The aim of this study was to analyze the cost and technological benefits of rice husk as boiler fuel by comparing it with primary boiler fuel like coal and furnace oil. Rice husk is a major agricultural waste that has the potential to produce clean energy. This study was based on the collection of data on boiler site, and measurements of stack emissions. Through the collected data, the annual fuel, labor, operational and maintenance costs, as well as ash disposal, chemical costs, payback period, the lifetime of the plant, particle control methods, and efficiency of the boiler were determined. The results show that the annual capital cost of rice husk, coal fire, and furnace oil boiler was is USD 1.613, 1.663, and 1.5787 million, respectively. From the analysis, it was determined that payback periods of rice husk, coal, and furnace oil boiler were 6, 36, and 60 months, respectively. The lifetime of rice husk coal-fired, and furnace oil boiler was 5, 25, and 15 years, respectively. Stack emissions for oxygen were 12.40, CO2 was found to be 4.55, and CO was determined to be 1345.1 mg/Nm3 for rice husk boiler. It was also ascertained that the stack emissions of rice husk boiler were lower than coal-fired and furnace oil boilers. This study proved that rice husk can be adopted as the primary boiler fuel, which will not only reduce the capital cost and payback period for the plant but will also help alleviate the environmental impacts caused by conventional boiler fuels. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH, DE part of Springer Nature.