.

There lies the main counterargument: convenience has a price. Induction is faster, cleaner and safer. No flames, no grates, no gas pipes around the house. For those who cook little or value their time, the cost difference may not be worth it. Induction boils water faster than gas, and in a home kitchen you notice that every day.

Natural gas is a different matter. If you already have gas heating and hot water, the 3.1 tariff has a ridiculously low minimum, around €6 a month, but the cubic metre is expensive. For second homes or for those who only cook, it can be the most sensible option. The 3.3 tariff, with a high minimum and a cheaper cubic metre, is designed for those who use a lot of gas for heating.

The microwave, the other villain of the bill

There is one startling figure: a participant claims that stopping using the microwave cut their bill from €54.61 to €47.83 in two months. The comparison is not clean, because the bills include different power levels and periods, but the homemade experiment with water points in the same direction: a ceramic hob uses less than a microwave to heat the same thing. The microwave, they argue, is a vampire disguised as modernity.

The discussion drifts towards the price of contracted power. In 2004 the fixed charge was €0.048 per kW per day; now it is around €0.115. The kilowatt hour has gone from €0.08 to €0.13. With those figures, butane needs no miracles to come out on top: it just needs electricity not to fall, and it doesn't.

What the experience of those who have switched back says

Those who have dusted off their gas hob agree on one thing: for cooking, it is better. It reacts instantly, has no residual heat and allows flame grilling. Aubergines turn out amazing. Ceramic hobs, on the other hand, are slow and waste heat on short cooking times. Induction is fast, but does not allow certain techniques.

The problem is that going back to gas is not always possible. In rented flats with an electric kitchen and no gas installation, the alternative is a portable butane burner. Some have considered it, though laziness wins out. And in areas where natural gas does not reach, butane is the only option. Butane is your friend and you only pay for what you use, one participant sums up.

The provisional conclusion is uncomfortable: there is no single answer. For those who cook a lot, live in a home with natural gas or butane available and don't mind cleaning burners, gas wins. For those who prioritise convenience, cleanliness and estimulante ilegal, induction justifies its extra cost. What does not hold up is the story that ceramic hobs are the ultimate: they are neither the cheapest, nor the fastest, nor the cleanest. Just the most common.

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With these savings, the return to gas should be massive. It remains a minority choice. The reason is not the numbers, but convenience: nobody wants to go back to lugging bottles around if they can avoid it. At least until the next bill arrives.