What is the difference between City gas and LP gas? What you must know before you rent and buy a house in Japan!

Before renting or buying a house in Japan, it is necessary to understand the types of gas in Japan. This article will explain the two main gas/gas systems used for cooking and hot water supply in Japan - city gas and LP gas, and the main differences between them. 

The gas/gas system in Japan is generally divided into "city gas (in Japanese, "都市ガス." Composition is methane, usually natural gas pipeline gas)" and "LP gas (in Japanese, "LPガス" or "プロパンガス." Composition is liquefied petroleum gas, usually barrel gas)." The main difference is in "the raw material composition of the gas, the method of gas supply, the calorific value of the gas, the applicable stove, and the charge.

What is City gas?

The raw material composition of city gas is a gaseous fossil fuel composed of methane. The method of supplying city gas is to provide gas to every household through pipelines buried under the road. Due to the cost of setting up, this type of infrastructure for delivering natural gas to individual homes is usually only available in densely populated urban areas, so this gas is called "都市ガス" in Japanese.

What is LP gas?

LPガス (LP gas) comes from the English Liquefied Petroleum Gas and is usually called barrel gas in Chinese. The raw material is liquefied petroleum gas or propane, also called "プロパンガス(propane gas) " in Japanese. 

The method of supplying LP gas is to supply liquefied petroleum gas to the residence through gas barrels fixed on the outside wall of the house. If your home uses barrel gas, the gas company will periodically check and replace the gas barrels when the tank is empty. 

Unless you include gas as one of the conditions for selecting a house when renting (or buying) a house, you will not be able to choose between barrel gas or city gas in your home. If you rent an apartment, you may also be unable to select the LP gas provider on your own. LP gas is usually available in suburban or local cities with less population density.

Note: Approximately 60% of households in Japan use city gas, and approximately 30% use LP gas, with the remaining 1% being fully electrified (all-electric) homes.

The main differences between city gas and LP gas: 

• Gas fees: City gas is cheaper than LP gas. (see below)
• Calorific value: LP gas has a higher calorific value, about 24,000 Kcal/cubic meter, while city gas is about 11,000 Kcal/cubic meter. This means LP gas releases twice as much heat when burned as city gas. 
• In a natural disaster, it often takes longer to repair and restore city gas because the natural gas pipelines need to be checked and repaired. On the other hand, LP gas only needs to be checked for individual houses, so it can be restored quickly. 
• There is a lower risk of LP gas accidentally catching fire. 
• LP gas is heavier than air, while city gas is lighter than air.

Note: 

For example, in December 2022, LP gas in Shinjuku District was 770 yen per cubic meter (0-10 cubic meters), while City gas in Nakano District was 204.65 yen per cubic meter (0-20 cubic meters).

If your apartment is not equipped with stove equipment, you must purchase a stove and connect it to the gas pipe according to the gas type.

Do you guys who rent apartments have this question: Why are most apartments using propane gas, which has a higher unit price, instead of city gas (even if the house is in the city)? 

This is because propane gas companies, to compete with city gas, offer landlords free installation/maintenance of the kitchen, bathroom, and toilet equipment, significantly reducing the landlord's investment in equipment. In contrast, the tenant pays the high unit price of gas which does not affect the landlord's income.