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Domestic Building Energy Ratings Quarter 4 2024

Over 150,000 dwellings received Building Energy Ratings in 2024, 7% more than in 2023

Online ISSN: 2009-7441
CSO statistical publication, , 11am

Key Findings

  • A total of 153,558 Building Energy Rating (BER) certificates were awarded to new and existing dwellings in 2024. This was 7% more than in 2023 and the most of any year for the period 2009-2024 (See Table 1).

  • Newer dwellings were more energy efficient. For audited dwellings of all types built between 2020-2024, the average indicative primary energy use was 39 kWh/m2/year, which corresponds to an A2 rating (See Table A and Table 13).

  • A ratings were awarded to 99% of audited dwellings built between 2020-2024. This compares with 95% of those built between 2015-2019 receiving an A rating and 15% of dwellings from all periods (See Figure 1 and Table 2).

  • Electricity was the main space heating fuel for 92% of audited dwellings constructed between 2020-2024, compared with 24% of all dwellings (See Figure 2 and Table 9).

  • By county, the highest proportions of A ratings across all dwellings were in Kildare (27%) and Meath (25%), while the lowest was in Leitrim (5%) (See Table 4).

  • In the Dublin postal districts, the highest proportions of A ratings were in Dublin 18 (41%), Dublin 20 (28%), and Dublin 13 (28%) (See Table 5).

Statistician's Comment

The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (21 January 2025) published Domestic Building Energy Ratings for Quarter 4 (Q4) 2024.

Commenting on the release, Kevin Hunt, Statistician in the Climate and Energy Division, said: "The number of domestic Building Energy Rating (BER) audits reported in 2024 was 153,558, an increase of 7% over the total for 2023 (See Table 1). This was the highest number of BERs issued for any year since 2009. 

The number of BERs published in October to December (Q4) 2024 was 43,960. This was 18% higher than the 37,247 audits from Q4 2023. In total, 1.6 million BER audits were published from 2009-2024 (See Table 1). 

Of the 1.2 million unique dwellings to receive an audit since 2009, 15% received an A rating in their most recent audit, 16% a B rating, and 33% a C rating (See Table 2). 

BERs by Period of Construction

A ratings were given to 99% of audited dwellings built between 2020-2024 and 95% of those built between 2015-2019. These were more energy efficient than buildings from earlier periods: 36% of audited dwellings built between 2010-2014 received an A rating, as did 4% of those from 2005-2009 (See Figure 1 and Table 2).

Main Space Heating Fuel

Electricity was the main space heating fuel for 92% of audited dwellings constructed between 2020-2024. This was substantially higher than the proportion among dwellings constructed between 2015-2019 (50%) and 2010-2014 (20%). Across dwellings from all periods, 24% used electricity as the main space heating fuel (See Figure 2 and Table 9). 

Mains gas was the main space heating fuel for 8% of audited dwellings built between 2020-2024, compared with 44% of those built between 2015-2019 and 36% of dwellings from all periods (See Figure 2 and Table 9). 

Heating oil was the main space heating fuel for 0% (rounded) of dwellings built between 2020-2024, 5% of dwellings built between 2015-2019. and 35% of all audited dwellings (See Figure 2 and Table 9).

Local Area Analysis

By county, the highest proportions of A rated dwellings overall were in Kildare (27%) and Meath (25%). Leitrim and Cork City had the lowest proportion of A ratings at 5% each. Cork City had the highest average dwelling age, at 46 years, while the lowest, 23 years, was in Kildare. Across the state the average dwelling age was 34 (See Table 4).

The highest proportions of G rated dwellings were in counties Roscommon (12%), Leitrim (11%) and Tipperary (10%) (See Table 4). 

Among Dublin postal districts, the highest proportions of A ratings overall were in Dublin 18 (41%), Dublin 20 (28%), and Dublin 13 (28%). The highest proportions of G ratings were in Dublin 06 (13%) and Dublin 07 (13%). The highest average dwelling age was 63 years in Dublin 06, and the lowest was 15 years in Dublin 18 (See Table 5).

Floor Area

The average floor area for all dwellings with a BER audit was 116m2. The dwelling type with the largest average floor area was detached houses (166m2), and the smallest was basement dwellings (61m2) (See Table 12). 

Dwellings with Multiple BER Audits

Some dwellings have had more than one BER audit conducted. Of these, 12% received an A or B rating in their earliest assessment, while 38% received an A or B rating in their most recent assessment. In contrast, 16% of dwellings with multiple audits were rated F or G in their first assessment, compared with 4% receiving F or G ratings in their final assessment (See Figure 3 and Table 15)."

Newer Dwellings are more energy efficient

A Building Energy Rating is an indication of the expected energy performance of a dwelling, based on the characteristics of the building’s energy features. This indicator is measured in units of kWh/m2/year and used to award ratings from A1 (≤25 kWh/m2/year) to G (>450 kWh/m2/year). It is not based on actual usage data and excludes energy for purposes other than heating, lighting, and ventilation. Refer to the Background Notes for further information. 

