Skip to main content
Home / Heating & Cooling / Maryland / EmPOWER Maryland
MD · Maryland Heating & Cooling

Heat pumps in Maryland.

EmPOWER Maryland pays $3,000+ per ton for whole-home heat pump installs. Stack with EmPOWER insulation for whole-envelope work, and pair with a home battery for resilience and solar self-consumption.

$15,000
Fossil-to-electric max
$10,000
Traditional efficiency max
$100
Net audit cost (after subsidy)
EmPOWER Maryland heat pump installation, a residential air-source heat pump system at a Maryland home
Why now · Maryland

Gas bills have climbed every year.

Maryland residential gas climbed from $1.15/therm in 2010 to $1.70/therm by 2025. PJM capacity costs and BGE/Pepco rate cases have pushed electric bills steadily upward. A heat pump locks you off the gas trajectory, delivering 2.5× the heat per unit of input.

The hedge Heat pump: 2.5× heat per unit input
Get my report
Maryland natural gas price
2010–2025 · $/therm
$0 low mid high 2010 2015 2020 2025 US avg $1.49/therm BGE $1.70/therm $1.15/therm Heat pump (locked) your fuel-cost hedge $/therm, residential
Natural Gas price Heat pump operating cost US national average
Source · EIA Natural Gas Monthly, residential class, 2010–2025. State averages and the US national line both pulled from the same dataset.
Major gas utilities coveredBGE Gas, Washington Gas, Columbia Gas of Maryland
A real example · Maryland

What a cold-climate heat pump install actually pays back.

A 3-ton ducted heat pump (R-32, cold-climate certified) replaces your existing heating with a single all-season electric system. The rebate stack below shows what Maryland pays back on day one. The red line shows what staying on your current fuel costs you over 15 years.

See the pieces of the stack
01 · Why It Works Here

The numbers that make a Maryland heat pump pencil.

Four reasons your heat pump pays you back on day one.

$3,000+/ton
EmPOWER MD heat pump rebate
BGE + Pepco + Delmarva + SMECO (Potomac Edison runs a separate Switch-to-Electric pathway, see FAQ)
$2,500
EmPOWER insulation rebate
Whole-home weatherization
100%
EmPOWER income-qualified coverage
For households at or below 200% federal poverty line
On-bill
Financing option
Pay through your utility bill
Get my report
02 · Rebates & Benefits

Every rebate line, spelled out.

Current 2026 rebate amounts for EmPOWER Maryland. Verify against the program operator at signing.

  • Fossil-to-electric switch (max)$15,000
  • Traditional efficiency upgrades (max)$10,000
  • Heat pump water heater (within $15K cap)included
  • Air sealing + insulationincluded
  • HPwES home energy audit (homeowner co-pay)$100
Get my report
04 · Install Timeline

From first call to rebate payment.

A typical Maryland heat pump install runs 4–6 weeks from Manual J load calculation to install commissioning.

01.
Site survey & Manual J load calc
Contractor evaluates ductwork, insulation, and total heat load. Produces system design sized to 90–120% of design load.
Week 1
02.
Permits & rebate pre-approval
Building permit filed with the town. Rebate pre-approval filed with the utility or program administrator.
Weeks 1-2
03.
Equipment procurement
Outdoor unit, indoor air handler or coils, and balance-of-system components ordered. Lead times depend on configuration.
Weeks 2-4
04.
Installation & commissioning
Most residential heat pump installs complete in 2–4 days on-site. Building permit inspection and refrigerant commissioning follow.
Weeks 4-6
05.
Rebate paperwork & sign-off
Final inspection paperwork submitted. Rebate check lands as bill credit or direct deposit, depending on the program.
Post-install
Get my report
06 · Questions Homeowners Ask

The honest FAQ.

Actual questions that come up in the first installer conversation.

Why is the audit required?

EmPOWER requires the audit to verify your home's current systems, identify eligible work, and lock in the rebate amount before installation.

Can I use any contractor?

No. Only HPwES-approved contractors can deliver rebated work.

Is the $15,000 cap per home or per year?

Per home, per project.

I'm a Potomac Edison customer. Does this apply to me?

Potomac Edison runs its own Switch-to-Electric pathway separate from the main EmPOWER electrification program. Combined with the per-heat-pump rebate, the typical Potomac Edison customer sees about $5,700 total. Your installer will route you correctly based on your utility.

Get my report
All Maryland programs

The full Maryland upgrade menu.

Every Maryland program a homeowner can layer in. The badge marks the ones that pair most naturally with the program on this page.

MD · Maryland Solar Access
Solar offsets the heat pump's electric load with clean kWh from your own roof. Sized together, the array carries the heating bill.
Stacks well
MD · EmPOWER Maryland Insulation
Insulate first, then heat pump. A tighter envelope means a smaller, cheaper heat pump that runs more efficiently.
Stacks well
MD · Maryland Windows & Doors
Old windows can defeat the heat pump's gains. Upgrading them together protects the comfort the new system delivers.
MD · RCES Battery Grant
A battery keeps the heat pump running through outages, especially important when fossil backup is gone.
Explore more

Other states and programs.

Looking for the same kind of program in another state, or a different program in yours? Tap any pill to jump.

By state
MA Massachusetts RI Rhode Island CT Connecticut ME Maine NH New Hampshire VT Vermont NY New York NJ New Jersey MD Maryland MI Michigan FL Florida
By program type
Solar Heating & Cooling Insulation Windows & Doors Energy Storage

Ready to see how EmPOWER Maryland applies to your home?

Your Home Efficiency Score shows your exact rebate stack, across this program and every other one you qualify for in 2026.

Get my report