Grants and incentives for air conditioning

Here’s a 2026 update that surprises people: a reversible air conditioner — one that heats as well as cools — can now qualify for a government grant. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme, which used to cover only air-to-water and ground-source heat pumps, was expanded in 2026 to include air-to-air heat pumps (the technology behind modern air conditioning). The catch is that the system has to replace fossil-fuel heating and act as your main heating — it’s a low-carbon heating grant, not a cooling subsidy.

The Boiler Upgrade Scheme (England & Wales)

The Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS) is the main government grant, run by Ofgem, that helps with the cost of replacing a fossil-fuel heating system (gas, oil or LPG) with a low-carbon one. As of 2026 the grants are:

• £7,500 towards an air-to-water (air source) heat pump, or a ground/water-source heat pump
• £2,500 towards an air-to-air heat pump — added in 2026, this is the route relevant to reversible air conditioning
• £5,000 towards a biomass boiler (rural, off-gas-grid only)

A temporary uplift also applies: from 21 July 2026 to 31 March 2027, eligible off-gas-grid homes on oil or LPG can get £9,000 towards an air- or ground-source heat pump.

The catch for air conditioning: it must heat, and replace a boiler

The air-to-air grant is for a system that becomes your home’s primary heating, replacing a fossil-fuel boiler. A unit installed purely to cool a room doesn’t qualify — the scheme exists to move homes off fossil-fuel heating, so the reversible system has to do the heating job. If you’re buying air conditioning mainly for summer cooling and keeping your gas boiler, you won’t be eligible; if you’re using a reversible system to replace that boiler, you may be.

Who's eligible, and how to apply

Broadly, you need to:

• own your home or small business, in England or Wales;
• be replacing a fossil-fuel system (or electric heating without a heat pump) — not a hybrid, and not replacing an existing low-carbon system;
• have a valid EPC, with any recommended loft or cavity-wall insulation in place;
• use an MCS-certified installer, who applies to Ofgem on your behalf and deducts the grant from your bill — you don’t handle the money.

New-build homes are generally excluded (with a self-build exception), and you can get one grant per property. Qualifying heat-pump installations also benefit from a zero rate of VAT.

Scotland, Northern Ireland and the wider picture

• Scotland: support runs through Home Energy Scotland, which offers a grant plus an interest-free loan toward heat pumps (a larger total package than BUS).
• Northern Ireland: has separate arrangements — check NI Direct and the NI Sustainable Energy Programme.
• BUS now sits alongside the wider Warm Homes Plan, including the Warm Homes Local Grant aimed at lower-income households — which may be a better route than BUS for some homes.

The bottom line: if you’re considering a reversible system to both heat and cool your home, it’s well worth checking BUS eligibility — the rules changed in your favour in 2026. But the values and conditions move around, so confirm the current position on gov.uk and have an MCS-certified installer check your specific situation before counting on a grant. For cooling-only systems there’s no grant, though the zero VAT rate may still apply to qualifying heat-pump work.

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