2026 European heat-pump noise: which brands and models run quietest in EPREL?

EPREL’s current noise baseline: market size, average sound levels and the gap to the quietest models

Europe’s live EPREL heat-pump catalog currently contains 60,989 heat-pump models from 777 manufacturers (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API). Across that pool, the average declared outdoor sound power is 61.3 dB (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API), the average SCOP is 4.55 (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API), and the average declared capacity is 9.3 kW (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API). The latest market snapshot is tracked in the Househeating Pulse market index.

Against that baseline, the quietest listings in EPREL are strikingly far below the mean. The top-ranked model in the current quietest heat-pump leaderboard, GESTION INTEGRAL DE ALMACENES, S.L. HTW-MKT2-V500, is declared at 1 dB outdoor sound power (top_models / EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog). That is a 60.3 dB gap to the overall market average of 61.3 dB (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API; top_models / EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog).

That spread is so wide that it deserves a caveat. EPREL records declared values, not independent field measurements, and the registry does not record whether an outlier is a data-entry anomaly, a niche commercial unit with unusual test conditions, or a conventional residential outdoor unit. For readers comparing actual products, the practical value lies less in the single lowest number than in the clustering by type, brand and efficiency visible across the broader set.

The market mix also matters. EPREL’s current stock is dominated by 30,452 air-water models and 21,065 air-air models (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API). By contrast, ground-water units account for 213 models and water-water units for 31 models (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API). Any “quietest” ranking is therefore being drawn from a market where the mainstream categories are numerous but not necessarily the quietest on paper.

The 2026 quietest-model ranking: who lands at the top of the EPREL list

The current top 15 quietest EPREL-listed models by declared outdoor sound power are below.

Two patterns stand out. First, 12 of the top 15 are air-water units (top_models / EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog). Second, the very top is highly concentrated by manufacturer: WAMAK, s.r.o. occupies ranks 2 through 5 and 7 through 13, or 11 of the top 15 places (top_models / EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog). This is exactly the kind of brand clustering the raw catalog makes visible on the leaderboards hub.

Noise by heat-pump type: which categories are systematically quieter on paper

At type level, EPREL does show systematic differences rather than a random spread.

On paper, water-water is the quietest category by a large margin at 42.0 dB average outdoor sound power (type_efficiency / EPREL Public API · type aggregation). That puts it 19.3 dB below the market-wide average of 61.3 dB (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API; type_efficiency / EPREL Public API · type aggregation). It is also the smallest category in the dataset with 31 models (type_efficiency / EPREL Public API · type aggregation), so buyers should treat it as a niche rather than a mainstream benchmark.

Among large-volume categories, air-water heat pumps look materially quieter than air-air heat pumps. Air-water averages 59.8 dB, while air-air averages 64.1 dB, a gap of 4.3 dB (type_efficiency / EPREL Public API · type aggregation). Ground-water heat pumps sit close to air-water at 58.8 dB (type_efficiency / EPREL Public API · type aggregation).

The registry does not record room-by-room indoor sound here, so this comparison is strictly about declared outdoor-unit noise.

Brand comparison: manufacturers with the lowest declared outdoor noise

The corpus does not provide a full brand ranking by average declared outdoor noise. It does provide brand market share, model counts and average SCOP for the 15 largest manufacturers, but not their average noise figures (brand_share / EPREL Public API · brand-share aggregation). So the registry cannot support a numeric answer to “which manufacturers have the lowest average declared noise among all their listed models”.

What can be said numerically is that the top of the quietest-model table is not spread evenly across the market. WAMAK, s.r.o. accounts for 11 of the top 15 quietest listings (top_models / EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog). Panasonic Marketing Europe GmbH appears once, at rank 15 with 5 dB (top_models / EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog), while the #1 spot is held by GESTION INTEGRAL DE ALMACENES, S.L. with 1 dB (top_models / EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog).

For the largest brands, scale is concentrated elsewhere. Daikin Europe N.V. has 14,668 listed models, or 24.05% of EPREL listings (brand_share / EPREL Public API · brand-share aggregation). Mitsubishi Electric Europe B.V. follows with 5,575 models and 9.14% share (brand_share / EPREL Public API · brand-share aggregation), and Bosch Thermotechnik GmbH has 3,602 models and 5.91% share (brand_share / EPREL Public API · brand-share aggregation). Their published averages in this corpus are SCOP figures, not noise figures: 4.44 for Daikin, 4.51 for Mitsubishi Electric, and 4.69 for Bosch (brand_share / EPREL Public API · brand-share aggregation). The broader manufacturer directory is useful for navigating these brands, but not for inferring a noise ranking that the corpus does not actually contain.

