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Can You Really Get a £2,500 Grant for Air Conditioning?

The £2,500 air conditioning grant is real, but it probably does not work in the way many homeowners expect.

In November 2025, the government announced that the Boiler Upgrade Scheme would be expanded to include eligible air-to-air heat pumps. The new grant became available under the scheme rules from 28 April 2026 and offers £2,500 towards a qualifying installation in a residential property in England or Wales.

Because most modern air-conditioning systems can provide both heating and cooling, the announcement naturally attracted interest from homeowners who wanted an air-conditioning unit in a warm bedroom, living room or home office.

At first glance, it can sound as though the government will simply contribute £2,500 towards one or two air-conditioning units. The reality is more complicated.

The Boiler Upgrade Scheme is primarily intended to help property owners replace an existing fossil-fuel or eligible electric heating system with a lower-carbon alternative. A qualifying air-to-air heat pump must therefore be designed as a heating system for the property, not merely as comfort cooling for selected rooms.

So, can you really get £2,500 towards air conditioning? Potentially, yes. But the system required to qualify may be far larger and more involved than the installation you originally had in mind.

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Is There Really a £2,500 Government Grant for Air Conditioning?

Yes. Eligible air-to-air heat pumps have been added to the Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which is administered by Ofgem on behalf of the government.

The Boiler Upgrade Scheme first opened in May 2022. It originally offered £5,000 towards an air-source heat pump and £6,000 towards a ground-source heat pump. In October 2023, the main heat-pump grant increased to £7,500. Air-to-air heat pumps were later added with a lower grant value of £2,500.

The phrase “air conditioning grant” is useful because it reflects what homeowners are searching for. Technically, however, the grant applies to an eligible air-to-air heat pump installation.

What is the difference between air-to-air and air-to-water heat pumps?

Both systems use a refrigeration cycle to collect heat from one place and release it somewhere else.

An air-to-water heat pump transfers energy from the outdoor air into a water circuit. That water then moves through radiators, underfloor heating or fan convectors and can also be used to heat a domestic hot-water cylinder.

An air-to-air heat pump transfers energy directly between refrigerant and the air inside the property. Indoor fan units distribute warm air during winter and, when the refrigeration cycle is reversed, cool and dehumidified air during summer.

Air-to-air systems can be extremely efficient in suitable properties because they deliver heat directly to the room and avoid some of the hydraulic components associated with wet central heating. Actual performance still depends on the equipment, outdoor conditions, system design, controls and how the occupants use it.

Aren't air-to-air heat pumps just air-conditioning units?

In many cases, yes. Most modern split and multi-split air-conditioning systems are reversible heat pumps. They can provide cooling in summer and warm-air heating in winter at the touch of a button.

However, being capable of heating does not automatically make every product or installation eligible for the grant. The equipment, installer, system design, commissioning and certification all need to satisfy the current MCS and Boiler Upgrade Scheme requirements.

Can I Get £2,500 Towards a Single Air-Conditioning Unit?

For most homeowners who intend to keep their existing boiler as the main heating system, no.

Consider a homeowner with a gas boiler who wants air conditioning in the living room and main bedroom. They plan to install two indoor units connected to one outdoor multi-split unit, use them mainly for summer cooling and continue using the gas boiler throughout winter.

That could be a perfectly sensible privately funded air-conditioning installation. It would not normally meet the central purpose of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme because the new system would not be replacing the property’s existing heating system or meeting its full space-heating demand.

This is the biggest misunderstanding surrounding the £2,500 grant: the scheme is not simply offering public money towards comfort cooling. It is supporting a transition to a different primary heating system.

Do I Have to Replace My Existing Heating System?

The funded installation must replace the property’s existing fossil-fuel or eligible electric heating system. This can include gas, oil, LPG, coal, direct electric heaters or storage heaters, subject to the complete eligibility rules.

A hybrid arrangement in which a fossil-fuel boiler remains connected as part of the main space-heating system is not eligible. The new air-to-air system must take over as the primary heating system.

That does not necessarily mean every gas appliance in the home has to disappear. A gas hob used for cooking is different from a gas boiler providing space heating. Any proposed supplementary heater should nevertheless be discussed with the MCS installer responsible for the voucher application.

Does the Air-to-Air Heat Pump Need to Heat the Whole House?

The heat pump must be sized to meet the full space-heating needs of the property. That requirement changes the project completely.

Installing one or two indoor units for summer cooling is relatively straightforward. Designing a whole-house air-to-air heating system begins with a detailed survey and a room-by-room heat-loss calculation.

The designer needs to establish how much heat each room loses during winter design conditions and how that heat will be delivered effectively. Living rooms, kitchens, bedrooms, bathrooms, home offices, entrance halls, staircases and landings must all be considered.

In many properties, each principal room would need its own indoor unit. Other homes may be better suited to a ducted system distributing warm or cool air through ceiling or wall grilles. Some projects may use a combination of wall-mounted, floor-mounted, cassette and ducted indoor units.

