Nest thermostats cut gas heating use in Oregon homes by about 6%

In Energy Trust of Oregon's 2014-15 pilot, gas-heated homes that self-installed a Nest saved about 34 therms a year, 6% of heating. Homes given Honeywell's Lyric used 4-5% more.

  • 1 a person

    Homes with a Nest used about 34 therms less gas a year, about 6% of their heating load.

  • 1 society

    Gas use for heating fell by about 6% in the homes with a Nest.

Depth runs from 1, a convenience or time saved, to 5, a life or a livelihood preserved.

Status
Reported benefit.
Evidence

foundstudiedreportedclaimed

Only the evaluators support the benefit.

Compared with

About 1,000 randomly selected NW Natural customers who were not contacted. Measured.

The system’s part
Thermostat recipients were compared with randomly selected customers who got none, and buyers were randomly assigned to the Nest or the Lyric. The savings come from the whole thermostat, including occupancy sensing and schedules, and the report does not separate its learning features.
Limits
Not yet checked.
Costs and harms
Not yet checked.
Later
Expanded, 6 April 2016. In a memo of 6 April 2016 bound with the report, Energy Trust staff wrote that, as a result of the pilot, Energy Trust offered a smart thermostat incentive for which only the Nest qualified.

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Benefit type
Reduced Carbon Emissions
System
Nest Learning Thermostat (second generation)
Made by
Nest Labs
Used by
Energy Trust of Oregon pilot with NW Natural customers, run by CLEAResult (self-installed thermostats in homes with gas furnaces)
Where
Oregon, United States
Stage
In a pilot
Date
Kind
Aggregate result
Broad benefit
Controlling Machines and Processes
Collections
Scrutiny and findings
Last revised
31 October 2026

Sources

  1. Evaluation report, by an evaluator that the makers or users commissioned.

    Apex Analytics LLC. Energy Trust of Oregon Smart Thermostat Pilot Evaluation. Prepared for Energy Trust of Oregon, 1 March 2016.

    The results of this billing analysis show that the Nest thermostat was associated with significant energy savings. It produced about 6% heating load savings (34 therms/year), on average, in gas-heated homes.

Details

AI system

Workflow

Participants bought the thermostat for $19 and installed it themselves. The Nest built a schedule from the temperatures that occupants set.

Follow-up

Conditions for replication

Occupants leave the occupancy detection feature on. Homes have a gas furnace, Wi-Fi and a smartphone.

Entry details

Sector

Energy (residential efficiency).

Purpose

Nest Labs built the Nest Learning Thermostat to schedule home heating automatically from the temperatures that occupants choose.

Not yet checked: model, release, provider, role, configuration, inputs and outputs, autonomy, human oversight, beneficiaries, reach, distribution and access, duration, every measurement question, every money question, ownership and control, dependencies, cross-border connections, geopolitical implications, replication attempts, availability, institutional decision, grounds, action and result, success criterion, every evidence question, observed or intended, alternative assessments, related entries, other identifiers, category mappings.

Cite this record

Peter H. Vartanian. (2026). Nest thermostats cut gas heating use in Oregon homes by about 6% (AIBD-0731). Artificial Intelligence Benefits Database, edition of 31 October 2026. https://petervartanian.xyz/aibd/records/AIBD-0731.html (archived at https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/AADSII, version 4.0)

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