Heat pumps are the champions!

Heat pumps outsold gas furnaces for the third year in a row, weathering an economic slowdown and rising inflation to dominate the heating and cooling market, according to data sourced from the Air Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute (AHRI) and highlighted by RMI (Rocky Mountain Institute).

Heat pump sales have been consistently outpacing gas furnaces since 2021, with an average of 3.6 million heat pumps purchased between July 2022 and June 2024, AHRI data shows.

That means 28 percent more heat pumps were sold than gas furnaces during that time window — more than double the 12 percent advantage heat pumps had over gas furnaces in 2022, according to RMI.

Heat pumps’ versatility as both a heating and cooling system also gave them a boost in the air conditioning market — with heat pumps representing 42 percent of air conditioners sold from October 2023 to September 2024, RMI found.

Heat pump sales continue to grow in part because of good policy at the federal level — including popular Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) incentives at the state, local, and utility levels that make this two-for-one, super efficient machine even more affordable for more Americans. 

In 2023 alone, 3.4 million American families saved $8.4 billion on clean energy and energy efficiency investments thanks to the IRA, according to the IRS. 

Want to know what all the buzz is about? See if a heat pump is right for your home at homes.rewiringamerica.org.