Cost of installation
Heat pumps come in all shapes and sizes, naturally, and run the gamut from just a small ductless mini-split with just one indoor air handler unit, to a complex geothermal heat pump which involve drilling 50 ft. deep wells. The key is that as with all HVAC equipment, the heat pump is properly sized for your home. A 1500-sq ft ranch home will need a much different heating system than a 2500-sq. ft two-story home with a finished basement. Good data on average heat pump costs comes from the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER). They provided financial incentives for the conversion of homes to heat pumps, and so have data on the costs of installations from 2014-2019 on 622 homes.
As shown in the chart below, the average cost of conversion was $20,428 for 1,502 sq. ft. of conditioned space. Actual costs, as shown, range from just under $10,000 on the low side to around $67,000 on the high side. As noted in the chart, for a 1,900 sq. ft. conditioned space, the cost would project to some $21,500.
As shown in the chart below, the average cost of conversion was $20,428 for 1,502 sq. ft. of conditioned space. Actual costs, as shown, range from just under $10,000 on the low side to around $67,000 on the high side. As noted in the chart, for a 1,900 sq. ft. conditioned space, the cost would project to some $21,500.
COST OF OPERATION
As you might have guessed if you've read either the "Basics" or "Efficiencies" tab on this website, the cost of operating a heat pump is the cost of buying electricity to run it. For the sake of simplicity, the costs estimated here will only look at the full-time operation of a heat pump and will not include the costs associated with your other fuel system, be it gas, heating oil, propane, or other electric, since the aforementioned Massachusetts survey also indicated that 89% of heat pump owners also had a secondary source of heat for use during the cold winter months when heat pump efficiency falls off.
The cost of running a heat pump will vary widely depending on several factors: the cost of electricity where you live, the heat loss from your home, and the efficiencies of the heat pump.
As it happens, the New England utility, Eversource, has this online cost calculator HERE. All you need to do is specify your home size, equipment efficiencies, average temperature settings, etc. Then plug in your energy costs and you get this nice chart as shown below.
The cost of running a heat pump will vary widely depending on several factors: the cost of electricity where you live, the heat loss from your home, and the efficiencies of the heat pump.
As it happens, the New England utility, Eversource, has this online cost calculator HERE. All you need to do is specify your home size, equipment efficiencies, average temperature settings, etc. Then plug in your energy costs and you get this nice chart as shown below.
For the purpose of this exercise, you can see we chose a 1500 sq. ft. home, with average air tightness, with a 72° target temperature. To compare heating sources, you can see the equipment efficiencies we chose, with heat pumps set at the highest efficiency. Fuel and energy prices come from the CT Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and from the federal Energy Information Administration. As you can see, electricity is the most expensive way to heat your home, with electric resistance heating (e.g. baseboard) being by far the most expensive, with electric heat pumps the second most expensive, edging out propane which was the third most expensive. The purpose of this website is to educate homeowners so that you're informed consumers, and don't buy into the hype from politicians without first doing some homework. As even this utility website shows, by their own calculations, heat pumps are not the least expensive way to go, using real-world prices. |