Heat pumps are great for the right home. The right home is rarer than the marketing suggests. For most UK properties, electric underfloor heating delivers the same low-carbon outcome at a fraction of the cost, and works whether the house is insulated or not. EkoBuild doesn't sell heat pumps. We sell the alternative.
Heat pumps work. The technology is sound. But the marketing has run miles ahead of what the average UK home can actually do with one. For most properties, older, partly-insulated, terraced, mid-budget, a heat pump install ends up costing more than gas, performing worse than promised, and locking the owner into a system that needs ongoing maintenance. Three things are usually missing from the brochure:
A standard air source heat pump in 2026 lands between £8,000 and £15,000 fully installed. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant takes £7,500 off for eligible homes, but eligibility excludes a large chunk of UK housing stock, including most off-grid properties, many older homes without sufficient insulation, and properties that need a flow temperature higher than the pump can sustain.
Then there are the secondary costs that aren't in the headline price: bigger radiators (yes, you usually still need them and they have to be larger), a buffer tank, often a hot water cylinder if you didn't have one, and frequently insulation upgrades to make the system viable in the first place.
Heat pumps deliver heat at a lower flow temperature than gas boilers (45–55°C vs 70–80°C). That's efficient, but only if the house holds its heat. In a poorly insulated property the pump runs flat-out trying to maintain 19°C inside while the heat leaks out as fast as it goes in. The result is running costs that can match or exceed gas, and a system that cycles constantly.
If your EPC is C or above and your loft, floor and walls are insulated, a heat pump can be brilliant. If you're in a Victorian terrace with solid walls and single-glazed sash windows, the maths probably doesn't work without £20k+ of insulation upgrades first.
Manufacturers quote a Coefficient of Performance (COP) of 3.0–4.0, meaning 3–4 kWh of heat per kWh of electricity in. Real-world UK averages from the BEIS Heat Pump Trials sit closer to 2.4–2.8 across the year, lower in cold snaps. A COP of 2.4 means the electricity bill is 40% higher than the brochure suggests.
A typical scenario: 75m² terraced house, full primary heating, average UK insulation.
| Factor | Air Source Heat Pump | EkoBuild Electric UFH |
|---|---|---|
| Install cost | £8,000 – £15,000 £500–£7,500 net after BUS grant if eligible | £3,500 – £5,500 Whole-house Ribbon + thermostat + insulation |
| Eligibility | Needs EPC C or above for sensible running cost. Off-grid often excluded from grant. | Works in any property. No insulation requirement (better insulation just helps running costs). |
| Install timeline | 5–10 days. Plumbing, electrical, outdoor unit foundations. | DIY weekend per room. Bathroom done same day. |
| Radiators still needed? | Yes, usually bigger ones | No |
| Outdoor unit? | Yes, needs garden space and creates fan noise | None |
| Running cost (75m² home) | ~£1,200–£1,800/year depending on real-world COP | ~£2,000/year on standard tariff ~£600/year on Octopus Go + battery |
| Maintenance | Annual service required. Refrigerant top-up every 5–7 yrs. | Zero. No pump, no fluid, no service. |
| Lifespan | 15–20 years | 30+ years (Ribbon), 15-yr warranty |
| Pairs with solar? | Yes, but inefficiently, pump runs all day, solar peaks midday | Yes, perfectly, see solar + UFH |
| Best for | New builds and well-insulated homes with garden space | Retrofits, renovations, terraces, flats, off-grid |
For the vast majority of UK homes, electric underfloor heating is the better answer. It costs less, installs faster, works in any property, and pairs perfectly with solar or a home battery. Here's where it wins outright:
The full case for electric UFH as primary heating is on the underfloor heating page, with running cost tables, kit breakdowns, and DIY install steps.
We're not anti-heat-pump. We're anti-mis-sold-heat-pump. For one specific type of property they're the right answer, and that property is rarer than the install industry implies. If you tick every one of these boxes, a heat pump is worth costing out:
If you don't tick all five, the heat pump payback breaks and you'd have been better off with UFH. If you do tick all five, get a proper MCS quote, and still cost out UFH side by side, because the upfront difference is often £6,000-£10,000.
Real numbers for a typical 75m² 3-bed terrace. Heat pump costs sourced from Energy Saving Trust 2026 data. UFH costs from EkoBuild's published prices.
Gross install: £10,500 average
Net after BUS grant: £3,000 if eligible
Insulation top-up: often £3,000–£8,000 extra
Radiator upgrades: £1,500–£3,000
Annual running: £1,200–£1,800
Service costs: ~£150/year
Ribbon: 75m² × £45–65/m² = £3,375–£4,875
Thermostats: 3 × £89.99 = £270
Insulation: 8 packs × £53.50 = £428
Install: Mostly DIY, electrician for final hookup ~£250
Annual running: £2,000 standard / £600 on Go + battery
Service costs: £0
The upfront difference is significant. The running cost gap closes when UFH is paired with solar or a smart tariff. And the UFH stack has no service costs ever, there's nothing mechanical to maintain.
The EkoBuild Room Designer prices a whole-house electric underfloor heating layout in five minutes. No email needed. No sales follow-up. No MCS surveyor. Just an exact price for your house.