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Natural gas has many uses. It is the main source for heating and electricity generation and the main raw material for chemical products such as fertilizers and plastics. Because it has a lower carbon content than other fossil fuels, natural gas advocates have promoted its use as a bridge fuel in the energy transition. This demand growth is also reflected in the steady increase in global natural gas production, which increased by nearly 60% from the late 1990s to 2020. Global natural gas consumption is strongly reflected production levels and by 2020 up to 3.82 trillion cubic meters.

Due to decreased demand and gas flows to LNG export facilities, US natural gas futures fell to $3.5/MMBtu. Due to maintenance at plants like Cameron, Corpus Christi, and Sabine Pass as well as brief outages at Freeport LNG, the average feedgas to the eight major LNG facilities has decreased to 15.1 bcfd so far in May from a record 16.0 bcfd in April. In June, further upkeep is anticipated, particularly at Sabine Pass. At the same time, regular spring pipeline maintenance, including work on Kinder Morgan's Permian Highway, is mostly to blame for the modest decline in US gas output from its peak in April to 105.0 bcfd in May. Meanwhile, the demand for natural gas used in air conditioning may be supported by weather projections that indicate warmer-than-normal temperatures through mid-June.

Throughout the 2024–2025 heating season, the demand for natural gas increased globally, with North America and Europe being the main drivers of this development. Throughout the 2024–2025 heating season, steady and secure gas supplies were guaranteed by underground storage facilities and reserve mechanisms, which gave the gas system much-needed flexibility. Tighter market conditions and increased macroeconomic uncertainty are expected to reduce the growth of worldwide gas consumption in 2025 compared to the previous year.