A widespread Energy Poverty Gender Gap in the European Union demands targeted policy action

In 2016, the European Parliament urged energy policies to consider gender differences. Despite extensive literature on energy poverty, little attention has been paid to gender. Here, we address this gap by developing an Energy Poverty Gender Gap index that reflects the difference in energy poverty levels between households led by women and those led by men. The metric is based on data from the 2019 Household Budget Survey. Our results reveal a prevalent energy poverty gender gap across most European Union Member States except for Denmark and Sweden, with women overrepresented in low-income, single-parent, or single-elderly households’ categories. Furthermore, we demonstrate that among the energy-poor, women report poor health at significantly higher rates than men. These gender gaps in both energy poverty and associated health outcomes call for gender-sensitive mitigation policies. Women are more likely to experience energy poverty in most European Union countries, especially in low-income and single-parent households, according to a study using household budget and living conditions data.