Is my heat pump quote fair? Checking a quote under the 2026 rebate

Ottawa's new National Heat Pump Rebate covers installs from November 1, 2026, which means a lot of Canadians are getting heat pump quotes this winter. Heat pump quotes for the same house can be thousands apart. Here's how to tell whether yours is complete, and whether the gap is real.

By the LevelQuote reviewer, a Halifax lead carpenter turned facilities managerUpdated November 1, 2026

This guide is about air-source heat pumps on houses: ducted systems that use your existing furnace ductwork, and ductless mini-splits with wall heads. The way you read the paper is the same for both. Check that every part of the job has a line, check that the equipment is sized for your house and your winter, then compare.

The 2026 rebate, in plain words

The Government of Canada announced the National Heat Pump Rebate in October 2026: $2 billion over eight years. Here is what its own page says, as of November 1, 2026:

• Amount: a grant of either $2,000, or up to $10,000 for low- to median-income households.
• No energy audit required before or after the install.
• Retroactive to November 1, 2026. If you're eligible and install an eligible heat pump from that date, you can apply once the online portal opens in early 2027.
• Details to come: exact eligibility, the eligible heat pump list and how to apply are being published by the government. Read them before you sign, not after.

Three things follow from that for your quote. First, the model numbers on the quote matter more than ever, because the rebate depends on the equipment being eligible. Second, keep every receipt and the signed contract, dated. Third, the rebate is paid to you; it should never change what the job costs. One homeowner in a BC thread put it bluntly: "most companies are adding 5-11K to their quotes if you're getting the grants." Whether or not that's true where you live, the defence is the same. Ask for the full price before any rebate, and compare quotes on that number.

Provincial programs (Efficiency Nova Scotia, BC's programs, Ontario's, and the federal Oil to Heat Pump Affordability program for oil-heated homes) are meant to work alongside the new rebate. Check which ones apply to you, and who fills out the paperwork for each.

What a complete heat pump quote carries

If one of these lines is missing, one of three things is true: it's rolled into another line, it's not being done, or it'll be an extra. You want to know which.

1. A sizing calculation, not a guess

The most expensive mistake on a heat pump job is the wrong size. Too small and your backup heat runs all January; too big and it cycles on and off, costs more up front and dehumidifies badly in summer. The right size comes from a room-by-room heat loss calculation (in Canada, CSA F280 is the standard for houses). A quote that sizes the unit off the old furnace's rating, or off square footage alone, hasn't done the math. Ask to see the calculation, or at least the design heat loss number it produced.

2. Exact model numbers, indoor and outdoor

"3-ton heat pump" is not a spec. The quote should name the manufacturer and the model number of the outdoor unit and of every indoor unit (the air handler or furnace coil for a ducted system, each wall head for a ductless one). Matched pairs matter: a heat pump's published capacity and efficiency only apply to the combination it was tested with. With model numbers you can check the rebate list, the warranty and the manufacturer's spec sheet yourself.

3. Cold-weather capacity

A heat pump's nameplate capacity is measured on a mild day. What matters in a Canadian winter is how much heat it still puts out at your coldest temperatures, and how low it keeps running at all. Ask for the capacity at -15°C (and lower, if your winters are colder) from the manufacturer's spec sheet, and the lowest outdoor temperature it's rated to run at. Then ask what happens below that.

4. Backup heat and how it switches

Most Canadian installs keep some backup: the existing gas or oil furnace (a "dual fuel" or hybrid setup), electric strip heat in the air handler, or existing baseboards. The quote should say which, and what sets the switchover (a temperature, the thermostat, or both). If it's electric strips, it should say how many kilowatts, because that drives the next line.

5. Electrical work

A new dedicated circuit and an outdoor disconnect at minimum. Many older houses also need to know whether the panel has the capacity, especially with electric backup heat. "Electrical by others" or nothing at all means you'll be finding and paying an electrician separately. The quote should say who does the electrical, whether a panel upgrade is included or excluded, and who pulls the electrical permit.

6. Ductwork changes

A ducted heat pump moves more air than many old furnaces were set up for. The quote should say whether the existing ducts were checked, and what's being changed: plenum, return air, new runs. "Use existing ductwork" is fine if someone actually looked. On ductless jobs, the equivalent is where each head goes and how the line set and drain get from the head to the outdoor unit.

7. Line set, drain and outdoor mounting

New refrigerant line set (and its length, since long runs cost more), line-set cover outside if you want it neat, condensate drain routing, and how the outdoor unit is mounted. In snow country it should sit up on a stand or wall bracket, clear of drifts and roof run-off, with room for the defrost water to drain and freeze without blocking the unit. A unit sitting on a pad at grade in a snow belt is a call-back waiting to happen.

