Side by side
| Boiler Upgrade Scheme | ECO4 | |
|---|---|---|
| Who it is for | Property owners, including landlords | Households on qualifying benefits or eligible through their council |
| Income test | None | Yes: benefits, or the council Flex route |
| What it funds | £7,500 towards an air-to-water or ground source heat pump; lower amounts for air-to-air heat pumps and, in limited cases, biomass boilers | Insulation, heating upgrades, first-time central heating, sometimes solar |
| Who pays | Government, administered by Ofgem | Energy suppliers, overseen by Ofgem |
| How you access it | An MCS-certified installer applies for you | Through a supplier’s installer or your council’s Flex scheme |
| Where | England and Wales | England, Wales and Scotland |
| How long | Extended to 2030 | Ends 31 December 2026 |
Check the Boiler Upgrade Scheme first if…
- you own the home (or are the landlord);
- you are replacing gas, oil, LPG or electric heating;
- you want a heat pump and are prepared to contribute towards the cost.
The grant is a discount on the installation, not the full cost. The conditions are on the Boiler Upgrade Scheme page (or try the BUS eligibility checker), and oil or LPG homes off the gas grid should also read about the enhanced off-gas grant.
Check ECO4 first if…
- someone in the household receives a qualifying means-tested benefit, or household income is low enough for your council’s Flex route;
- the home has a poor energy rating;
- the work needed is mainly insulation, or heating that is broken or has never been installed.
ECO4 ends on 31 December 2026
Measures only count if they are completed by the day the scheme ends, and a survey, design and installation take weeks. If ECO4 looks like your route, check now rather than later. Our ECO4 page explains the routes, and the ECO4 eligibility checker gives an instant, preliminary answer.
Can you use both?
Generally they are not stacked on the same heat pump. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme is usually unavailable where public funding has already paid for low-carbon heating at the address, so using one scheme for a heat pump can rule out the other for that installation. If you might qualify for both, get advice before committing.
What happens after ECO4 closes
There is no ECO5. The government has said ECO4 will not be followed by another supplier obligation, and that support for lower-income households will come through grant schemes instead. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme is not affected: it has been extended to 2030.
Our guide to what replaces ECO4 sets out which schemes remain in each part of the UK.
What if neither fits?
In England, lower-income households may be better served by the Warm Homes: Local Grant, which runs beyond 2026. The grants overview compares every scheme in one table.
Check which scheme fits your home
Tell us what heats your home and whether you own it. We will take you to our eligibility check, which covers both schemes, with those answers filled in. It is free, and nothing is sent until you choose to send it.
