A new heat pump for a typical New York home costs somewhere between $15,000 and $30,000 installed. Most homeowners researching NYSERDA heat pump incentives or a New York heat pump rebate want to know how much of that cost comes back, and the honest answer depends on one thing before anything else: which electric utility serves your address.
NYSERDA doesn’t cut homeowners a rebate check directly. It runs NYS Clean Heat, and each participating utility sets its own incentive amount and pays it out, usually as a discount on your contractor’s invoice.
Before you look at any dollar figure, find your electric utility. It’s on your electric bill or your online account, not your gas bill and not your contractor’s invoice. That utility determines which program information you need to review. NYS Clean Heat incentives are administered through participating utilities rather than one universal homeowner rebate portal. PSEG Long Island customers use the separate Home Comfort program, so they should consult PSEG Long Island’s current requirements instead.
| Utility | Official page | Air-source offer? | Ground-source offer? | Income-qualified pathway (EmPower+)? | Participating contractor requirement |
| Con Edison | Clean Heating & Cooling page | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| National Grid (Upstate) | Electric Heating & Cooling page | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Central Hudson | Heat Pump Residential Incentives page | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes for space-heating; HPWH follows separate rules |
| NYSEG | NYS Clean Heat Rebate Program page | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| RG&E | NYS Clean Heat Rebate Program page | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Orange & Rockland | Heat Pump Incentives for New York Customers page | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
For most homeowners, the process runs through eight steps.
That last step doesn’t look the same everywhere. Con Edison usually applies the incentive as an instant discount on your invoice. Upstate utilities may do the same, or mail a check after the work is done. Either way, the contractor is the one driving that process.
The program is funded through a charge on electric bills, so you need an active account with a participating utility. If you’re between accounts or your name isn’t on the bill, get that settled before your contractor prices anything.
NYS Clean Heat covers existing homes with one to four dwelling units, plus some larger apartment buildings where the project only touches one to four of those units. A single-family house qualifies. A twelve-unit apartment building, mostly, does not, unless the scope is carved out to a qualifying slice of it.
You don’t have to own the home outright. Renters and landlords can both qualify, as long as whoever controls the unit has that active electric account tied to it. For income-qualified pathways specifically, EmPower+ is open to both owners and renters of one- to four-family homes.
Available incentive categories may depend on how much of the home’s heating load the heat pump will serve. Whole-home systems generally must be designed to meet the applicable full heating load, while some utilities may offer different treatment for partial-displacement projects.
Your contractor should identify the exact category and document how the proposed system meets that utility’s current sizing and design requirements. If you already received a full-load NYS Clean Heat incentive, you generally can’t get one again for the same equipment.
Not every heat pump on the market qualifies. Your utility maintains a current list of eligible products, and that list changes. A unit your contractor installed for a neighbor last year might not be on this year’s list.
An undersized or oversized system isn’t just a comfort problem; it’s an eligibility problem. The incentive is tied to a proper load calculation, so your contractor’s design work must comply with the utility’s regulations.
Contractor participation isn’t universal. A contractor can be approved to file incentives in Con Edison territory and not approved in National Grid territory. Ask directly, and ask it for your utility by name.
Work started before you’re approved, or outside the utility’s current program period, can put the incentive at risk. Get your written confirmation before work begins, not after.
Most incentives are capped at 70% of project cost, or 85% in Central Hudson territory or for projects with disadvantaged-community status. Funding levels can also shift over time, so a recent contractor quote is key.
Households that meet current income requirements may qualify for EmPower+ or another applicable income-qualified pathway. Because these programs can follow different application, contractor, and funding rules, complete the official income screening before choosing the standard NYS Clean Heat route or signing an installation agreement.
This is the category most homeowners land on. Air-source systems cover both ducted central setups and ductless mini-splits, and both are eligible.
The equipment must come from your utility’s qualified product list, which, for air-source systems, follows the Northeast Energy Efficiency Partnerships specification. Orange & Rockland’s residential pages, for example, list both central and mini-split options side by side.
Cold-climate isn’t a separate product category you choose instead of air-source. It’s a performance standard that air-source equipment has to meet to qualify in New York.
A cold-climate model is one that shows up on the NEEP cold-climate product list, and that listing matters because New York’s incentives are tied to how well a unit performs in real winter conditions.
Geothermal is a different kind of project altogether. The equipment costs more, the installation involves drilling and specialized design work, and the incentives run through their own category.
New York also offers a separate state tax credit here: 25% of qualified expenditures, capped at $10,000 for systems installed on or after July 1, 2025.
Heat-pump water heaters are covered under NYS Clean Heat too, usually around $1,250 depending on the utility. They’re a smaller piece of the program though, worth knowing about but not the main event if you’re focused on replacing your heating system.
