Non-electric heating takes 53.4% of Chile's market as 2026 season sales rise 2.5%

Chile's 2026 climate-control season, which runs from March through August, closed with unit sales 2.5% higher than in the same period of 2025, according to a NielsenIQ study cited by Publimark and El Maule Informa. Virtually all of that growth came from non-electric heating, while electric heaters were the only category in the mix to lose volume.

Systems running on gas, wood pellets and firewood accounted for 53.4% of season sales, adding 2.8 percentage points of market share in a single year. NielsenIQ estimates that non-electric heating generated close to 90% of the market's incremental growth over the period, which leaves electric equipment, electric blankets and kerosene together responsible for roughly a tenth of the additional volume. For a market that expanded only 2.5% in total, the figure describes a clear reallocation of demand between fuel types rather than broad-based expansion.

Gas leads, solid fuels close behind

Gas was the standout category of the season, with sales up 20% year on year. Wood pellets followed at 18.3% and firewood at 11.9%; the study identifies these three as the main engines of sector growth. Electric blankets advanced 7.2%, and kerosene recorded a more moderate increase of 5.5%, the weakest reading among the categories that grew.

• Gas: sales up 20% year on year
• Wood pellets: up 18.3%
• Firewood: up 11.9%
• Electric blankets: up 7.2%
• Kerosene: up 5.5%
• Electric heating: down 0.9%

The composition of that growth matters for supply planning. Gas, pellets and firewood are consumables purchased repeatedly through the season, while heating appliances are one-off purchases. Demand concentrating in fuel-based systems therefore builds a recurring order book for distributors across subsequent winters, rather than a single cycle of equipment sales.

Electric heating the only category to decline

Electric heating fell 0.9% within the climate-control mix, the only negative result of the season. The contrast with electric blankets, up 7.2%, indicates the weakness is specific to electric space heaters rather than to mains-powered heating products in general. Because the overall market grew 2.5%, the drop in absolute sales also translates into a loss of relative share for the category, compounding the 2.8-point gain recorded on the non-electric side.

Marketplaces outpace physical stores in solid fuels

NielsenIQ identifies the marketplace channel as the most dynamic in the category, particularly for solid fuels. Firewood sales through marketplaces rose 58% and pellets 27.3%, well above the rates recorded in physical stores. Direct online sales also advanced, with gas up 23.8% and pellets up 32.9%, reinforcing the shift of heating purchases to the internet.

The channel figures carry operational weight. Firewood and pellets are bulky goods with low value per kilogram, so growth of 58% and 27.3% in marketplace sales moves cost pressure onto last-mile delivery, warehousing and moisture control, rather than onto retail floor space. Suppliers that previously reached households through hardware chains and local yards now compete on delivery windows and listing quality.

What the mix shift means for suppliers

For pellet producers, gas distributors and firewood suppliers, the 53.4% share and the 2.8-point gain define an expanding addressable market inside a season that grew only 2.5% in total. For vendors of electric heating equipment, the same data describe a contracting base. The season's fixed window, from March to August, concentrates purchasing decisions into a few months, so stock positions, fuel volumes and delivery capacity have to be committed before demand builds. The categories that gained the most this season, gas at 20% and pellets at 18.3%, are also the ones most exposed to fuel price movements over the next cycle.