- Heat pumps cost anywhere from £7,000 to more than £30,000 to buy and install
- An air source heat pump costs around £10,000 on average
- A ground source heat pump typically costs £24,000 for a horizontal installation
- Water source heat pumps can vary between £6,000 and £11,000
- Main pricing factors include the type of pump you choose, its size and capacity, and its efficiency rating
Heat pumps are an efficient, renewable way of replacing gas and oil boilers in most homes – provided your home is properly insulated.
Air source heat pumps cost around £10,000 on average, depending on the size of your home and the type of heat pump you’re getting. For many homeowners, these upfront costs can be a hurdle, but they do offer long-term energy savings. Studies show that when heat pumps are used in homes, energy demand can drop by 40% – with gas falling by 90% and electricity rising by 61%.
Help to buy is available, too. If you’re concerned you might not be able to afford a heat pump, it is well worth looking into available grants, such as the Boiler Upgrade Scheme.
You can also use our calculator to determine the costs you’re likely to incur when installing a heat pump. Simply enter the heat pump you’re considering buying,t and how big your home is, and it’ll do the rest.
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Heat pump cost calculator
To be sure, though, we recommend getting quotes from heat pump installers, too. Simply fill in our form and our trusted suppliers will be in touch with a quote.
How much does a heat pump cost?
There are three types of heat pumps: air source, ground source and water source. Each type has its own size, and costs will vary depending on the size of your home, too.
Use the table below to see a rough estimate of the costs of each of these types in the UK:
|
Property size
|
Air source heat pump size
|
Air source heat pump cost
|
Ground source heat pump size
|
Ground source heat pump cost
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Two-bedroom |
Three-bedroom |
Four-bedroom |
Five-bedroom |
|
|
5 kW |
10 kW |
13 kW |
16 kW |
|
|
£7,000 |
£10,000 |
£13,000 |
£15,000 |
|
|
4 kW |
8 kW |
11 kW |
13 kW |
|
|
£17,000 |
£24,000 |
£30,000 |
£35,000 |
These costs are representative and don’t reflect exactly what you’ll pay. Heat pump installations are always priced on a case-by-case basis. Our ground source heat pump pricing is based on a horizontal installation with trenches.
Air source heat pump costs
Airsource heat pumps cost around £10,000 on average to buy and install for a three-bedroom house. The main factor that influences price is the capacity and size of the air pump, with larger homes requiring higher-capacity, costlier units, compared to smaller lodgings.
Without installation, air source heat pumps cost about £5,000-£7,000. This means that roughly half of your total cost goes to the installers.
However, it’s important to point out that air source heat pumps are slightly less efficient than alternatives. This is because while the temperature of the ground stays stable throughout the year, air temperature fluctuates, affecting the efficiency and long-term return on investment of air source heat pumps.
Ground source heat pump costs
A ground source heat pump costs more to install than an air source heat pump, as you’ll have to dig trenches or boreholes to bury the heat pump loops underground.
Since this is a very labour-intensive process, you can expect to pay about £24,000 for a horizontal set-up.
Water source heat pump costs
The cost of water source heat pumps will depend on the size of the unit, the complexity of the installation and where you install it.
According to Check A Trade, most homes will need to install upgrades to support water source heat pumps. These can include new pipes, radiators and, sometimes, upgraded insulation, which can add to your final cost.
As a result, water source heat pumps can vary between £6,000 and £11,000, but the additional upgrades you might need can vary between £500 and £40,000.
Are there grants for heat pumps in the UK?
Yes, there are government grants available to help reduce the cost of heat pumps in the UK.
The most common one is the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS), where you can receive up to £7,500 to install an air source heat pump for your home. What’s more, earlier this year, Ofgem announced that you no longer need to have cavity wall or loft insulation to qualify for the scheme.
The initiative aims to encourage the transition from fossil fuel heating systems, such as gas boilers, to lower-carbon options such as heat pumps. With new heat pumps hitting the market from the likes of British Gas and Octopus Energy, homeowners are now able to buy a heat pump for practically nothing when using the grant.
Some manufacturers have also launched schemes themselves, such as Aira, which offers a monthly payment plan for heat pumps.
The Aira heat pump costs £4,000-£7,000 to buy and install for a three-to-four-bedroom home after the BUS discount, and also comes with a 15-year guarantee, and a 15-year product and service warranty, which includes maintenance.
Want to get a better idea of what it’s like to own a heat pump? Check out our case study with Louise, from South London.
