This study has demonstrated the life cycle primary energy balance of the four residential building types (detached house, row house, townhouse and apartment block) based on current Finnish design. The differences in the energy balance arising from the geometrical characteristics of each housing type were investigated using hypothetical building models. In addition, the influence of structural frame material selection was observed in relation to the housing types. The results showed that there are clear differences between the housing types: the detached house is the highest energy consumer, the row house the second (about 20% less), the townhouse the third (about 30% less) and the apartment block the lowest (about 45% less), regardless of the frame materials selection. The differences appeared evenly among the building life cycle stages. A correlation has been observed between the geometrical factors and life cycle primary energy balance of the reference buildings. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.