One practical difference: the water heater rebate can sometimes be filed by a retailer or even the homeowner, not just the contractor.
Decommissioning means physically removing your old oil tank, gas line, or propane tank, not just leaving it capped and unused, and it unlocks a higher rebate tier almost everywhere.
DAC stands for Disadvantaged Community, a status tied to your address’s census tract rather than your income, and it stacks another bump on top of the decommissioning bonus.
Yes, through a program called EmPower+. It’s open to owners and renters of one to four-family homes with income below 80% of the state or area median, or households already enrolled in a utility payment assistance program.
EmPower+ covers more than the heat pump. It can also pay for air sealing, insulation, electrical upgrades, and health-and-safety fixes tied to the project. For renters and two- to four-family buildings, that can include a no-cost home assessment before any work starts.
To apply, create a profile in NYSERDA’s MyEnergy Portal and submit an EmPower+ application through the official eligibility page.
One thing to sort out before you sign anything: EmPower+ and standard NYS Clean Heat funding can’t both apply to the same project. If you think you might qualify for EmPower+, ask your contractor directly which path they’re proposing, since the two don’t stack.
There’s no single statewide form to fill out. You apply through your contractor, who installs the equipment and handles the rebate paperwork on your behalf.
Get written confirmation of these six things from your contractor:
That last point matters more than it sounds. PSEG Long Island states outright that the final payment may be below the pre-approved amount, and the same risk applies statewide, as utilities can request additional documentation after installation.
Standard NYS Clean Heat incentives can sometimes work alongside weatherization support, but they don’t stack with EmPower+ on the same project.
To finance the remaining cost, NYSERDA runs two main loan programs: the On-Bill Recovery Loan, repaid through your utility bill, and the Smart Energy Loan. Both generally cover $1,500 to $25,000 for eligible projects, including heat pumps.
Geothermal projects get one more option. New York’s geothermal tax credit covers 25% of qualified costs, capped at $10,000 for systems installed on or after July 1, 2025.
If you want to compare outside financing options,Renovate’s HVAC financing page is a good place to start. Renovate isn’t a lender and doesn’t make credit decisions. It connects homeowners with independent lenders and contractors, and financing terms come from those third parties directly.
The NYSERDA heat pump rebate isn’t the whole answer. What actually matters is your net cost after the incentive, against your current fuel costs, your electricity rate, and whether your home needs weatherization work before a heat pump can perform well.
Say your oil furnace is aging and your window AC needs replacing too. A properly sized heat pump with a clear utility incentive usually pencils out well here, since you’re replacing two systems with one and getting a rebate on top of it. If your furnace still has years left and your home is drafty, fixing the envelope first might be the smarter move.
Also consider whether the existing ductwork needs repair or replacement, how much you value central cooling and more consistent indoor comfort, and whether the design requires backup heat during very cold weather. Compare expected maintenance needs and think about how long you expect to own the home, since a longer ownership period gives you more time to benefit from the installation.
Whichever way you lean, get more than one bid. Renovate can connect you with contractors in New York if you want a starting point for quotes.
Start with the official NYS Clean Heat contractor finder. Incentive filing depends on that status, and it’s specific to each utility, not something a contractor earns once and keeps everywhere.
Homeowners often mix up a few roles when they’re searching for the same NYSERDA heat pump rebate:
A contractor can check one of these boxes without checking the rest, so ask directly instead of assuming.
There’s no single statewide amount. It depends on your utility, whether you’re going air-source or geothermal, and whether you qualify for a decommissioning or income-based bonus.
You don’t fill out one universal form. Your contractor evaluates your home, proposes equipment, estimates the incentive, and handles the utility paperwork after installation.
For space-heating rebates, yes. Every major utility ties the incentive to a currently participating contractor. Heat-pump water heaters are more flexible and sometimes allow other filing paths.
It varies by utility. NYSEG and RG&E typically take four to six weeks. Central Hudson says five to seven weeks. Con Edison often applies the incentive instantly as an invoice discount instead.
Yes, through NYSERDA’s EmPower+ program. It’s open to eligible owners and renters of one to four family homes and can also cover insulation and electrical upgrades.
No, not for a typical 2026 install. The federal Energy Efficient Home Improvement Credit only applies to equipment placed in service before January 1, 2026, and the federal geothermal credit ended after December 31, 2025. New York’s own state geothermal tax credit is separate and still applies.
Start with your utility’s official residential heat-pump page, since that’s where each utility posts its live numbers. The statewide program manual is also useful for comparing categories side by side. From there, ask a participating contractor to confirm the exact amount for your project.