For all dwellings receiving a BER certificate from 2009-2024, the average primary energy use (PEU) was 199 kWh/m2/year, corresponding to a rating of C2. The most energy efficient type of dwelling was Apartments, with an average PEU of 184 (C2). Newer dwellings have lower average PEUs. Dwellings built from 2020-2024 had an average PEU of 39 (A2), compared with an average PEU of 182 (C2) for dwellings built from 2000-2004 (See Table A and a more detailed breakdown in Table 13).

Table A: Average Primary Energy Use by Period of Construction and Type of Dwelling (2009-2024)
kWh/m2/year
PeriodApartmentDetached houseSemi-detached house Terraced houseTotal
1700-1977363324276297306
1978-1999249202212213210
2000-2004208169191182182
2005-2009170137162152151
2010-201411389858690
2015-20195453525153
2020-20244138403839
All184202193210199

Number of BER certificates by month of publication

The number of BER audits reported in 2024 was 153,558, an increase of 7% over the total for 2023 (See Table 1). The number published in October to December (Q4) 2024 was 43,960. This was 18% higher than the 37,247 audits reported in Q4 2023. In total, 1.6 million BER audits were published from 2009-2024 (See Table 1).

Table 1 Domestic BER Certificates (2009-2024)

BERs by Type of Dwelling and Period of Construction

A ratings were given to 99% of audited dwellings built between 2020-2024 and 95% of those built between 2015-2019. These were more energy efficient than buildings from earlier periods: 36% of audited dwellings built between 2010-2014 received an A rating, and 4% of those from 2005-2009 (See Figure 1 and Table 2).

ABCDEF-G
1700-19773820231828
1978-19992134130105
2000-2004218571741
2005-200944046720
2010-201436557100
2015-20199550000
2020-20249911000
Table 2 BERs by Period of Construction (2009-2024)

Table 3 BERs by Type of Dwelling (2009-2024)

BERs by County and Dublin Postal Districts

The highest proportions of A rated dwellings overall were in Kildare (27%), Meath (25%), and Dublin County (25%). Leitrim and Cork City had the lowest proportion of A ratings at 5% each. Cork City had the highest average dwelling age, at 46 years, while the lowest, 23 years, was in Kildare (See Table 4).

Among Dublin postal districts, the highest proportions of A ratings overall were in Dublin 18 (41%), Dublin 20 (28%), and Dublin 13 (28%). The highest proportions of G ratings were in Dublin 06 (13%) and Dublin 07 (13%). The highest average dwelling age was 63 years in Dublin 06, and the lowest was 15 years in Dublin 18 (See Table 5).

Table 4 BERs by County (2009-2024)

Table 5 BERs by Dublin Postal District (2009-2024)

Main Space and Water Heating Fuels used by dwellings with BERs

Electricity was the main space heating fuel for 92% of audited dwellings constructed between 2020-2024. This was substantially higher than the proportion using electricity among dwellings constructed between 2015-2019 (50%) and 2010-2014 (20%) (See Figure 2 and Table 9).

Mains GasHeating OilElectricity
2000-2004403620
2005-2009433220
2010-2014423320
2015-201944550
2020-20248092
Table 6 BERs by Main Space Heating Fuel (2009-2024)

Table 7 BERs by Main Water Heating Fuel (2009-2024)

Table 8 Main Space Heating Fuel by County (2009-2024)

Table 9 Main Space Heating Fuel by Period of Construction (2009-2024)

Table 10 Main Space Heating Fuel by Type of Dwelling (2009-2024)

Dwelling characteristics by Type of Dwelling and Period of Construction

The average floor area for all dwellings with a BER audit was 116m2. The dwelling type with the largest average floor area was detached houses (166m2), and the smallest was basement dwellings (61m2). For all dwellings receiving a BER certificate from 2009-2024, the average primary energy usage was 199 kWh/m2/year, corresponding to a rating of C2 (See Table 13 and Background Notes).

Table 11 Type of Dwelling by Period of Construction (2009-2024)

Table 12 Average Floor Area by Period of Construction and Type of Dwelling (2009-2024)

Table 13 Average Primary Energy Use by Period of Construction and Type of Dwelling (2009-2024)

Table 14 Average Carbon Dioxide Emissions by Period of Construction and Type of Dwelling (2009-2024)

Dwellings with multiple BERs

For dwellings with multiple BERs, 12% received an A or B rating in their earliest assessment, while 38% received an A or B rating in their most recent assessment. In comparison, 16% of dwellings with multiple audits were rated F or G in their first assessment, compared with 4% receiving F or G ratings in their final assessment (See Figure 3 and Table 15).

EarliestLatest
A29
B116
B239
B3615
C1915
C21113
C31210
D1138
D2126
E183
E272
F72
G92
Table 15 Dwellings with Multiple BERs (2009-2024)

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