The system must therefore be designed primarily as a heating system, rather than as an air-conditioning installation that happens to include a heating mode.

What Practical Challenges Come With Whole-House Air-to-Air Heating?

Living rooms

A large living room can normally be heated by a correctly sized indoor unit, but the fan must distribute air throughout the space. Some people barely notice the airflow, while others may find it more noticeable than heat from radiators or underfloor heating. Position, fan speed, noise level and air throw all matter.

Kitchens

Kitchens create moisture, grease and airborne particles. Indoor units contain washable filters, but cooking vapours reaching the heat exchanger or fan can increase cleaning and servicing requirements. Positioning should be considered carefully.

Bedrooms

Bedrooms generally need individual temperature control. Heat drifting from a landing is unlikely to provide dependable comfort when doors are closed. Indoor-unit noise and position are particularly important at night.

Hallways, stairs and landings

These areas still lose heat. Depending on the layout, they may be served by a carefully positioned unit in an adjoining open area, a dedicated indoor unit or a ducted solution. The design must demonstrate how the heating requirement will be met.

Bathrooms

Bathrooms require particular care because electrical equipment near baths and showers must comply with bathroom-zone requirements. Possible solutions may include ducted warm air, electric underfloor heating, an electric towel rail or another eligible non-fossil supplementary appliance. Bathrooms are a good example of why a whole-house system cannot be designed simply by counting wall-mounted units.

Outdoor units

A multi-split outdoor unit can normally serve several indoor units, but larger homes may need more than one outdoor unit once heating demand, refrigerant pipe lengths and manufacturer combination limits are considered. Planning requirements must be checked for the exact proposal rather than assumed.

How Many Air-Conditioning Units Would I Need?

There is no reliable answer without assessing the property.

The final number of indoor units depends on the age and construction of the building, insulation levels, floor plan, open-plan spaces, room-by-room heat loss, indoor-unit locations, available duct routes, outdoor-unit capacities, refrigerant pipe lengths and the manufacturer’s permitted combinations.

The aim is not simply to install one unit in every room. It is to prove that the proposed system can deliver the required heat to every relevant space safely, comfortably and efficiently.

Can One Air-Conditioning Unit Heat Several Rooms?

A single unit may contribute some heat to adjoining spaces in a small open-plan home, but it should not generally be assumed that one unit can effectively heat several separate rooms.

A doorway restricts airflow, and closing the door reduces it further. Oversizing one indoor unit in the hope that it will heat surrounding rooms can create the opposite problem: the room containing the unit reaches temperature quickly and the unit reduces output or cycles, while more distant rooms remain cold.

Simply fitting one large unit downstairs does not automatically create a whole-house heating system.

How Would I Produce Domestic Hot Water?

This is one of the most important questions and one of the easiest to overlook.

A conventional air-to-air heat pump provides space heating and cooling. It does not normally heat domestic water. If the new system replaces a combi boiler, the property will need another non-fossil way to produce hot water.

Hot-water cylinder with an immersion heater

A suitable cylinder can be heated using an electric immersion heater. Homeowners with time-of-use tariffs may be able to heat water during cheaper overnight periods. Solar PV can also make a useful contribution through a suitable immersion diverter.

Dedicated heat-pump water heater

A dedicated heat-pump water heater combines a cylinder with a small heat pump designed specifically to produce domestic hot water. Products such as integrated heat-pump cylinders can use less electricity than direct immersion heating, although they require suitable space, airflow and condensate drainage.

Solar thermal and solar PV

Solar thermal can heat water directly, but it requires roof space, specialist equipment and ongoing maintenance. For many modern projects, solar PV combined with an electrical hot-water solution is simpler and more flexible.

The correct solution depends on the household’s hot-water demand, available space, electricity tariff and wider system design.

Why Can't I Find an Installer Offering the £2,500 Grant?

Ofgem is Great Britain’s independent energy regulator and administers the Boiler Upgrade Scheme on behalf of the government.

The scheme is installer-led. An appropriately MCS-certified installer applies for the voucher, completes the qualifying installation and redeems the grant on the property owner’s behalf.

Although air-to-air heat pumps became legally eligible under BUS in April 2026, bringing a new technology into the scheme requires more than changing the grant rules. The market also needs approved products, published standards, certification bodies, certified installers and robust consumer-protection processes.

This means the grant can appear on government and Ofgem websites before it is widely available through installers.

LATEST UPDATE — 17 JULY 2026

Air-to-air heat pumps are included in the Boiler Upgrade Scheme at £2,500. A valid claim still requires an eligible product and an installer holding the correct MCS certification. Practical availability may remain limited while product listings and installer certification develop.

How Much Does a Whole-House Air-to-Air Heat Pump System Cost?

Costs vary enormously. Government communications have suggested that a typical installation in a flat or small house may cost around £4,500, but that figure should not be treated as a quotation for every property.

