Working file M3.1
Air-source heat pump cost (2026)
Air-source heat pump cost: installed cost range with each end sourced, BUS grant treatment, payback shape.
Cost in 2026
Air-source heat pump cost (2026). The published installed range in 2026 is £10,500 to £18,000 installed for a 7 to 12 kW unit (DESNZ guidance and MCS Installation Database). Net after the £7,500 BUS grant: £3,000 to £10,500. Both ends of that range are stated rather than collapsed to a midpoint, because the spread reflects real differences in scope, access and grant eligibility rather than installer mark-up.
What drives the spread
- Unit kW size; oversize is the most common cost error.
- Refrigerant: R32 vs R290 propane (the R290 units are now in volume).
- Cylinder swap to indirect plus immersion.
- Pipework upgrade if microbore.
- Radiator upsize for low-temp design (often a separate £1,800 to £4,500 line).
Where it sits in the PAS 2035 sequence
Heating stratum, third in PAS 2035 sequence.
Surveyed 1 October 2026. Ofgem cap for 1 October to 31 December 2026 applied (gas 7.97p, elec 26.32p, gas standing 29.68p, elec standing 54.83p). Next scheduled review 25 November 2026 (January cap announcement). [ref M3.1]
By Oliver Wakefield-Smith, Founder, Digital Signet. Corrections to oliver at digitalsignet dot com.