Energy / Heat pump costs
Heat pump or gas boiler?
A heat pump uses electricity, which costs more per kWh than gas, but delivers about three kWh of heat for each one it uses. Work out which costs less to run in your home.
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A heat pump would cost £48.62 a year less to run.
Example · Great Britain averageThis is an example, using Ofgem's typical gas use of 9,500 kWh a year, a boiler at 85% and a heat pump at 3.0. Change the figures above for your home.
| Energy a year | Unit rate | Running cost a year | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gas boiler (85% efficient) | 9,500 kWh of gas | 7.97p | £757.15 |
| Heat pump (SCOP 3.0) | 2,692 kWh of electricity | 26.32p | £708.53 |
Both give the home 8,075 kWh of heat a year. A heat pump needs a SCOP of at least 2.8 to cost the same to run as this boiler at these prices.
Source: Ofgem energy price cap Cap period from
- The rates are the Ofgem price cap's Direct Debit rates for the Great Britain average, including any VAT. Standing charges are left out, because you pay the electricity one either way. If you stopped using gas altogether you'd also stop paying the gas standing charge, £108.33 a year at the cap.
- SCOP is the seasonal coefficient of performance: kWh of heat for each kWh of electricity over a year. It depends on your home's insulation, the size of the radiators and how hot the water in them has to be, so the figure of 3.0 here is an example. Ask an installer for the figure for your home.
- The gas figure is what your meter records, so it includes cooking and hot water. The boiler efficiency is the share of that gas that becomes heat. A heat pump replaces the heat, and the sums assume it replaces all of it.
- This is running cost only. It leaves out the price of installing a heat pump, servicing, and any cheaper heat pump tariff you might be on.
A grant towards a heat pump.
02 / Help with the costThe government's Boiler Upgrade Scheme gives £7,500 towards an air source heat pump and £7,500 towards a ground source one. It is open to homeowners in England and Wales who are replacing a fossil fuel heating system. There is one grant per property, and your installer applies for it.
Source: Apply for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (GOV.UK) Checked
In Scotland, Home Energy Scotland has loans and grants. Check who is eligible on GOV.UK.
More on energy.
03 / RelatedData sources
- Ofgem energy price cap. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
- Apply for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (GOV.UK). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.