Describe the likely scope to build a broad planning range before requesting site-specific quotations from appropriately qualified installers.
These are dated secondary-market planning references, not prices offered by CoolCompare. The calculator deliberately uses a wider range before adding visible property drivers.
| Scope | Published reference | CoolCompare treatment |
|---|---|---|
| Single split, one room | OVO: £1,500–£2,500 supply and installation | £1,500–£3,000 starting range before additional drivers |
| Each additional room | OVO: typically £700–£1,500 | £900–£1,800 allowance per additional indoor unit |
| Electrical work | Checkatrade: £400–£700 published ballpark | £250–£900 allowance because project scope is unknown |
The model adds visible allowances for indoor units, pipe route, floor level, electrical work, drilling, condensate management, access and timescale. It is not a national live price or a quotation.
Refrigerant work must be completed by an appropriately qualified professional. Ask each installer to itemise equipment, VAT, electrical work, access equipment, commissioning and warranty.
Assumption record: planning-model-1.1 · valid from 2026-09-02 · reviewed 2026-09-02.
Installation cost is driven by the property and route as well as the equipment. A short, accessible ground-floor pipe run with gravity drainage is different from an upper-floor installation that needs access equipment, a condensate pump, long trunking and a new electrical circuit. Use the estimate to expose those drivers before comparing quotations.
Record the number of indoor units, their intended rooms, the outdoor-unit position and whether the design is single-split or multi-split. Ask how capacity was selected and whether the quotation includes brackets, feet, anti-vibration measures, controls and all interconnecting materials.
Distance alone does not capture complexity. Note wall construction, core drilling, decorative trunking, internal finishes, safe external access and where condensate can discharge. A pump adds equipment, sound and maintenance; a gravity route must still be suitable and agreed.
Electrical changes, scaffolding, lifting, asbestos risk, making good, parking and planning or freeholder evidence may sit outside a headline price. Require each provisional sum to state its basis, and compare VAT-inclusive customer totals on the same scope.
The range is deliberately broad and cannot replace a site survey. It does not verify planning permission, freeholder consent, structural suitability, electrical capacity, F-Gas competence or current local labour prices. Treat it as a question-building tool, not a quote.
Method last reviewed 28 August 2026.The CoolCompare planning model starts at £1,500–£3,000 for one indoor and outdoor pair before project-specific access, electrical, drilling, route and condensate allowances. It is not a quote or a live national price.
Ask for exact equipment, capacity design, brackets or feet, pipework, drainage, electrical scope, access, commissioning, VAT, warranty, exclusions and making good to be shown on the same basis.
Do not open or alter the refrigerant circuit. Work covered by UK F-gas rules must be carried out by appropriately qualified people, and electrical or structural work may require other competent professionals.
Ranges vary by property, region, equipment and scope. These source checks explain the planning model; they do not establish a local market price.