Heat pump rebates in Colorado (2026)
HEAR closed on the Front Range State tax credit still open
Last verified: July 28, 2026 — checked against the programme administrator’s own pages.
1. The state tax credit — open to everyone
This is the one that has no income test. The Colorado Energy Office publishes these amounts for systems installed on or after 1 January 2026:
| Heat pump type | Tax credit | Minimum upfront discount |
|---|---|---|
| Air-source | $1,000 | $333 |
| Ground-source, water-source or combined-source | $2,000 | $667 |
| Heat pump water heater | $250 | $83 |
The clever part: you do not wait for tax season. The Colorado Energy Office states that residents installing through a registered contractor “may receive a portion of the tax credit (at least 33%) as a discount at the time of installation”, and that “customers do not need to file any paperwork to receive the discount since the tax credit is claimed by the installing contractor”. The contractor keeps up to two thirds.
The catch worth knowing: these amounts fell in 2026. The Energy Office labels the previous figures — $1,500 air-source, $3,000 ground-source, $500 water heater — as expired 2024–2025 amounts. If you read a page quoting $1,500 for an air-source heat pump in Colorado, it is out of date. The Office also notes credit amounts decrease again in tax year 2029.
One date for contractors rather than homeowners: 31 December 2026 is the final date to register as a contractor to claim credits for 2026 installations.
2. HEAR — income-qualified, and mostly gone
Colorado’s Home Electrification and Appliance Rebates programme is income-qualified: households must be at or below 150% of Area Median Income for their county, assessed on Adjusted Gross Income. Where it is available, the maximum amounts are:
- $8,000 — cold climate heat pump for space heating and cooling
- $3,000 — heat pump for space heating and cooling
- $1,750 — heat pump water heater
- $4,000 electric panel · $2,500 wiring
- $14,000 total cap per household
Coverage depends on income: below 80% AMI is “100% of qualified project cost, up to the HEAR maximum rebate amounts”; 80–150% AMI is “50% of qualified project cost”.
But availability is the whole story. The Energy Office states plainly: “The HEAR Single-Family Program for Region 1 (Front Range) is now closed. Any household applications and project proposals submitted after April 27, 2026 for Region 1 will not be reviewed and will be denied.” Region 1 covers Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broomfield, Clear Creek, Denver, Douglas, Elbert, El Paso, Gilpin, Jefferson, Larimer, Teller and Weld counties — that is most of the state’s population.
Region 2 — everywhere else — remained open “until remaining available funding is fully reserved”, with the FAQ page giving 1 August 2026 as the cut-off. Note also: “you are not guaranteed a rebate until you and your registered contractor receive a formal reservation notice for your project.”
Multifamily rebates are not yet available. The Energy Office says rebates for small multifamily buildings “will be available in 2026”.
3. Xcel Energy — the one most people miss
If you are an Xcel customer, this is separate money and it is priced per ton rather than per system. From Xcel’s 2025–2026 rebate summary, effective 16 November 2025:
- Air source heat pump — $300 per cooling ton standard, $900 per cooling ton with bonus
- Cold climate air source — $750 per heating ton standard, $2,250 per heating ton with bonus
- Ground source — $1,100 per heating ton standard, $3,300 per heating ton with bonus
- Heat pump water heater — $750 standard, $2,250 with bonus
The bonus is the significant part and it is conditional: it is “available to customers who don’t currently use electricity as their primary heating source”. Xcel is explicit that from 16 November 2025, customers with existing electric heating “will still be eligible for standard rebates” but not the bonus.
What actually stacks
The Energy Office confirms HEAR “may also be combined with the Colorado Heat Pump Tax Credit for eligible heat pump installations, as long as your contractor is registered with both programs” — but neither HEAR nor HER “may be combined with other federal grants or rebates for the same single upgrade”.
For a Front Range household today, with HEAR closed, the realistic combination is the state tax credit discount plus the Xcel rebate. And remember there is no longer a federal credit to add on top — that ended with 2025.
Sources
- Colorado Energy Office — Heat Pump Tax Credits (2026 amounts, contractor discount mechanism, 2029 step-down)
- Colorado Energy Office — Home Energy Rebate Program (HEAR amounts, AMI thresholds, Region 1 closure)
- Colorado Energy Office — IRA rebate FAQ (Region 2 cut-off date, reservation rule)
- Xcel Energy Colorado — heat pump rebates (2025–2026 summary, effective 16 Nov 2025)
Programmes change without notice. If a figure here is out of date, tell us — we fix it and change the date at the top.
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