Louise had a 12-kilowatt air source heat pump installed to reduce her reliance on fossil fuels, and received £5,000 off the upfront cost through the Boiler Upgrade Scheme. Now, Louise can enjoy a warm, even temperature throughout the house, without fluctuations.
Take a look at the full interview with Louise to learn more.
Can heat pumps save me money?
Air source and ground source heat pumps with a 300% efficiency can save the average household £4,112 over 20 years. This is compared to using a gas boiler, based on our calculations.
However, this depends on how insulated your home is, what the weather’s like where you live and the quality of the heat pump you get.
If your home is poorly insulated, you’ll waste more energy and save less. In a well insulated home, with a highly efficient heat pump, one rated 350% or higher, you could save around £8,025 over 20 years.
You also don’t need to replace a heat pump after 10 years, like a gas boiler. Air and ground source heat pumps typically last for 20 years.
And with electricity prices set to fall, gas prices on the rise, and heat pump technology improving all the time, switching over will soon become even more profitable.
Chris, an Octopus Energy customer, shared his savings journey: “My first full monthly bill, using only electricity, came to £170.95 for four weeks of running my home – heating it, providing hot water, charging my EV and charging my storage battery. That works out to £43.75 a week for all of that!
“When spring and summer come, it’ll be even cheaper since I have solar panels and a solar diverter for the hot water tank, meaning less work for the heat pump.”
However, while it’s usually worth replacing a gas boiler with an air source heat pump in the UK, it’s generally not profitable for domestic properties to install a ground source heat pump, due to their high initial costs and space requirements.
Speaking on the subject on our Positive Energy podcast, Bean Beanland, director for growth & external affairs for the Heat Pump Federation, said:“You see headlines all the time that heat pumps are four-to-five times more expensive, but they’re not.
“The heat pump might be 50% more than the boiler, but that cost is the transition and the transition is a one-off cost.”
You can watch his full interview on YouTube or below.
Heat pump installation costs
The average air source heat pump costs £10,000 to buy and install, while a ground source heat pump typically costs £24,000, if you choose a horizontal installation.
If you don’t have 700m2 of space for looped pipes, you can get boreholes drilled 90-160 metres down into your garden, but unfortunately, this is even pricier. A vertical installation costs £49,000, on average.
An air source heat pump costs about £10,000 to buy and install. In contrast, a ground source heat pump usually costs £24,000 for a horizontal installation.
If you lack the 700m2 of space needed for looped pipes, you can drill boreholes. They go 90-160 meters deep in your garden. However, this option is more expensive, with a vertical installation cost of £49,000, on average.
Ground source heat pumps are considerably more expensive than air source models because the installation process is longer, more complicated and requires more specialised tools.
You probably won’t need to replace all your radiators, but most homes should expect to change one-third of them to ones that are 2.5 larger than the standard size.
This is because a heat pump releases heat at a lower level than a gas boiler, over a longer period of time.
Their slow-release nature helps them to be more energy efficient. But, this means you need either large surface areas in your heating equipment or insulation that retains the warmth from your heat pump.
You should hire a specialist to carry out the installation – it’s a complex process that only experts should take on. You can easily find qualified help with our list of the best heat pump installers.
Want to learn more? Check out our helpful guide on ground source heat pump installations.
Get free heat pump quotes
Answer a few quick questions, and our trusted installers will send you bespoke heat pump quotes – for free.
Heat pump running costs
A ground source heat pump’s running costs for a three-bedroom home household will typically come to around £939 per year.
The average air source heat pump will cost about the same, though this can vary significantly, depending on where you live in the UK.
| Heating method | Efficiency (%) | Annual energy use (kWh) | Cost (p/kWh) | Annual bill |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gas boiler | 95 | 11,500 | 6.04 | £694 |
| Heat pump | 300 | 3,833 | 24.50 | £939 |
| Oil boiler | 92 | 11,875 | 11.14 | £1,337 |
| Electric boiler | 100 | 10,925 | 24.50 | £2,676 |
In comparison, you’ll currently pay around £853 per year to run a gas boiler in an average three-bedroom home, which is slightly cheaper than a typical heat pump – but that’s likely to change.
Gas prices are likely to continue rising as the UK moves away from fossil fuels, and the cost of electricity is set to fall in the near future, when the government removes green levies that artificially raise its price.
Regional temperature impacts maintenance costs, too. For instance, if you live in or towards the south of the country, it may already cost less to run a heat pump than a gas boiler, as it’s warmer than the rest of the UK.
Your running costs may also be lower if your machine has a higher efficiency rating than 300%, or if your insulation is better than average.
