Heat Pump Running Costs for Bristol Homes at Autumn 2026 Prices

The prices we’re using

All figures use the Ofgem price cap for 1 October to 31 December 2026, paying by direct debit:

• Electricity: about 26p per kWh, plus a standing charge of about 55p a day
• Gas: about 8p per kWh, plus a standing charge of about 30p a day (roughly £108 a year)

Heat pump running costs come down to one division: the heat your home needs, divided by how efficient the heat pump is over a year (its seasonal coefficient of performance, or SCOP), multiplied by the price of electricity.

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Why Bristol is a good place to run a heat pump

A heat pump’s efficiency drops as the outside air gets colder. Bristol is one of the mildest large cities in England: the Met Office station at Filton averages a January overnight low of about 2.4°C and only around 33 days of air frost a year. That means a well-designed heat pump in Bristol spends most of the winter in conditions where it works efficiently.

A realistic seasonal efficiency for a properly designed Bristol installation is 3.2 to 3.8. We use 3.4 in the tables below, which is achievable with sensible radiator sizing and a flow temperature around 45–50°C.

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Running costs by Bristol house type

Gas boiler figures assume 90% efficiency and include the gas standing charge, which you stop paying if you cap the gas supply after switching. Electricity standing charges are paid either way, so they’re left out of both columns.

Home	Heat needed per year	Gas boiler	Heat pump, standard tariff	Heat pump, off-peak tariff*
Two-bed flat, Harbourside or Redcliffe	6,000 kWh	£640	£465	£320
Three-bed interwar semi, Westbury-on-Trym	11,000 kWh	£1,080	£850	£580
Three-bed Victorian terrace, Bishopston	12,500 kWh	£1,215	£970	£660
Four-bed stone townhouse, Cotham or Clifton	18,000 kWh	£1,700	£1,390	£950

*Off-peak assumes an average of about 18p per kWh across the heating, which is typical of tariffs that give heat pump owners cheaper electricity overnight or outside peak hours. Your result depends on the tariff and how much of your heating you can shift into cheap hours.

The pattern: on a standard tariff, a heat pump in Bristol typically costs £150–£300 a year less than gas. On a heat pump tariff, the gap widens to £300–£750 a year.

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Three things that change your number

Flow temperature

Every degree you can take off the water going round the radiators raises the heat pump’s efficiency. A Victorian terrace in Southville running at 55°C might manage a SCOP of 3.0; the same house with three larger radiators running at 45°C could reach 3.6. Over a year that’s a difference of £150 or more. This is why radiator upgrades at installation pay back over time.

How you use it

Heat pumps work best left on at a steady temperature, not switched on hard for an hour in the morning and evening like many gas boilers. Owners who keep fighting the controls often see higher bills than expected. Set a comfortable temperature, allow a small setback overnight if you like, and leave it.

Hot water

Heating a cylinder to 50°C takes energy too. For a family of four, budget around £150–£220 a year on a standard tariff, less if the cylinder heats overnight on cheap electricity. Bristol’s hard water also matters here: scale on the cylinder coil slows heat transfer, so a heat pump-rated coil and, where scale is already a problem, a scale reducer protect efficiency.

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What about solid-walled homes?

Many Bristol homes built before 1920 have solid stone or brick walls with no cavity to fill. They need more heat, so they cost more to run with any heating system. A heat pump still runs more cheaply than gas in these homes if it’s designed properly, but the margin is smaller unless you also improve draught-proofing, loft insulation and, where possible, windows. Our fabric-first guide sets out which upgrades are worth doing first.

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Should you cap the gas?

If the heat pump provides all your heating and hot water and you cook with electricity, removing the gas supply saves the standing charge — about £108 a year at current rates. Wales & West Utilities, the gas network operator for Bristol, handles disconnection on request via your supplier.

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The bottom line

In a Bristol home with sensible radiators and a decent tariff, a heat pump typically costs a few hundred pounds a year less to run than a gas boiler. To see whether that saving recovers the upfront cost, read the payback period guide. For the full long-term comparison, see heat pump vs gas boiler over 15 years.