Home Energy Guide 0% VAT ends 31 March 2027

How to Electrify Your Home in the UK: The Right Order, Real Costs and Grants

Solar, a battery, a heat pump and an EV can take your home off gas and petrol for good. Do them in the wrong order and you'll overspend. Here's the sequence that makes sense, what each step costs in 2026, and where to start depending on your home.

Published 1 October 2026, updated 23 October 2026 10 min read Cool Power Co Editorial

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Why electrify
The right order
Costs & grants
Start here for your home
Deadlines
FAQ

Quick answer: Electrify in this order: cut your energy use first (insulation, controls), switch to a time-of-use tariff, add solar, then a battery, then a heat pump when your boiler is due for replacement, and an EV when you next change car. Doing it this way means each step makes the next one cheaper or more effective. A full home costs roughly £12,000–£29,000 after grants (not counting the car), so almost nobody does it in one go. If you rent, plug-in solar, smart controls and the right tariff are your route in.

Cutaway illustration of a UK house showing solar panels, a home battery, an air source heat pump and an electric car charging — A fully electric home: solar makes the power, the battery stores it, the heat pump heats with it and the car runs on it.

Why Electrify Your Home?

Electrifying your home means replacing gas and petrol with electric technology, ideally powered partly by your own solar. The main reasons people do it:

Protection from gas price spikes. Ember's September 2026 report found fully electric homes are up to ten times better protected from energy price shocks. You can see it in this quarter's bills: from 1 October, gas rises around 8.7% while electricity is almost flat.
Lower running costs. Home-generated solar is the cheapest electricity you can use, and off-peak tariffs let you charge a battery or car at a fraction of the standard rate.
Grants and tax breaks. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme and 0% VAT on solar, batteries and heat pumps make 2026 an unusually good time to start.

The catch: Electricity costs about three times more per kWh than gas (26.32p vs 7.97p under the October 2026 cap). Electrifying only saves money when your technology is efficient enough to make up that gap. That means a well-installed heat pump, a good tariff and ideally your own solar. Swapping a gas boiler for direct electric heaters would cost you more, not less. See what electric heaters cost per hour.

The Right Order to Electrify Your Home

Order matters because each step changes the numbers for the next. Here's the sequence that works for most UK homes:

Step 1: Cut the energy you waste (£0–£500)

Insulation, draught-proofing, lowering your boiler's flow temperature and smart heating controls all come first. Every kWh you don't need is one you never have to generate, store or pay for. It also means a smaller, cheaper heat pump later. Start with our energy efficiency bundle, smart home energy guide and insulation guide.

Step 2: Switch to a time-of-use tariff (free)

Off-peak rates of around 8–9.4p/kWh overnight, against 26.32p on the standard cap, are what make batteries and EVs pay. You need a smart meter, and the tariff that suits you depends on what you own. Octopus raised its smart tariff rates in October, so check current prices before switching. See Octopus tariffs compared.

Step 3: Add solar (typically £6,500–£8,000 for 4kW)

Solar is the foundation for everything else. A typical 4kW system saves around £690 a year including export payments, and the Energy Saving Trust puts payback at 9 to 12 years, and you can sell spare power through the Smart Export Guarantee, at around 4–6p/kWh on open tariffs or about 12p if the same company supplies your electricity. No roof? Plug-in solar starts from around £450.

Step 4: Add a battery (typically £3,950–£11,500 fitted)

A battery stores your daytime solar for the evening and charges from cheap overnight electricity in winter. On a time-of-use tariff it typically saves £300–£600 a year, so paybacks are often 10 years or more. The tariff and your export rate make the biggest difference, so check your own figures in the battery calculator. See adding a battery to existing solar and the best home batteries.

Step 5: Replace your boiler with a heat pump (£500–£7,500 after grant)

This is the step that takes you off gas. An air source heat pump typically costs £8,000–£15,000 before the £7,500 Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant (£9,000 for oil and LPG homes with no mains gas, until 31 March 2027). For a typical 3-bed it costs about £740–£890 a year to run on a heat pump tariff after Octopus's October price rise, against roughly £1,040 for gas, and you can also drop the £108 a year gas standing charge. The best time is when your boiler is due for replacement anyway. See heat pump vs gas boiler.

Step 6: Go electric on your next car (charger £800–£1,200)

Around 80% of EV charging happens at home, and smart tariffs such as Octopus Intelligent Go offer rates of around 8p/kWh. Add solar and Ember estimates you can cut annual charging costs by over £500. Compare home EV chargers and EV tariffs.

Why not a heat pump first? You can, and if your boiler has just failed you should. But doing the efficiency work first can mean a smaller, cheaper heat pump. Solar and a battery then soften its extra electricity use. The exception is oil or LPG homes, where a heat pump usually pays back fastest and should come first.

