The short answer to “how much does a heat pump cost?” is anywhere from a few thousand dollars to well over $20,000, installed. A single ductless zone sits at the bottom of that range. A whole-home air-source system in a large house sits near the top, and geothermal runs higher still. Both ends come from third-party sources, dated below. They are not Greystone’s prices, and they won’t tell you how much a new heat pump will be in your house until you know which job you have.
That spread looks unhelpful, and it is, until you see what’s inside it. A heat pump quote is really three prices stacked together: the equipment, the electrical work to feed it, and whatever the ductwork needs. Two houses can get the same outdoor unit and very different totals.
How much is a heat pump? Published prices by type
A caveat first. We found two usable published sources, and they disagree by a lot.
Rewiring America’s cost guide is national and undated (we accessed it on September 24, 2026). Its ranges are the 20th to 80th percentile of real projects, adjusted to national averages. Dimatic Control is a New Jersey installer, and its heat pump cost page is dated April 15, 2026. It’s the only state-specific breakdown we found, but it is one company’s marketing page, so weigh it that way.
| System type | Rewiring America (national, undated) | Dimatic Control (NJ, April 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Whole-home (ducted or ductless), 1,500 to 2,500 sq ft | $17,000 to $23,000 (median $19,500) | not given by size |
| Whole-home (ducted or ductless), 2,500 to 5,500 sq ft | $22,500 to $28,000 (median $25,000) | not given by size |
| Whole-home (ducted or ductless), 5,500+ sq ft | $26,000 to $30,000 (median $29,000) | not given by size |
| Central air-source, standard | not given | $4,500 to $8,500 |
| Central air-source, cold-climate | not given | $7,000 to $14,000 |
| Dual fuel (heat pump plus gas) | not given | $8,000 to $15,000 |
| Single-zone ductless | $5,400 to $8,500 (median $6,600) | $3,500 to $5,500 |
| Multi-zone ductless | inside the whole-home rows | $7,000 to $14,000 |
| Geothermal | not given | $18,000 to $35,000 |
Compare the central and whole-home rows. Dimatic’s standard central system starts at $4,500. Rewiring America’s range for its smallest size band starts at $17,000, and its whole-home figures cover both ducted and ductless systems that do all of a house’s heating and cooling. We don’t think either one is wrong. Our guess (and it is a guess, neither source says so) is that they’re pricing different jobs: a like-for-like swap of an outdoor unit onto ducts that already work, against a full conversion that replaces the heating too, whether through ducts or several ductless indoor units, and often touches the panel. Don’t average the two. Figure out which job you actually have.
Ducted air-source, replacing a central AC
If the house already has central air and the ducts are in decent shape, this is the simplest case. A ducted heat pump goes where the old condenser sat, with a matching indoor coil and air handler, and it cools the house the same way the AC did. The pricing overlaps a lot with an AC replacement, which we cover in what central AC replacement costs. Dimatic’s $4,500 to $8,500 for a standard central unit looks like this job.
Cold-climate models
Cold-climate heat pumps are built to keep producing useful heat at lower outdoor temperatures, and they cost more for it: Dimatic lists them at $7,000 to $14,000, against $4,500 to $8,500 for a standard unit. Rewiring America doesn’t split them out, though it does say homes in colder regions tend to land at the upper end of its ranges. Whether you need one depends on the house and how you plan to heat it. Do heat pumps work in New Jersey winters? covers performance in the cold, so we won’t repeat it here.
Dual fuel: a heat pump added to an existing furnace
Dual fuel keeps the furnace and adds a heat pump that does most of the work until it gets cold enough for the furnace to take over. Rewiring America says hybrid setups with fossil-fuel backup cost less than whole-home conversions. Dimatic puts dual fuel at $8,000 to $15,000. For a house with a furnace that still has years left in it, this is often the option worth asking about first, because you aren’t paying to replace heating equipment that works.
