South Carolina propane, regional benchmark
South Carolina propane prices: $3.51 a gallon
Latest EIA residential survey, week ending 30 March 2026, the final release of the 2025-26 heating season. Weekly updates resume in October; the wholesale benchmark below is live.
EIA does not survey South Carolina on its own. The figure here is the Lower Atlantic (PADD 1C) regional average, the closest published benchmark; real South Carolina quotes can sit well either side of it.
Propane here is a rural fuel in a state whose metros run on gas mains, and a hurricane-readiness fuel on a coast that plans its deliveries around named storms. Both facts show up in what a gallon costs.
Latest EIA residential propane price
Source: EIA State Heating Oil and Propane Program, regional residential series. Refreshed automatically every Tuesday in season; wholesale daily.
South Carolina at a glance
Benchmark$3.51/gal
vs US ($2.67)31% above
500-gal fill (400 usable)$1405
Week by week, 2025-26 season
Lower Atlantic (PADD 1C), the nearest published series to South Carolina
Every point is an EIA survey week. This season the series ran from a low of $3.34 (20 Oct) to a high of $3.51 (30 Mar). Against the same week a year earlier it is -1%.
$3.34
Season low
20 October 2025
$3.51
Season high
30 March 2026
$3.54
Same week last year
31 March 2025, now -1%
$0.85
Wholesale today
Mont Belvieu spot, 15 September 2026, +17c vs a month ago
Source: EIA State Heating Oil and Propane Program, residential propane, full-service delivery, published October to March. Wholesale is the Mont Belvieu, TX spot price; retail usually follows it by four to eight weeks, which makes it the best off-season signal of where South Carolina prices are heading.
What a fill costs in South Carolina at $3.51
Tanks fill to 80% of their stated size to leave room for expansion, so a 500-gallon tank takes about 400 gallons. The right-hand column is the difference against the same fill at the US average.
| Tank | Usable gallons | Fill at $3.51 | vs US ($2.67) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100 gal | 80 gal | $281 | +$67 |
| 250 gal | 200 gal | $702 | +$168 |
| 500 gal | 400 gal | $1405 | +$335 |
| 1000 gal | 800 gal | $2810 | +$670 |
A South Carolina home heating on propane through a typical winter burns 1,000 to 1,500 gallons, so fuel alone runs about $3512 to $5268 at this price, before tank rent or a service plan. The average is a benchmark, not a quote: enter your ZIP to ask up to three local dealers what they would charge you.
South Carolina against its South neighbours
The cheapest Southern states (Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Mississippi) sit on or near PADD 3 Gulf Coast supply. The Lower Atlantic states, South Carolina among them, price higher because supply travels further to reach them. The SC figure is the PADD 1C proxy, so read it as a regional midline rather than a surveyed state number.
| State | Price/gal | 500-gal fill | vs US ($2.67) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Oklahoma | $2.27 | $909 | -15% |
| Arkansas | $2.37 | $947 | -11% |
| Louisiana (regional est.) | $2.93 | $1172 | +10% |
| Kentucky | $2.94 | $1174 | +10% |
| Texas | $2.99 | $1196 | +12% |
| Mississippi | $3.05 | $1221 | +14% |
| Georgia | $3.16 | $1266 | +18% |
| Tennessee | $3.25 | $1299 | +21% |
| North Carolina | $3.45 | $1380 | +29% |
| South Carolina (regional est.) | $3.51 | $1405 | +31% |
| West Virginia (regional est.) | $3.51 | $1405 | +31% |
| Alabama | $3.52 | $1406 | +31% |
| Virginia | $3.56 | $1426 | +33% |
| Maryland | $3.74 | $1496 | +40% |
| Florida | $4.71 | $1882 | +76% |
| South average | $3.26 | $1304 | +22% |
States marked regional est. are not surveyed individually by EIA and carry their PADD regional figure. Full table on prices by state.
What holds South Carolina 31% over the national average
The Lower Atlantic benchmark for South Carolina also sits 8% above the wider South average. The reasons are structural, about supply geography and where propane customers actually are, rather than about weekly retail noise.
PADD 1C Lower Atlantic supply geography.
SC draws propane through PADD 1C Lower Atlantic terminals rather than sitting directly on PADD 3 Gulf Coast supply. Lower Atlantic residential prices have run consistently above the deep-South cluster of Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi because of longer delivery legs, terminal handoff, and pipeline tariffs. Inland counties around Aiken, Lexington and Columbia draw partly off the Plantation pipeline corridor; the Upstate pulls partly from Atlanta-area distribution.
Natural gas owns the metros.
Charleston, Columbia and the Greenville-Spartanburg corridor run on natural gas distribution, so the propane customer base concentrates in the rural Pee Dee, the Upcountry foothills, and the Lowcountry agricultural counties. Lower customer density per route mile means smaller route economies and higher per-gallon overhead than a dense metro delivery book would carry.
Hurricane-season readiness on the coast.