8. Removal of old equipment

Taking out the old air conditioner, and, on an oil-to-heat-pump job, whether the oil tank and furnace are coming out and who pays to dispose of them. Oil tank removal is real money and is often left off.

9. Thermostat and controls

Which thermostat, and whether it can control a heat pump with backup properly. A wrong or cheap thermostat on a dual-fuel system can run the furnace when the heat pump should be doing the work, which costs you every month.

10. Permits, commissioning and the start-up sheet

Who pulls the permits your province requires (electrical at minimum, sometimes mechanical), and a commissioning visit: refrigerant charge checked, airflow set, controls tested, with a written start-up record left with you. That record is also what the warranty claim leans on.

11. Warranties: manufacturer and labour

Most manufacturers offer a longer parts warranty when the unit is registered, and a shorter one if it isn't. The quote should say who registers it. Then the installer's own labour warranty, in years, in writing. Labour is what a parts warranty doesn't cover, and on a heat pump it's often the bigger bill.

12. Rebate paperwork, dates and deposit

Who fills out which rebate application, and an invoice that will carry what the programs ask for (model numbers, install date, address). A start date and a completion date. Deposits in the trade usually run 10 to 25%; equipment can justify the higher end, but half up front on a job that takes a day or two is a lot. The deposits and holdbacks guide has the rules for every province.

Why two quotes for the same house differ

Heat pump quotes vary more than almost any other home job. The gap usually comes from one of these:

• Size. One quote sized from a heat loss calculation, another from the old furnace. A ton of difference is a few thousand dollars.
• Cold-climate equipment versus standard. Units built to keep heating at -25°C cost more than units that give up around -15°C. In Halifax or Vancouver the cheaper unit with backup may be fine; in Edmonton it usually isn't.
• Brand tier. Premium brands and budget brands at the same size can be thousands apart. Both can be fine; what matters is that the quote names it.
• Backup and electrical. Keeping the furnace costs little. Electric strip backup can trigger a panel upgrade, which can add a lot.
• Ductwork. A quote that changes the ducts and one that ignores them are pricing different jobs.
• What's left out. Electrical, permits, old equipment removal, the oil tank, the stand, the thermostat. The cheapest quote is often the one with the most blanks.
• Region and season. Labour rates differ between Halifax, Toronto and Calgary, and installers get busy when rebates open. Rush-season pricing is real.

What people are being quoted

I don't publish a price table for heat pumps. Prices move with the equipment, the season and the rebate rush, and a number that's right in Edmonton is wrong in Halifax. For a sense of the spread, here is what Canadian homeowners have posted publicly. These are individual reports, not a survey, and the jobs differ:

• Edmonton: about $8,300 including tax for a 2-ton cold-weather heat pump, with four quotes "all within $500 of each other" (r/Edmonton).
• Ottawa area: $16,000 before rebates for a 2.5-ton heat pump with an electric furnace, replacing an oil system (r/ottawa).
• Ontario: $14,250 for a 2-ton heat pump paired with a 60,000 BTU gas furnace, the owner asking whether it was fair (r/heatpumps).
• Toronto: a $17,900 installation quote posted with the question "is this a good price?" (r/hvacadvice).

That's a spread of more than double for jobs that sound alike. Some of it is real (size, backup, ducts, oil removal). Some of it is the lines that aren't on the cheaper quotes. Once every quote has a line for each item above, the totals become comparable, and that's usually when the "expensive" quote turns out to be the complete one. When I review a heat pump quote, I research current pricing for the customer's own city and say in writing whether it's in range, line by line.

Questions to ask before you sign

Send these in writing. A good installer answers all of them without friction.

1. What's the design heat loss for my house, and how did you calculate it?
2. What are the exact model numbers, indoor and outdoor, and are they on the federal rebate's eligible list?
3. What's the heating capacity at -15°C, and the lowest temperature it runs at?
4. What's the backup heat, and what decides when it comes on?
5. Is all electrical work included? Does my panel need an upgrade, and is that in the price?
6. What changes to the ductwork (or what line-set and head locations) are included?
7. How is the outdoor unit mounted, and how high off the ground?
8. Is removal of the old equipment (and the oil tank, if any) in the price?
9. Who registers the manufacturer warranty, and what's your labour warranty in years, in writing?
10. What's the full price before any rebate, and who does which rebate paperwork?
11. What are the start and completion dates, and can the deposit be 10 to 25% with the balance on completion?