It’s possible that your property might not be suitable for a traditional heat pump. If that’s the case, it might be beneficial to look into zero-emission boilers as an alternative.
Heat pump service costs
If you carry out regular heat pump maintenance checks, your machine should provide you with warmth and hot water for at least 20 years.
You should have the heat pump serviced by a professional every two or three years, though, to make sure everything is working at peak efficiency.
This service will cost around £200 for an air source heat pump and £250 for a ground source heat pump, so check with your installer or the manufacturer if you can get a cheaper regular maintenance included in your purchase agreement.
And before the heat pump is installed, ask your installer to write down any maintenance checks you should carry out on a regular basis. This list will include simple tasks such as sweeping any leaves, dust or snow from the heat pump’s fans and cleaning the filter.
You can save money in the long run by keeping your heat pump functioning efficiently – and if you can take care of these jobs yourself, it’s free. As well as carrying out maintenance checks, you can also protect your heat pump system by getting a heat pump cover for the outside unit, which can guard it against extreme weather conditions and sea spray.
What affects the price of my heat pump?
There are several factors that have a large effect on the cost of a heat pump, including type, size and efficiency.
Certain brands will also charge more for their products, so make sure you get quotes from at least three different heat pump installers so you can compare prices properly.
The major disadvantage to a heat pump is that it will warm your home at a relatively slow pace, but as long as you switch on the heating a little bit earlier, you should be fine.
Type
The type of heat pump is the biggest factor that influences price..
For instance, air-to-air heat pumps are typically five times cheaper than air source heat pumps or water source heat pumps. High temperature heat pumps cost slightly more than regular systems, while ground source heat pumps are by far the most expensive option of all.
Air-to-air heat pumps usually cost between £2,000 and £4,000, and provide heating by taking the warmth from the air outside your property, running it through fan coil units and blowing it into your home.
High-temperature heat pumps can heat your home to the same level of warmth, in the same amount of time as a gas boiler, and cost £11,000 on average.
No matter what heat pump you choose to install, the price of installation will have a huge impact on the total bill. This is because some installations are more complex than others and require longer installation times.
Size
The size and/or capacity of heat pumps will also determine how much you’re going to pay. This is measured in nominal tons or British Thermal Units (BTU), a measure of heat or energy, according to CleanBC Better Homes.
The manufacturer says that one tonne of capacity is equivalent to 12,000 BTU per hour or 3.5kW.
So, since a typical residential heat pump usually ranges from one to five tonnes, its BTU will likely be anywhere from 12,000 to 60,000.
If you install a heat pump at the higher end of this measurement, the cost will likely be higher. However, it’s better to get the right size heat pump for your home, rather than trying to save money by getting a small model, to ensure it’s capable of meeting your heating needs.
Go too big and you’ll overpay for a heat pump that runs short cycles, which decrease its lifespan.
Go too small and your model will run constantly as it desperately tries – and fails – to reach your temperature needs, while racking up huge bills. Get the right size machine and it’ll run in the way it was designed. You can also use ‘VisitAHeatPump.com’ to see a heat pump in action if you’re concerned about how it works.
Efficiency
Heat pump efficiency is an important cost factor too, as a more efficient machine will naturally cost more.
Air and ground source heat pumps usually have an efficiency rating of 300%.They can even reach 400% or 500%. This means they are up to five times more efficient than gas boilers.
Air-to-air and water source heat pumps also usually exist in this range, as do high-temperature heat pumps.
Next steps
If heat pumps seem like an affordable choice for you, the next step is to make sure that one can heat your house effectively.
During a cold spell, turn your boiler flow temperature down to 50°C (ask your manufacturer if you’re not sure how to do this), and see how it feels.
If you don’t notice any change, you’re ready for a heat pump. If you feel cold, consider getting additional insulation fitted in your home. You could also install bigger radiators and/or underfloor heating before you get a heat pump.
When you’re ready, our suppliers can provide you with quotes to compare the best prices – all you have to do is fill in this short form to get started.
Summary
You can save money in the long run by keeping your heat pump functioning efficiently – and if you can take care of these jobs yourself, it’s free
The ‘best type’ of heat pump will be dependent on your personal needs, which is why getting specific quotes are important.
A ground source heat pump vertical installation with boreholes will increase the cost by more than double, at around £49,000.
With a water source heat pump, costs can triple if you need to make other upgrades to your home
Water source heat pumps are more consistent than air source heat pumps as natural water temperatures stay around 7°C to 12°C throughout the year.
Get free heat pump quotes
Answer a few quick questions, and our trusted installers will send you bespoke heat pump quotes – for free.