Charleston, Beaufort, Berkeley, Horry and Georgetown counties carry concentrated generator and tank top-off demand from June through November. Suppliers hold larger storage buffers and price that readiness into year-round contracts. It is the cost of being able to keep coastal customers supplied through a named-storm threat, and it lifts SC coastal retail above inland-only markets.
Agricultural load competes for tanker capacity.
SC is a leading Southeast peach producer, runs peanut acreage on the Coastal Plain, and is a major broiler-poultry state. Those operations burn propane for crop drying, frost protection and poultry-house heat, and the demand spikes seasonally in counties like Anderson, Aiken, Bamberg, Barnwell and Florence, competing with residential supply for storage and tanker time on the same rural routes.
Buying propane well in South Carolina: four moves that change the bill
Picking a good dealer is step one. The gap between a careless account and a well-run one here is a few hundred dollars a winter, and most of it turns on these four decisions.
01
Confirm the LP-Gas Board licence
Association membership is not a licence. Every LP-gas retailer in SC must be licensed by the Liquefied Petroleum Gas Board within LLR, under the State Fire Marshal. There is no consumer-facing online dealer search, so confirm a company directly with the Board at [email protected] or (803) 896-5571. Board information: llr.sc.gov/lp.
02
Lock spring, beat the storms
Wholesale bottoms out in late spring and early summer. Coastal SC suppliers east of I-95 often open pre-buy as early as April to lock customers before hurricane season starts June 1. On the coast, take the April to May window; inland, June to August offers the same floor without the storm urgency. Ask for a cap-price contract so you keep the saving if winter wholesale falls.
03
Quote all three supplier tiers
SC has three tiers: national carriers, regional family operators with in-state bulk storage, and small local independents. In rural counties the spread between the cheapest local and the priciest national quote can reach 30 to 50 cents a gallon. Pull one written quote from each tier, and say up front if you own your tank, which removes the switching penalty leased-tank customers face.
04
Check LIHEAP eligibility
SC LIHEAP, run by the Governor Office of Economic Opportunity through county Community Action Agencies, helps households at or below 60% of State Median Income, and propane is a covered fuel. Heating applications run December 1 to March 31, with a crisis benefit up to $1,000 for emergency deliveries. Apply at oeo.sc.gov or call 803-734-0662. Apply early, before the January peak.
Rated by customers
South Carolina propane dealers worth calling first
A short, hand-checked list with strong public review scores, spread across the state. Ratings were read from the platforms named in August 2026 and move over time; a high score is where to start, not a guarantee. Get three written quotes whoever you call.
Midlands / Sumter
Palmetto Gas
Sumter, South Carolina
4.6172 reviews, Birdeye
Sumter, the Shaw AFB area, Camden and the central Midlands.
See the reviews ›Midlands / Lowcountry
Carolina Propane
Orangeburg, South Carolina
4.3200 reviews, Birdeye
Residential, commercial and agricultural delivery across the Midlands and into the Lowcountry, operating since 1994 from two locations.
See the reviews ›CSRA / western Midlands
Palmetto Propane, Fuels & Ice
Aiken, South Carolina
4.169 reviews, Birdeye
Aiken, the CSRA and a Summerville branch reaching toward the Lowcountry, with more than 65 years serving South Carolina.
See the reviews ›Grand Strand / Pee Dee
Battle LP Gas
Conway, South Carolina
4.320 reviews, Birdeye
Conway, Florence and Mullins locations covering Horry, Marion, Florence and Dillon counties, with more than 50 years in the region.
See the reviews ›Verified on the state registry
8 of the 86 South Carolina dealers on the SCPGA register
| Dealer | City | Phone |
|---|---|---|
| 3EightEnergy | Edgefield | 828-273-5637 |
| AmeriGas Propane | King | 916-660-3076 |
| AmeriGas Propane | Lexington | 803-760-2634 |
| AmeriGas Propane | Prince George | 804-745-4350 |
| Barnes Oil & Propane | Batesburg-Leesville | 803-532-6321 |
| Barnes Oil & Propane | Saluda | 864-445-8828 |
| Battle LP Gas Company | Mullins | 843-464-5002 |
| Battle LP Gas Company, Conway | Conway | 843-234-3739 |
Source: South Carolina Propane Gas Association member directory, captured 25 August 2026. A registry listing is a licence record, not an endorsement. It is a voluntary trade-association membership list, not the state licence register, so confirm any company with the SC Liquefied Petroleum Gas Board.
South Carolina propane, the questions people ask
Where do the dealers on this page come from?
The directory is drawn from the South Carolina Propane Gas Association member directory, the most complete public list of South Carolina propane businesses we can point to. We captured it on 25 August 2026 and show the in-state members that carry a South Carolina address and a direct phone number, after dropping a few out-of-state corporate mailing addresses. This is a trade-association membership list, not a government licence registry, so it names companies that chose to join the association rather than everyone the state permits. Treat it as a strong starting list, then confirm any company's licence with the SC LP-Gas Board and get two or three written quotes before you sign.
