This randomized controlled trial investigates how to accelerate the transition to the cleanest cooking fuel, electricity, and quantifies the benefits for people and the environment. Fully subsidizing the purchase of an electric cooker in the D.R. Congo leads to widespread adoption and high usage, resulting in significant reductions in charcoal consumption and household energy expenditures. The overall welfare gains of the policy are twice its cost after only one year. While a complementary free-electricity top-up has no effect on usage, an information campaign emphasizing the social and environmental benefits of electric cooking significantly increases usage.
