A whole-house air-to-water heat pump typically costs €10,000–18,000 installed in Western Europe in 2026, or £8,000–15,000 in the UK, before grants. Germany is the outlier at €27,000–40,000 because quotes there bundle the entire heating renovation. Grants change the answer sharply: the UK Boiler Upgrade Scheme pays £7,500 and Ireland's SEAI bundle reaches €12,500.
What does a heat pump cost by market in 2026?
Typical 2026 installed prices for an air-to-water heat pump in a 120–160 m² family home — outdoor unit, indoor module, hydraulics, controls, a hot water cylinder and commissioning — before any grant is deducted:
| Market | Typical 2026 installed cost | Main grant lever |
|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | £8,000 – £15,000 | Boiler Upgrade Scheme, £7,500 |
| Ireland | €12,000 – €18,000 | SEAI bundle up to €12,500 |
| France | €10,000 – €18,000 | MaPrimeRénov' €3,000 – €5,000 plus CEE |
| Spain | €8,000 – €18,000 | IRPF deduction up to 40% |
| Italy | €7,000 – €16,000 | Conto Termico 3.0, up to 65% |
| Poland | PLN 35,000 – 65,000 | Czyste Powietrze |
| Germany | €27,000 – €40,000 | BEG grant, 30 – 80% |
Read these as the middle of each market in 2026, not as a quotation. A new-build installation with underfloor heating already in place sits at the bottom of its band; a solid-wall retrofit needing new emitters, a cylinder and an upgraded electrical supply sits above the top of it.
Why is the German figure two to three times the British one?
Because a German quote is a different product. A German Komplettpaket is a whole heating renovation: removing and decommissioning the old boiler, new hydraulics, hydraulic balancing, replacement radiators, a cylinder, design work by an accredited energy expert and the documentation needed to claim the subsidy. British, Spanish and Italian quotes far more often cover the heat pump, the cylinder and only those emitters that must change.
The state itself signals the expected level. Since the BEG reform of 21 July 2026, Germany caps eligible costs at €28,000 for the first dwelling unit and reduces that ceiling by €750 every six months. That number was set against full-retrofit pricing, not against a like-for-like swap.
What is usually excluded from the headline price?
- Emitter upgrades. Radiators sized for 70 °C do not work at 45 °C. Replacing a third of a house's radiators typically adds €2,000–5,000. See what flow temperature should I run my heat pump at?
- The cylinder. A boiler cylinder with a 0.5–0.8 m² coil cannot absorb heat pump output; a heat pump ready cylinder needs 2.0–3.0 m².
- Electrical work. Supply upgrade, dedicated circuit, controls and metering.
- Builder's work. Base or wall brackets, condensate drainage, wall penetrations, scaffolding, making good.
- Design and certification. A room-by-room heat loss survey to EN 12831-1 costs €350–700 as a standalone job.
Asking every bidder to price those five lines explicitly is the single most useful step in comparing two quotes.
What do you actually pay after grants?
In the UK the £7,500 Boiler Upgrade Scheme voucher takes a typical £12,000 job to roughly £4,500, and off-gas-grid homes replacing oil or LPG can claim £9,000 between 21 July 2026 and 31 March 2027. In Ireland the SEAI bundle — heat pump grant plus heating-system upgrade plus the Renewable Heat Bonus — reaches €12,500 for houses, leaving €2,000–6,000 on a typical job. Germany's headline percentages look larger but apply only to capped eligible costs: 30% base plus bonuses, to a maximum of 70% (80% for household incomes up to €30,000). Italy's Conto Termico 3.0 pays a direct grant of up to 65% and settles in a single instalment when the grant is below €15,000.
Because rates moved three times in July 2026 alone across Germany, Poland and the UK, check the current official rules for your country before budgeting. Country-by-country detail sits in which European countries offer heat pump grants in 2026?
Why did prices not fall in 2026?
Volume rose, input costs rose faster. European heat pump sales grew 13% to 2.88 million units across 21 countries in 2025 (EHPA). Against that, LME copper set a record near $14,527/t in January 2026, the EU steel safeguard overhaul of 1 July 2026 nearly halved duty-free quotas to 18.3 Mt while doubling the out-of-quota tariff to 50%, and the F-Gas quota cut to 42.9 Mt CO₂e for 2025–2026 is pushing the industry towards R290 hardware ahead of the tighter F-gas rules due from January 2027.
As a manufacturer, Solimpeks sees the same pressure on collectors and tanks. The practical consequence for buyers is simple: waiting rarely produces a cheaper installation, while a degressive subsidy such as Germany's reliably produces a smaller grant.
Frequently asked questions
Is a heat pump cheaper than a new gas boiler?
Not on purchase price: a like-for-like gas boiler swap costs less up front. Over the system's life the picture changes — at EU-average prices a heat pump runs about 35–40% cheaper than gas (roughly €800 a year for a home needing 15,000 kWh of heat), fossil boilers no longer receive EU public subsidies, and after the UK or Irish grant the net purchase figures move much closer together.
How much does a heat pump cost for a small flat?
Small, well-insulated dwellings with a low heat load sit at the bottom of every range — typically £6,000–9,000 in the UK or €8,000–12,000 in continental markets, because emitters often already suit a 45 °C flow temperature and no supply upgrade is needed.
Does a ground source heat pump cost more?
Yes, roughly 1.5 to 2 times more. Boreholes or ground loops dominate the price: German quotes run €40,000–50,000 and Polish ones PLN 60,000–100,000 including drilling. The efficiency gain rarely repays that gap in a small dwelling.
Should I wait for prices to come down?
Not in 2026. Copper, steel and refrigerant costs are all rising, and Germany's subsidy is explicitly degressive — the Klimageschwindigkeitsbonus falls in steps to zero by August 2028 and eligible costs shrink every six months. Delay usually costs more than it saves.