Is this a state licence list, and how do I check a company is licensed?
No. The directory here is the South Carolina Propane Gas Association membership list, a voluntary trade body, not the state's licensed-dealer register. LP-gas retailers in South Carolina must be licensed by the SC Liquefied Petroleum Gas Board, which sits inside the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation (LLR) under the State Fire Marshal's office. Under state law it is unlawful to manufacture, distribute, sell, store or transport LP-gas, or to install and service LP-gas systems, without a Board licence. The Board does not publish a consumer-facing online search of licensed dealers, so to confirm a specific company you contact the Board directly at [email protected] or (803) 896-5571 (110 Centerview Dr, Columbia). Board information is at llr.sc.gov/lp. Do not sign with an operator you cannot confirm is licensed: insurance, tank-installation inspection by a Deputy State Fire Marshal, and dispute standing all depend on it.
Which South Carolina propane dealers should I call first?
Across the regions, these are the operators with the strongest public review scores we could verify: Palmetto Gas in Sumter (4.6 stars on Birdeye), Carolina Propane in Orangeburg (4.3 stars), Palmetto Propane, Fuels and Ice in Aiken (4.1 stars), Battle LP Gas in Conway for the Grand Strand and Pee Dee (4.3 stars), and Ford's Fuel and Propane in Loris, a family fuel business established in 1923 serving Horry County and the northern Grand Strand (4.4 on GasBuddy, which publishes no review count). Ratings were read from public review pages in August 2026 and move over time. It is a starting point, not a statewide ranking, so also enter your ZIP on our near-me finder to see who actually delivers to your address, and get two or three written quotes before signing.
Why is the South Carolina price shown as a regional estimate rather than a state number?
The EIA State Heating Oil and Propane Program (SHOPP) does not publish a weekly residential propane price for South Carolina. SHOPP surveys only a subset of states, and SC is not in it. The $3.51 a gallon figure on this page is the EIA PADD 1C Lower Atlantic residential estimate (covering VA, NC, SC, GA, FL and WV), used as the best available proxy for SC. PADD 1C is a tighter cluster than the Census South division, so the proxy is reasonable, but expect real SC quotes to vary against this number more than they would in a state with a direct EIA series. Treat it as a midline benchmark, not a contract rate.
Am I eligible for South Carolina LIHEAP energy assistance?
You may be if your household income is at or below 60% of State Median Income. SC LIHEAP is administered by the Governor's Office of Economic Opportunity (OEO) at oeo.sc.gov, delivered through county-level Community Action Agencies. Propane is an explicitly covered heating fuel. The heating-assistance application window runs December 1 through March 31, with priority for households that include an older adult, a young child, or a person with a disability. FY2026 federal funding for SC LIHEAP is roughly $49.4 million; heating benefits generally range $200 to $850 per season and a crisis benefit up to $1,000 covers emergency fuel deliveries. General OEO line: 803-734-0662. Apply early, because SC suppliers shift to crisis-only routing during the January and February peak.
How much does a tank fill cost at the current South Carolina rate?
At the SC PADD 1C benchmark of $3.51 a gallon, filling a 500-gallon tank to its 80%-rule capacity (about 400 usable gallons) costs roughly $1405. A 250-gallon tank fills for about $702, and a 1,000-gallon tank for about $2810. Tanks fill to 80% rather than 100% to allow for thermal expansion in summer heat, an NFPA 58 requirement enforced in SC by the State Fire Marshal's LP-Gas Board. A typical SC propane-heated household uses 600 to 1,000 gallons a year, lower than the Northeast because winters are milder, so annual fuel spend runs roughly $2107 to $3512. Lowcountry homes run at the low end; Upcountry mountain counties run higher.
When is the cheapest time to buy propane in South Carolina?
Late spring through early summer, roughly May to July, is the usual price floor, when wholesale bottoms out with residential demand near zero. Hurricane season (June 1 to November 30) adds a wrinkle unique to coastal SC: suppliers east of I-95 (Charleston, Beaufort, Berkeley, Horry, Georgetown) sometimes open pre-buy enrollment as early as April to lock customers in before a named storm threatens the Lower Atlantic. If you live on the coast, take the April to May window; inland in the Midlands or Upstate, June to August offers the same floor without the storm-prep urgency. Avoid topping off in December through February, when SC retail spot rates can jump 30 to 60 cents a gallon above summer lows. A practical play is to reach June 1 with a 75 to 80% full tank from a spring fill.
Keep reading
All South Carolina dealers
The complete verified directory of 86 South Carolina propane dealers, by city and ZIP.
Dealers near you
Enter a ZIP to see the closest dealers and ask up to three for a price.
Propane prices today
The daily wholesale benchmark and the live state summer surveys.
Prices by state
All 50 states side by side, with regional context.
What a fill costs
Tank sizes, the 80% rule and the national refill guide.
How to pay less
Pre-buy timing, switching, owned versus leased tanks.
Propane vs natural gas
Per-BTU economics for South Carolina homes inside versus outside the gas-main grid.