District-level estimation of cooking end-use energy and fuel consumption in India accounting for mixed-fuel use

India has achieved substantial expansion to liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), yet the use of solid biomass fuels (SBFs) persists due to affordability constraints, cultural preferences, and free fuel availability. As a result, primary-fuel statistics underestimate the contribution of SBFs to household energy use and emissions. Here, we combined primary data from a multi-state household survey (6,557 households across 58 districts) with socio-economic indicators to develop a district-resolved estimate of cooking fuel end-use energy for 2021 that accounts for mixed-fuel use. The analysis showed that 62% of rural households used SBFs exclusively or in combination with LPG, despite having LPG access. National estimated cooking end-use energy was 5354 PJ yr −1 , of which 83% arose from rural areas. Corresponding fuel-consumption estimates indicated 21.7 ± 10.6 MT yr −1 of LPG and 276 ± 211 MT yr −1 of SBFs, with biomass use overwhelmingly concentrated in rural districts. District-level spatial patterns highlight substantial regional heterogeneity in fuel stacking and demonstrate the importance of accounting for secondary fuels in energy and emission inventories. These district-resolved estimates provide improved evidence for understanding clean-cooking transitions and for designing targeted clean-cooking interventions, exposure assessments, and climate-relevant emission modeling in India.