While the Dutch may have the best English and some of the most powerful passports in the EU, they’re also winning prizes for some… well, interesting reasons. 👇
Smart heating provider tado° surveyed 685,000 houses around the EU, between November 2025 and January 2026.
Their findings? Thermostats in the Netherlands are stuck at a chilly 16.57 degrees Celsius — the absolute coldest of all the countries surveyed.
Even our neighbours like it warmer
If you thought cold houses were just a European thing, you’d be dead wrong.
According to Metronieuws, even Germany and Denmark prefer their homes several degrees warmer, at 18.92 and 19.77 degrees Celsius, respectively.
The Dutch are also much more reluctant to reach for the thermostat when the temperature starts dropping outside.
Unlike the Italians, who turn on the heating when the mercury dips below 15.96 degrees, the Netherlands waits for temperatures to hit an icy 11.83 degrees.
Rising energy costs are to blame
However, unlike polar bears in Svalbard, the Dutch aren’t sitting in freezing cold homes for the fun of it.
As the European Consumer Justice Foundation reports, many households have faced “substantial increases in their energy costs in recent years”, affecting their ability to pay for heating.
In 2024 alone, Statistics Netherlands (CBS) discovered that around one million households across the Netherlands were at risk of energy poverty, due to their low-to-medium incomes, high energy costs, and energy-inefficient homes.
READ MORE | 14 dang smart ways to save on energy costs in the Netherlands [UPDATED 2026]
Since then, several energy providers, including Vattenfall, Eneco, Essent, and Energiedirect, have even received legal summons for “unfair trade practices regarding the variable energy contracts of millions of Dutch people.”
The result of this legal action still remains to be seen.
Do you think the Netherlands has an obligation to maintain access to affordable heating? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
