UK cost guide · September 2026
How much does an air source heat pump cost in 2026?
An air source heat pump for a 3-bed home costs about £12,000 to £15,000 installed, before the grant, in an average UK area outside London (about £13,300 to £16,600 in London). The Boiler Upgrade Scheme pays £7,500 in England and Wales, bringing the typical cost to £4,500 to £7,500. Your installer must be MCS certified, or you get no grant. Until 31 March 2027, a home with no mains gas that is heated by oil or LPG gets £9,000 instead. Installation is zero-rated for VAT until 31 March 2027.
Work out your air source heat pump cost
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Already have an installer’s price? Check where your quote sits. Enter the installer’s total and say whether the grant has already been taken off: the installer claims the grant and usually shows it as a deduction on the quote, and the checker compares on the same basis. Still deciding what to do first? Read where to start a home renovation.
Air source heat pump prices in 2026
Ranges are for a typical home outside London, with no VAT, before fees and contingency. Use the calculator for your size and region.
| Type | Typical cost | After £7,500 grant (England and Wales) |
|---|---|---|
| 2-bed home | £10,000 to £12,000 | £2,500 to £4,500 |
| 3-bed home | £12,000 to £15,000 | £4,500 to £7,500 |
| 4-bed home or larger | £15,000 to £18,000 | £7,500 to £10,500 |
Air source heat pump costs by region
Labour costs vary across the UK far more than materials. Air source heat pump prices in London run about 11% above the UK average outside London, and in Northern Ireland about 5% below it.
| Region | Typical cost |
|---|---|
| UK average (outside London) | £12,000 to £15,000 |
| London | £13,300 to £16,600 |
| South East | £12,500 to £15,700 |
| East of England | £12,300 to £15,300 |
| South West | £12,100 to £15,200 |
| West Midlands | £11,900 to £14,900 |
| East Midlands | £11,800 to £14,800 |
| Scotland | £11,800 to £14,800 |
| North West | £11,700 to £14,700 |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | £11,700 to £14,600 |
| Wales | £11,600 to £14,600 |
| North East | £11,600 to £14,500 |
| Northern Ireland | £11,400 to £14,200 |
Which region is my town in? Brighton, Oxford and Southampton are in the South East; Cambridge and Norwich in the East of England; Bristol, Bath and Exeter in the South West; Birmingham and Coventry in the West Midlands; Nottingham and Leicester in the East Midlands; Glasgow and Edinburgh in Scotland; Manchester and Liverpool in the North West; Leeds, Sheffield and Hull in Yorkshire and the Humber; Cardiff and Swansea in Wales; Newcastle and Sunderland in the North East; and Belfast in Northern Ireland. Somewhere else? Type your postcode into the calculator above and it says which region’s prices it uses.
Want it for your area? See local prices and council building control fees for 92 council areas in England and Wales (not every council yet).
Planning, the gas supply and the grant
An ordinary house. Most air source heat pumps on a house need no planning application, as long as they meet a few conditions. In England and Wales:
- the outdoor unit, including its casing, is no bigger than 1.5 cubic metres
- there is one heat pump, or up to two on a detached house
- it isn’t on a pitched roof, and on a flat roof it is at least 1 m from the edge
- it isn’t above the ground floor on a wall that faces a road
- it meets the MCS noise standard (MCS 020), a sound check against your neighbours’ homes that your installer works out
- it is taken away when it is no longer needed.
Those are the rules in England (Class G) and Wales (Welsh Government). In England it must also be placed, as far as practical, where it least affects the look of the house and the area. In Scotland you can have one heat pump without an application if it meets the MCS planning standards and, fixed to the house, sticks out no more than 1 m from the wall or roof; on a house in a conservation area it must be on the back wall at ground floor level (Planning circular 1/2024, Class 6H). In Northern Ireland it must be at least 1 m from a neighbour’s boundary and meet the noise standard (Department for Infrastructure). If yours can’t meet these, you need a planning application.
Listed buildings and conservation areas. On a listed building a heat pump is not permitted development, so you need planning permission and listed building consent (England: Class G, paragraph G.2(i); Wales: Welsh Government; Planning Portal: listed building consent). In a conservation area it can’t go on a wall or roof that faces a road without planning permission (Class G, paragraph G.2(j)(i)).