Ductless mini split
One zone is the cheapest way into a heat pump: $5,400 to $8,500 per Rewiring America, $3,500 to $5,500 per Dimatic. It’s a good fit for an addition, a finished attic or a room the central system never quite reaches. Each extra room adds a head and a line set, which is how multi-zone systems climb to Dimatic’s $7,000 to $14,000. Ductless costs have their own guide: what a ductless mini split costs to install in New Jersey.
Geothermal
Dimatic’s $18,000 to $35,000 is the only current figure we found. Most of the extra goes into the ground loop, which means drilling or trenching. That work depends on the lot, so a published range tells you less here than anywhere else.
Why quotes for the same heat pump differ
Most of the gap between two heat pump quotes comes from the house, not the brand of equipment.
Electrical panel and circuit work
A heat pump needs its own circuit, sized for the outdoor unit. Many systems also have electric backup heat in the air handler, and that draws a lot of current on its own. Add both to a panel that already feeds an electric range, a dryer and maybe a car charger, and an older 100 amp service can run out of room. Rewiring America says only that you “may also need to upgrade your electric panel or wiring.” Dimatic gives a number: a 200 amp upgrade in New Jersey homes runs up to $3,000. That’s one installer’s figure, but it’s the only published one we found for the state.
Sometimes the panel has capacity and the job just needs a new circuit and a disconnect. Sometimes it needs a service upgrade, which brings in the utility and adds time and cost. From the outside you can’t tell which, and an honest quote can’t either until someone has looked at the panel and done a load calculation on the electrical side.
So ask for it. A quote that says “electrical by others” or doesn’t mention the panel at all is incomplete, and you’ll pay the difference later. A quote from someone who opened the panel door and wrote down what they found is worth more than one that’s a thousand dollars cheaper and didn’t.
Ductwork condition
Rewiring America says costs run higher if you have no ducts or the ducts need replacing, and Dimatic puts duct modifications at $2,000 to $5,000. A heat pump delivers air that is warm rather than hot, so it tends to need more airflow than a furnace for the same heat, and ducts that were fine for a furnace can turn out undersized or leaky once they’re carrying a heat pump’s airflow.
Backup heat
Something has to cover the coldest hours, and the choice shows up on the quote. Rewiring America says hybrid setups that keep fossil-fuel backup cost less than whole-home conversions. The other common route is electric resistance heat in the air handler, which adds to the panel load covered above. Ask which one a quote includes. If it doesn’t say, ask again.
System size and the load calculation
A bigger unit costs more, and an oversized one cycles on and off and runs worse. The size should come from a load calculation on your house, not from the label on the old unit. Heat pumps are sized in tons, and the same sizing logic applies to a heat pump as to an air conditioner, and what size air conditioner you need walks through it.
Heat pump rebates and incentives
Rebates can take a real bite out of the price, and they change often enough that we keep them in one place: New Jersey heat pump rebates and incentives. Check there before comparing quotes.
How to compare heat pump installation cost quotes
Get the quotes itemized so you’re comparing the same job:
- The model numbers for the outdoor unit and the indoor unit, plus the AHRI certificate number for the matched pair
- Whether it is a standard or cold-climate model
- What backup heat it uses
- The electrical work, spelled out, including whether a panel or service upgrade is included or excluded
- Any duct changes, and whether anyone measured the ducts
- Whether a load calculation was done, and a copy of it
- Removal of the old equipment, permits, and the warranty terms for parts and labor
If one quote is far below the others, it’s usually missing one of the lines above. There’s more in how to compare HVAC quotes.
Is a heat pump cheaper than a furnace?
To install, usually not. To run, it depends on your rates and your house. We compared the two in furnace vs heat pump: which costs less, and the heat pump guides cover how these systems work.
We still can’t tell you which of the two published ranges your house will land in. Nobody can without seeing the panel and the ducts. If you have a question about a heat pump quote you’ve been given, you can contact our team.