Country · 6 min read · Updated 2026-05-08
Heat pumps in Poland 2026 — Czyste Powietrze step-by-step
Czyste Powietrze covers up to 100% of HP installation for low-income households. Cold winters make ground-source attractive for higher-tier subsidies.
Market snapshot
Poland has Europe's most generous heat-pump grants by share of project cost — and arguably its most pressing case for them. The country's heating mix has historically leaned hard on coal-fired stoves ("kopciuchy"), driving Europe's worst urban air pollution in winter. Czyste Powietrze ("Clean Air") is the policy response.
Czyste Powietrze — three income tiers
| Tier | Income threshold | Max grant total | HP component |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic | < 135 000 PLN/yr | 66 000 PLN | up to 30 000 PLN |
| Higher | < 1 894 PLN/mo per capita | 99 000 PLN | up to 37 200 PLN |
| Highest | < 1 090 PLN/mo per capita | 135 000 PLN | up to 49 800 PLN, up to 100% of cost |
The Highest tier covers 100% of an HP-led deep retrofit for the lowest-income households — Europe's only blanket fully-funded heat- pump scheme.
Air-to-air HPs are excluded. Air-to-water and ground-source qualify.
Climate
Warsaw sits in the Average zone but well to the cold side: ~3 706 HDD₁₈ and a January mean of −4.0 °C. Real winter conditions push air-source HPs harder than in Berlin or Paris — verify the manufacturer's A-15/W35 COP spec, not just A2/W35.
For homes near 4 000+ HDD₁₈ (eastern and northern Poland), ground- source HPs combined with Highest-tier funding land near zero net cost and deliver SCOP > 4.5 even mid-February.
Tariffs
Polish electricity at €0.17/kWh is among Europe's cheapest; gas at €0.07/kWh is even cheaper. The 2.4× ratio makes HPs marginally cheaper to run than gas before subsidies, but with Czyste Powietrze paying for capex, payback is essentially immediate.
Recommended setup
- Cold-climate-rated air-to-water HP with R290, modulating
inverter compressor, A-15/W35 COP ≥ 2.5
- Ground-source if you live in the eastern half and qualify for
the Higher or Highest tier
- Avoid old-stock R410A units — won't be eligible for the
climate-bonus components anyway
Top brands
European brands (Daikin, Mitsubishi, Bosch) dominate. Domestic players Galmet and Hewalex have niche presence in budget DHW units.
Application process at a glance
1. Determine income tier 2. Pick HP from the eligible-products list 3. Get a certified energy audit (free under Higher/Highest tier) 4. Apply before signing the installation contract 5. Installer claims grant on completion; you may need to bridge-finance
Sources
- Czyste Powietrze (verified 2026-05-07)
- Eurostat
nrg_pc_204band DC,nrg_pc_202band D2, semester 2024-S2 - NASA POWER 30-year normal at Warsaw (52.23 °N, 21.01 °E)