Heating & Cooling costs

Furnace, heat pump and air conditioning costs, from a tune-up to a full system replacement. Page 2 of 3.

• HVAC tune-up cost$85 to $250per eachA tune-up costs $85 to $250 a visit. It is the cheapest thing you will spend on the system and the one most often sold as something it is not. A real service is an hour of measurement; a $59 special is twenty minutes and a sales conversation.
• Air duct cleaning cost$400 to $1,000per projectDuct cleaning costs $400 to $1,000. It is one of the most aggressively marketed home services in the country and one of the least often necessary, so the useful part of this page is when to skip it.
• Whole house humidifier cost$400 to $1,300per eachA whole-house humidifier costs $400 to $1,300 installed. Buy a $12 hygrometer first: below 30% in midwinter is worth acting on, and above 50% is a condensation problem rather than a dryness one.
• Boiler replacement cost$3,500 to $14,000per projectReplacing a gas boiler costs $3,500 to $14,000, typically around $7,500. A standard efficiency unit on an existing system sits at the bottom; a condensing boiler needing new venting and a chimney liner sits at the top.
• Geothermal heat pump cost$18,000 to $45,000per projectA geothermal system costs $18,000 to $45,000 installed, or about $19,600 typical after the 30% federal credit. Between a third and a half of the bill is drilling or excavation rather than heating equipment.
• Repair or replace your HVAC system$6,500 to $22,000per projectThe $5,000 rule says multiply the repair by the age of the system and replace above $5,000. It is memorable and it is wrong often enough to cost money. Here is the arithmetic that works, and the cases where it is not close.
• How long does an HVAC system last$6,500 to $22,000per projectA gas furnace lasts 15 to 25 years and an air conditioner 15 to 20. Those ranges are wide on purpose: two identical systems on the same street routinely differ by a decade, and almost none of it is brand.
• How to pay for an HVAC system$6,500 to $22,000per projectAn $11,000 replacement usually arrives on the day the system stops, and that timing is what makes the financing expensive. Incentives first, then a home equity line, then a credit union. The spread across that list is thousands.
• HVAC replacement cost$6,500 to $22,000per projectReplacing a whole heating and cooling system costs $6,500 to $22,000, typically around $11,000. What moves it most is not brand or efficiency but whether the job is a straight swap or a change of system type.
• Air conditioner replacement cost$3,800 to $14,000per projectReplacing a central air conditioner costs $4,800 to $9,500 for the most common size, typically around $6,800 for a 3 ton system on existing ductwork.