The final price depends on:

Homeowners should compare the £2,500 grant against the full cost of creating a compliant whole-house heating system. The important question is not simply how much grant is available, but what system the property genuinely needs.

CONSIDERING AIR-TO-AIR HEATING?

Before choosing a system, find out what would actually be required to heat your complete property.

Is the £2,500 Air-to-Air Heat Pump Grant Worth It?

For some homes, it could be an excellent opportunity.

Air-to-air heating may be particularly attractive for flats, small houses, highly insulated homes, properties without wet central heating and homes currently using direct electric or storage heating. It may also suit homeowners who already want cooling throughout the property.

For someone with a complete gas-fired wet central-heating system who only wants cooling in one or two rooms, complying with the scheme may require far more work than expected: indoor units throughout the home, removal of the boiler, provision for bathrooms and hallways, and a new domestic hot-water solution.

In that situation, a conventional privately funded air-conditioning installation may be simpler and less expensive.

The grant should support the right solution. It should not persuade a homeowner to install a more complicated system purely to qualify for public funding.

I Already Have a Heat Pump. Can I Claim £2,500 for Air Conditioning?

Normally, no. The grant is intended to replace an existing fossil-fuel or eligible electric heating system. A homeowner who already has an air-to-water heat pump has already made the transition the scheme is designed to support.

Adding air conditioning may still be worthwhile, but it would generally be a separate privately funded installation.

Can I Claim £2,500 Now and Another Heat-Pump Grant Later?

No. Only one Boiler Upgrade Scheme voucher can be redeemed for each legally separate property.

A homeowner who uses the £2,500 voucher for an air-to-air heat pump cannot later claim another voucher to install an air-to-water heat pump at the same property. That makes the initial decision particularly important.

But Could There Be Another Option?

By this stage, the potential scale of an eligible air-to-air installation should be clearer.

Receiving the £2,500 grant could mean replacing the primary heating system, installing indoor units throughout the property, developing a separate hot-water solution and completing a full room-by-room design.

If you are considering replacing your complete heating system anyway, it is worth asking another question: could one integrated system provide wet central heating, domestic hot water and dedicated air conditioning?

This is where the Samsung EHS Quint could change the conversation.

The Samsung EHS Quint combines air-to-water central heating and hot-water production with additional refrigerant connections for dedicated Samsung air-conditioning indoor units. Instead of choosing between a traditional air-to-water heat pump and whole-house air-to-air heating, one integrated outdoor system could potentially provide both.

Read our full guide: Samsung EHS Quint: Can One Heat Pump Provide Heating, Hot Water and Air Conditioning? — /samsung-ehs-quint/

Its precise UK availability, MCS certification and Boiler Upgrade Scheme eligibility must still be confirmed before any grant claim is assumed.

LOOKING FOR HEATING, HOT WATER AND AIR CONDITIONING?

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Frequently Asked Questions

Can I get a £2,500 grant for air conditioning?

You may be able to receive £2,500 towards an eligible air-to-air heat-pump installation. The equipment, installer and full system must meet the current BUS and MCS requirements.

Can I use the grant for one air-conditioning unit?

Not where the unit only provides comfort cooling or partial heating while an existing fossil-fuel boiler remains the main heating system.

Can I keep my gas boiler?

A fossil-fuel hybrid heating system is not eligible. The funded installation must replace the existing qualifying heating system.

Does an air-to-air heat pump need to heat the whole house?

It must be sized to meet the property’s full space-heating requirement, which normally requires a room-by-room design.

Can air conditioning replace central heating?

A properly designed air-to-air system can provide whole-house heating, but room coverage, airflow, noise, bathrooms and domestic hot water all require careful consideration.

How would I produce hot water?

Possible options include an electrically heated cylinder, a dedicated heat-pump water heater, solar-assisted immersion heating or another eligible non-fossil solution.

Can I get another BUS grant later?

No. Only one voucher can be redeemed per legally separate property.

Could I get a larger grant for a different heat pump?

Eligible air-to-water and ground-source heat pumps normally receive £7,500. A temporary £9,000 grant applies to certain off-gas properties replacing oil or LPG between 21 July 2026 and 31 March 2027.

Final Thoughts

The £2,500 air conditioning grant is genuine, and air-to-air heat pumps could be an excellent low-carbon heating option for the right property.

However, it is not simply a government contribution towards installing an air conditioner in the warmest room. The funded installation must be designed as a complete heating solution, use eligible equipment and be delivered through the relevant MCS framework.

For a small home without wet central heating, that may be very attractive. For a larger home with an existing boiler and a requirement for cooling in only one or two rooms, pursuing the grant could lead to substantially more work and cost than installing standalone air conditioning.

The best decision is not always the option with the biggest headline grant. It is the system that meets the property’s heating, hot-water and cooling requirements efficiently, comfortably and at a sensible overall cost.

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