What It Costs to Electrify a Home in 2026

Step	Typical cost	Grant / tax relief	Typical saving
Efficiency & controls	£0–£500	ECO4 (if eligible, ends 31 Dec 2026)	Varies; fastest payback
Time-of-use tariff	Free	n/a	Off-peak ~8–9.4p/kWh
Solar (4kW)	£6,500–£8,000	0% VAT to 31 Mar 2027	About £690/yr with export
Battery (retrofit)	£3,950–£11,500	0% VAT to 31 Mar 2027	£300–£600/yr on a time-of-use tariff
Air source heat pump	£500–£7,500 after grant	£7,500 BUS (£9,000 oil/LPG off mains gas)	~£150–£300/yr vs gas on a heat pump tariff, plus £108 with no gas standing charge
EV home charger	£800–£1,200	Up to £500 (flats, renters and homes with on-street parking)	Far cheaper per mile than petrol

Added together, electrifying a typical home costs roughly £12,000–£29,000 after grants, not counting the car. That's why most people do it over several years, timing each step with when something needs replacing anyway. Run your own numbers with the solar, battery, heat pump and EV charging calculators.

Where to Start, Depending on Your Home

You rent or live in a flat

Smart controls, a better tariff and compliant plug-in solar (with your landlord's OK). If you drive, the up-to-£500 chargepoint grant is aimed at you.

Your boiler is under 10 years old

Efficiency first, then solar and a battery. Plan the heat pump for when the boiler reaches the end of its life, rather than ripping out a working one.

Your boiler is failing

This is the moment to get heat pump quotes before replacing like for like. A new gas boiler locks you into gas for another 12–15 years. See are heat pumps worth it.

You're on oil or LPG

Heat pump first. You get the larger £9,000 grant and usually the fastest payback, often under 10 years. Ember counts 4.8 million off-gas-grid homes as the biggest opportunity.

You already have solar

A battery is your best next step, followed by an EV. Your panels make both pay back faster.

No solar, and none planned

A battery on a time-of-use tariff can still work by charging overnight. See battery storage without solar.

Air source heat pump installed against the rear wall of a UK home next to a garden path — Replacing a gas boiler with a heat pump is the single biggest step in electrifying a home.

Deadlines Worth Knowing

Date	What changes
28 October 2026	Autumn Budget: decision on extending the 0% VAT on electricity bills
31 December 2026	ECO4 scheme closes for free insulation and heating upgrades
31 March 2027	0% VAT on solar, batteries and heat pumps ends unless extended; the electricity bill VAT cut also ends

Before you commit:

Use MCS-certified installers for rooftop solar, batteries and heat pumps. It's required for the Boiler Upgrade Scheme and for Smart Export Guarantee payments.
Get at least three quotes. Prices for the same system vary widely.
Savings figures here are typical ranges. Yours depend on your home, usage, roof and tariff.
Check your home insurance before any new installation. Insurers' rules differ, including for plug-in solar.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does it mean to electrify your home?

It means replacing gas and petrol with electric technology: a heat pump instead of a gas boiler, an electric car instead of petrol, and ideally solar panels and a battery to generate and store some of your own electricity.

What order should I electrify my home in?

For most UK homes: cut energy waste first, switch to a time-of-use tariff, add solar, then a battery, then a heat pump when your boiler is due for replacement, and an EV when you next change car. Oil and LPG homes should usually start with the heat pump.

How much does it cost to fully electrify a house in the UK?

Roughly £12,000–£29,000 after the Boiler Upgrade Scheme grant, covering efficiency measures, a 4kW solar system, a battery, a heat pump and an EV charger. That doesn't include the car. Most households spread it over several years.

Is it worth electrifying when electricity costs more than gas?

Electricity costs about three times more per kWh than gas, so it only pays if your technology is efficient. A heat pump delivering 3–4 units of heat per unit of electricity, on a heat pump tariff, can run a typical 3-bed for around £740–£890 a year, against roughly £1,040 for gas. Direct electric heaters would cost more than gas.

Can I electrify my home if I rent?

Partly. Renters can use smart heating controls, a time-of-use tariff and plug-in solar from around £450, with landlord permission. Renters and flat owners can also get up to £500 towards an EV chargepoint. Heat pumps and rooftop solar need the owner's agreement.

Related Guides

Published 1 October 2026, updated 23 October 2026. Costs and savings are typical 2026 UK ranges from our own guides and are estimates only. Energy prices from the Ofgem price cap for 1 October 2026 and Octopus Energy's tariff data on 23 October 2026. Solar payback from the Energy Saving Trust. Grant details from the Boiler Upgrade Scheme and OZEV chargepoint grant. Price shock findings from Ember, The Electro-fortification of Britain (23 September 2026).

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