Do you have a heat pump installed in your home that you use for heating? If so, heating with a heat pump is about to get much cheaper. The Massachusetts Dept. of Public Utilities has ordered Massachusetts electric utilities to create a new residential electric rate for homeowners with heat pumps. This includes homes that heat PARTIALLY or FULLY with a heat pump. This new rate will help incentivize the adoption of heat pumps in place of heating systems using fossil fuels in order to lower CO2 emissions, which are the main cause of climate change.
Starting with the billing period covering November 2025, the “Delivery” portion of your electric bill will be reduced by $0.07/KWH. This is a savings of approximately 25% on your total electric bill (including the delivery and generation portions of your bill). This new rate will cover the months of November-April (winter period). The electric rate in the other months (summer period) will remain unchanged. What’s important here is that the “winter” rate will apply to your entire electric bill, not just the electricity used for heating. The new heat pump rate will make heat pumps competitive with natural gas to heat your home. For oil and propane users, the savings will be significant. A typical 2,500 sq. ft. home with heat pumps will save about $750 per year with this new rate, compared to oil heat.
This change does NOT affect the “generation/supplier” part of your electric bill. Whether you have elected to use one of Needham’s new “Needham Power Choice” rates or have remained with Eversource as your supplier, or you have a private electricity supply contract, those “generation” rates remain unchanged. This new heat pump rate applies only to the Delivery portion of your electric bill.
Anyone who has purchased a heat pump through the Mass Save program since 2019 will be enrolled automatically for the lower rate. If your heat pump was not installed via the Mass Save program, you are still eligible, but you need to contact Eversource and request to be included under the new rate. Everyone should start reviewing your November electric bill (received in December) to make sure the change has been made to your account. If not, contact Eversource.
Click here to view Mass Save’s FAQ page about the heat pump rate.
Click here to view information on Eversource’s website about their heat pump rate.