If the heat pump replaces gas entirely, a Gas Safe registered engineer must cap the gas supply, because disconnecting a gas fitting is gas work (Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998). Then ask your gas supplier about removing the meter; many do it free (Ofgem letter, 2015).
The grant. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme gives £7,500 towards an air source heat pump in England and Wales (sometimes called air-to-water, the kind priced here). Until 31 March 2027, a home with no mains gas that is heated by oil or LPG gets £9,000 instead (Ofgem). An air-to-air heat pump gets £2,500 (GOV.UK). Your installer must be MCS certified, or you get no grant. Only installers certified by the Microgeneration Certification Scheme can apply (Ofgem), and your installer applies for it and takes it off the price you pay (GOV.UK). A hybrid system (a heat pump working with a gas boiler) can’t get the grant (GOV.UK).
Who can get the grant (checked on 4 November 2026):
- you own the home, including a second home or one you let to tenants
- the heat pump replaces your existing gas, oil, LPG or electric heating
- the home hasn’t already had government money towards a heat pump or biomass boiler
- it isn’t social housing or, in most cases, a new build: a finished new build you moved into with a fossil fuel boiler may still qualify
- your installer fits and commissions the heat pump within 120 days of applying (GOV.UK eligibility).
You no longer need an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) for the grant. If your home has one, the installer gives its number; if not, they use other evidence, such as a fuel bill or photos (Ofgem installer guidance, from 28 April 2026).
Your installer tells the electricity network operator. The network operator is the company that runs the local power cables, not the supplier you pay. Every heat pump must be registered with it (GOV.UK), and the installer does this for you. Often they can connect it first and tell the operator afterwards; if the heat pump takes your home’s demand above a set level, they apply first, in case the supply needs an upgrade (MCS). Ask whether it’s in the price, and who arranges any upgrade.
What's included in these prices
Included
- Heat pump unit and hot water cylinder
- Installation and commissioning
- Removal of the old boiler. If it runs on gas, capping the gas supply needs a Gas Safe registered engineer (HSE), who is often not your heat pump installer: ask who does it and whether it is in the price
- Some radiator upgrades (varies by installer)
Not included
- Major radiator and pipework replacement
- Insulation work
- Electrical supply upgrades if needed
- Capping the gas supply and removing the meter, if you are leaving gas
What drives the cost
- Heat loss. Well-insulated homes need smaller, cheaper heat pumps.
- Radiators. Heat pumps run cooler, so some radiators may need to be bigger.
- Hot water. Most homes need a new cylinder.
Planning, regulations and VAT
Heat pumps are zero-rated for VAT until 31 March 2027 (VAT Notice 708/6). For planning permission, the gas supply and the grant, see the section above.
Checklist: what to ask installers to confirm
Print this or save it as a PDF, one copy for each quote. Mark each line included, separate or not confirmed as quotes come in. An empty amount means unknown, not free.
| Item | What to confirm | Included? Amount? |
|---|---|---|
| Heat loss survey | Room-by-room calculation. | |
| Grant | Your installer must be MCS certified, or you get no grant. The installer applies for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme and takes it off the price. | |
| Radiators and cylinder | What changes and what is included. | |
| Gas supply | Who caps it, if the heat pump replaces gas entirely. | |
| Running costs | Estimated annual cost against your current system. |
Questions people ask
How much is the heat pump grant?
£7,500 for an air source heat pump in England and Wales under the Boiler Upgrade Scheme. Until 31 March 2027, a home with no mains gas that is heated by oil or LPG gets £9,000 instead. An air-to-air heat pump gets £2,500. A hybrid system with a gas boiler can’t get it.
Is there VAT on heat pumps?
No, installation is zero-rated until 31 March 2027, then 5%.
Sources and method
Our ranges combine published 2026 UK cost guides, industry data and our own survey of council fees. We check them every quarter. They are budget ranges, not quotes: always get at least three detailed written quotes. Read how Estiquote estimates work, or download the full cost data.