Refrigerants and quiet designs: whether low-noise models cluster around specific gases

The refrigerant picture is thin because the quietest-model extract often has no refrigerant value filled in. Among the top 15 quietest models, only one entry explicitly lists a refrigerant: MH Handel GmbH 823-078V73WT uses R290 and ranks 14th at 2 dB (top_models / EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog). The other 14 entries in the top 15 have refrigerant recorded as null in this extract (top_models / EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog). So the registry snapshot used here does not support a robust refrigerant ranking of the quietest products.

What it does show is the market-wide refrigerant base. EPREL currently records 13,935 models with R32 (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API), 1,896 with R410A plus 49 with R410a and 10 with R410 code variants (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API), and 537 with R290 plus very small variant counts of 2 for R290A and 1 for R290a (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API). Natural refrigerants overall account for 3.27% of listed models (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API).

Phase-out status is clearer than quietness concentration. In the refrigerant reference, R32 has a listed F-gas phase-out date of 2027-01-01 (refrigerant_universe / IPCC AR6 GWP table; EU Reg. 2024/573 phase-out schedule; EPREL declared codes). R410A has a listed phase-out date of 2025-01-01 (refrigerant_universe / IPCC AR6 GWP table; EU Reg. 2024/573 phase-out schedule; EPREL declared codes). R134a has a listed phase-out date of 2026-01-01 (refrigerant_universe / IPCC AR6 GWP table; EU Reg. 2024/573 phase-out schedule; EPREL declared codes). By contrast, R290 has no listed phase-out date in this reference set (refrigerant_universe / IPCC AR6 GWP table; EU Reg. 2024/573 phase-out schedule; EPREL declared codes). Readers comparing gas options can use the refrigerants reference alongside the official EU F-gas regulation and the public EPREL portal.

What the quietest models cost in efficiency terms: SCOP versus noise trade-offs

The headline finding is that the quietest models are not obviously paying an efficiency penalty in EPREL. The overall market average SCOP is 4.55 (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API). Among the quietest ranked models with SCOP declared, several are well above that level.

Within the top 15 quietest list, WAMAK’s TWW 48 EVI posts a SCOP of 6.8 at 1 dB (top_models / EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog), TWW 110 WHR reaches 6.75 at 1 dB (top_models / EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog), and TWW 85 WHR reaches 6.67 at 1 dB (top_models / EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog). Even the lower-SCOP WAMAK units in that set sit at 4.28, 4.3, 4.92, 5.17, 5.38, 5.4, 5.42 and 5.45 (top_models / EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog), mostly at or above the 4.55 market average (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API).

That aligns with the type-level picture. The quietest type, water-water, also has the highest average SCOP at 6.15 (type_efficiency / EPREL Public API · type aggregation). Ground-water averages 4.77 SCOP with 58.8 dB noise (type_efficiency / EPREL Public API · type aggregation), while air-water averages 4.54 SCOP with 59.8 dB noise (type_efficiency / EPREL Public API · type aggregation). There is no sign here of a simple “quieter means less efficient” rule.

There is, however, a scale effect. Many of the ultra-quiet air-water models at the top are large machines: 47.0 kW, 64.0 kW, 30.0 kW, 69.0 kW, 49.0 kW, 61.0 kW and 51.0 kW minimum capacities appear in the top 15 (top_models / EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog). That is far above the market-wide average capacity of 9.3 kW (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API). So the premium end is visible not just in efficiency class APPP and high SCOP, but also in the fact that many top-ranked quiet models are not small domestic units.

For residential buyers, the usable takeaway is narrower than the leaderboard theatrics. The broad market still averages 61.3 dB (market_index_snapshot / Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API). Air-water units average 59.8 dB and air-air units 64.1 dB (type_efficiency / EPREL Public API · type aggregation). The quietest listings cluster heavily in air-water and around a small number of manufacturers rather than being evenly distributed across the biggest brands (top_models / EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog). And the best of them can pair very low declared noise with very high SCOP, which is consistent with the premium-market angle rather than a mainstream average-product story. For adjacent comparisons, the top SCOP leaderboard and air-water SCOP ranking are the natural next checks.

Sources

• Househeating Pulse · Market Index v1, computed from EPREL Public API — snapshot 2026-06-11
• EPREL Public API via Househeating Pulse catalog — snapshot 2026-06-11
• EPREL Public API · type aggregation — snapshot 2026-06-11
• EPREL Public API · brand-share aggregation — snapshot 2026-06-11
• IPCC AR6 GWP table; EU Reg. 2024/573 phase-out schedule; EPREL declared codes — snapshot 2026-06-11

Continue reading

• How to compare heat-pump noise figures in EPREL — What declared sound power can and cannot tell buyers.
• Air-to-water vs air-to-air heat pumps — A practical read on the category split behind the noise averages.
• R290, R32 and the F-gas phase-down — Refrigerant choice, compliance pressure and what the registry actually shows.
• How to shortlist heat pumps with EPREL data — A workflow for filtering by SCOP, capacity, refrigerant and sound.