1,000 litres is the reference volume for the whole UK series. The DESNZ observation is a typical price for deliveries up to 1,000 litres, which makes this the one order size where a published national number and a quote on your doorstep are measuring the same thing.
DESNZ Quarterly Energy Prices / QEP 4.1.1 standard grade burning oil / published 27 August 2026 / checked 23 September 2026 / lag 27 daysone to four weeks oldtier A
Typical price for a delivery of up to 1,000 litres, VAT at 5% included. Observed on the Monday nearest the 15th.
Cost by volume at today's reading
| Order | Cost at the published rate | VAT inside that | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 300 litres | GBP 270.03 | GBP 12.87 | Below most minimums. Usually an emergency drop. |
| 500 litres | GBP 450.05 | GBP 21.45 | The common UK floor. |
| 900 litres | GBP 810.09 | GBP 38.61 | Often where a supplier break sits. |
| 1,000 litres | GBP 900.10 | GBP 42.90 | The volume the official series is priced at. |
| 1,200 litres | GBP 1,080.12 | GBP 51.48 | A normal top-up for a 2,500 litre tank. |
| 2,375 litres | GBP 2,137.74 | GBP 101.89 | A 2,500 litre tank filled to the 95% ceiling. |
Where the unit price actually breaks
There is no national volume break table, because no public series publishes one. Suppliers set their own, and the common shapes are a step at 500, another around 900 or 1,000, and a flat rate above that. What matters for a household is that the second step is usually the last one: going from 1,000 to 2,000 litres often buys nothing at all.
That has a practical consequence. If your break is at 1,000, then the cheapest way to buy is a full order each time rather than two half orders, and the saving is the premium you avoid rather than a discount you gain. On this site we will not put a pence figure on that, because we would be inventing it.
What the VAT is doing
Domestic heating oil is charged at the reduced VAT rate of 5%. At 90.01p a litre, 85.72p is the fuel and 4.29p is the tax. On a 1,200 litre order that is GBP 51.48 of VAT inside GBP 1,080.12. Kerosene burned for heating carries no fuel duty at all, which is the single largest reason it is cheaper per litre than road diesel.
Primary sources for this page
- DESNZ Quarterly Energy Prices, table 4.1.1Monthly typical retail price of standard grade burning oil, the fuel sold to UK households as kerosene. Priced on the Monday nearest the 15th of the month, for deliveries of up to 1,000 litres, VAT at 5% included. This is the only official UK-wide domestic heating oil price series.
- VAT rates on domestic fuel and powerDomestic heating oil is charged at the reduced rate of 5% on qualifying quantities.
- HMRC fuel duty ratesKerosene used for heating is charged at a nil rate of duty. Gas oil carries the rebated rate.
- Consumer Council for Northern Ireland home heating oil price checkerA genuine weekly regional survey, the only one of its kind in the UK. The page returned HTTP 403 to our checker on 10 September 2026, so no basket figure from it is restated on this site. Follow the link for the current week.