Solar Panels vs Heat Pump: Cost Compared 2026 (UK)
Solar panels and a heat pump solve different problems — solar cuts your electricity bill, a heat pump replaces how you heat the house. A typical 4kW solar system costs £5,000–£8,000 and saves around £400–£700 a year; an air source heat pump costs £8,000–£14,000 before the £7,500 Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant. If you want lower bills with the least disruption, solar usually pays back faster. If you want off gas — or your boiler is on its way out — a heat pump is the bigger move, and the grant does a lot of the work. Here's how they compare in 2026.
Solar vs heat pump at a glance (2026)
| Solar PV panels | Air source heat pump | |
|---|---|---|
| What it does | Generates electricity | Replaces your heating system |
| Typical installed cost | £5,000–£8,000 (4kW) | £8,000–£14,000 |
| Grant | None (0% VAT to Mar 2027) | £7,500 Boiler Upgrade Scheme |
| Net cost after grant | £5,000–£8,000 | £2,000–£6,500 |
| Typical annual saving | £400–£700 off electricity | Varies — biggest vs oil/LPG/electric |
| Rough payback | 8–12 years | Depends on the fuel it replaces |
| Lifespan | 25+ years (panels) | 15–20 years |
These are not either/or products. Solar lowers the electricity a heat pump uses, so a growing number of homes fit both — see below.
What each one actually does
Solar PV panels turn daylight into electricity. They cut the amount you buy from the grid, and any surplus can be exported for a payment under the Smart Export Guarantee. They don't change how you heat your home — if you're on a gas boiler, you stay on a gas boiler. Solar is a bolt-on that lowers one bill.
An air source heat pump replaces your boiler entirely. It moves heat from the outside air into your radiators and hot water, running on electricity at 300–400% efficiency. It's a heating-system change, not a bolt-on: it takes your home off gas (or oil/LPG) and cuts your heating carbon to near zero on a clean electricity tariff.
That difference is the whole comparison. Solar attacks your electricity bill; a heat pump attacks your heating bill and your carbon footprint. Which matters more to you decides the winner.
Cost comparison in detail (2026)
| System | Installed cost | Grant | Net cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solar PV, 4kW (~10 panels) | £5,000–£8,000 | 0% VAT | £5,000–£8,000 |
| Solar PV + battery storage | £8,000–£13,000 | 0% VAT | £8,000–£13,000 |
| Air source heat pump | £8,000–£14,000 | −£7,500 BUS | £2,000–£6,500 |
| Ground source heat pump | £18,000–£35,000 | −£7,500 BUS | £10,500–£27,500 |
See our detailed solar panel cost guide, air source heat pump cost guide and solar battery cost guide for the full breakdowns behind these figures. The £7,500 grant is set out on the heat pump grants page.
Savings and running costs — the honest version
Solar gives a clear, predictable saving. A 4kW system generates roughly 3,400–4,000 kWh a year; the more of that you use yourself rather than export, the more you save. Most homes bank £400–£700 a year, rising with a battery and a Smart Export Guarantee tariff. Payback is typically 8–12 years on a system that lasts 25+.
A heat pump is more nuanced. Electricity costs more per kWh than mains gas, but a heat pump delivers 3–4 units of heat per unit of electricity. For a well-insulated home on a good tariff the running cost lands close to mains gas — sometimes a little less, sometimes a little more. The strong financial cases are homes coming off oil, LPG or old electric heating, where a heat pump can cut hundreds of pounds a year, and homes replacing a dying boiler, where the £7,500 grant offsets most of the premium over a new gas boiler. Don't fit a heat pump expecting big savings over mains gas — fit it to get off fossil fuel.
Net upfront cost compared — 2026
Solar shown at full price (0% VAT); heat pumps shown after the £7,500 Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant.
*After the £7,500 Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant. Source: BestBuilders 2026 quote data · 519 UK towns
Which is right for your home?
Lean solar if…
- You're on mains gas and happy with your boiler
- You want the fastest, most predictable payback
- You use a fair bit of electricity during the day
- You want a smaller, less disruptive project
- You have an unshaded south-, east- or west-facing roof
Lean heat pump if…
- You heat with oil, LPG or old electric heating
- Your boiler is near the end of its life anyway
- Cutting carbon is a priority
- Your home is reasonably insulated with room for larger radiators
- You want to claim the £7,500 grant while it's available
For many gas-heated homes with a healthy boiler, solar is the sharper financial decision today. For homes off the gas grid, or facing a boiler replacement, a heat pump plus the grant is usually the better long-term move.
Can you have both?
Yes — and it's increasingly the smart answer. A heat pump runs on electricity, and solar panels make electricity, so panels directly lower a heat pump's running cost, especially in spring and autumn. Add a battery and you can store cheap daytime solar to run the heat pump in the evening. Many homeowners phase the work: fit solar first for a quick, clear saving on the electricity bill, then add a heat pump when the boiler is due for replacement and the £7,500 grant is on the table. Together they take a home close to net-zero running costs on heating and a big chunk of its electricity.
Grants and VAT in 2026
- Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS): a £7,500 grant towards an air source or ground source heat pump in England and Wales. There's no longer an EPC recommendations barrier, and off-gas-grid homes can add a further £1,500. The installer must be MCS-certified and usually applies for the grant on your behalf.
- 0% VAT on solar: domestic solar panels and battery storage carry 0% VAT until March 2027, which is baked into the prices above. There is no BUS-style cash grant for solar.
- Smart Export Guarantee (SEG): licensed suppliers pay you for solar electricity you export to the grid — worth shopping around, as rates vary widely.
See the heat pump grants guide for eligibility detail and how the £7,500 is paid.
Planning permission and installation
Both are usually permitted development in England, so most installs don't need planning permission — but there are limits. Solar panels must not project more than 200mm from the roof and shouldn't be fitted to the principal elevation of a listed building or in some conservation areas. Heat pumps have their own conditions on siting and noise, with a one-metre-from-boundary rule and, from 2025, more generous permitted-development allowances. Both need to meet the relevant Building Regulations, and a heat pump needs an MCS-certified design to qualify for the grant. Conservation areas, listed buildings and flats always warrant a check with your local planning authority first.
Choosing an installer: checklist
- Insist on an MCS-certified installer — it's required to claim the £7,500 grant and to get Smart Export Guarantee payments. Ask for their MCS number and check it on the MCS register yourself.
- For a heat pump, ask for a room-by-room heat-loss calculation, not a rule-of-thumb sizing — oversized units run inefficiently.
- For solar, get a shading and generation estimate specific to your roof, not a generic figure.
- Ask to see their public liability insurance and check the level of cover yourself.
- Agree a written stage-payment schedule — never a large cash deposit up front.
- Compare three itemised quotes on the same specification so the numbers are genuinely comparable.
FAQs
Get 3 Free Solar or Heat Pump Quotes — Vetted UK Installers
BestBuilders matches you with up to 3 vetted UK installers. Compare fixed-price solar and heat pump quotes on the same brief — no cost, no obligation.