This shows that there is still massive potential for greater roll-out. The top country, Norway, has 632 heat pumps installed for every 1,000 households, closely followed by Finland at 524.

Moreover, sales in those countries are still strong, with 48 heat pumps sold for every 1,000 households in Norway and 33 in Finland in 2024—the highest levels in Europe.

On the other hand, in 2024, around 3.5 heat pumps were sold for every 1,000 households in the UK, 14 times less proportionately than Norway.

The UK now has 19 heat pumps per 1,000 households. However, the UK market is one of only three in Europe to have grown last year, along with Ireland and Portugal, thanks to a steady consumer support scheme. 

Garry Felgate, chief executive of The MCS Foundation, lauded the news that the UK is accelerating heat pump sales and installations.

He believes this is mainly due to the £7,500 grants available to households who want to switch away from fossil fuel heating.  

Greg, however, adds that the UK has a “long way to go even to catch up with other European nations” and to meet climate goals, which require the country to install 1.5 million heat pumps a year by 2035.

“Recent Government announcements are set to increase the UK’s upward trajectory. The Future Homes Standard could mean hundreds of thousands of new homes being built with heat pumps yearly, and the Government’s £13.2 billion commitment for the Warm Homes Plan boosts the sector.  

“But to accelerate at the pace required, we must see action to reduce electricity prices so that heat pumps become much more financially attractive. The fairest and most effective way to do this would be to move levies off electricity bills into general taxation, which would both tackle fuel poverty and incentivise heat pump uptake.”