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Barely any heating season · Hot summers

Best heat pumps for Santa Clarita, CA

Santa Clarita barely needs heating; choose on cooling efficiency (SEER2 and EER2).

A typical heat pump costs about $663 a year to heat a house here and $912 to cool it. A 95% gas furnace would cost $402 for the same heat.

This guide also covers Simi Valley, which share Santa Clarita's weather station and climate data.

Cheapest to run in Santa Clarita

Ranked by yearly electricity cost in this climate, so the balance of heating and cooling efficiency is the one that matters here.

Running cost calculator for Santa Clarita

Pre-filled with Santa Clarita's climate and California prices. Pick a model, tell it what you heat with today, and add your quote.

Heat pump $959/yrYou save $393/yrSee details ↓
1. Where you live
Adjust heating and cooling hours

Filled in from your city's climate. Change them if you run the system much more or less than usual.

2. The heat pump pick a model or type its ratings
3. What it replaces
4. Price replace the example with your quote
Heat pump, per year
$959
Current system, per year
$1,352
You save per year
$393
Payback
22.9 years
Net after 10 years
-$5,069

Cooling $517Heating $442Electricity used: 2,893 kWhSaved vs. a minimum-efficiency heat pump: $294

Estimates use the unit's rated SEER2 and HSPF2, full-load hours derived from NOAA 1991-2020 degree days, average residential electricity prices from the U.S. EIA (12 months to July 2026) and fuel prices from EIA (2025 for natural gas, week of 2026-10-05 for propane and heating oil). Very cold days that need backup heat are not modelled. Federal minimum for comparison: 14.3 SEER2 / 7.5 HSPF2.

More for Santa Clarita

Top 5 12,000 BTU mini-splitsfrom $309/yr
Top 5 24,000 BTU mini-splitsfrom $650/yr
Top 5 3-ton central heat pumpsfrom $1,011/yr
ModelSEER2HSPF2Per year
TOSHIBA CARRIER MCY-MUB0368HS2P-UL29.712.2$1,011
LG KUSXA361A23.510.5$1,228
LG KUSXB361A22.010.3$1,284
Trane 5TWV0X36A121.010.5$1,306
Heil H5H3V36*K*AAA22.59.5$1,317

All 3-ton central heat pumps

Heat pump vs. gas, propane and oilgas is cheaper to run

Yearly cost to heat a typical house (36,000 BTU/h of heat, 500 full-load hours) at California prices.

  • Natural gas furnace, 95% AFUE$402/yr
  • Natural gas furnace, 80% AFUE$477/yr
  • Propane furnace, 95% AFUE$554/yr
  • Heat pump (typical, 9.0 HSPF2)$663/yr
  • Heating oil, 85% AFUE$913/yr
  • Electric baseboard or furnace$1,748/yr

Electricity and natural gas: California residential averages from the U.S. EIA; propane and heating oil: latest EIA weekly prices.

Month by monthpeak $216 in August

Heating and cooling degree days (NOAA 1991-2020 normals) and what a typical 3-ton heat pump costs in each month at 33.1¢/kWh.

MonthHeating DDCooling DDCost
January25410$142
February22411$126
March16429$103
April10658$86
May39116$79
June5215$109
July0395$196
August0434$216
September2348$174
October25173$99
November12943$91
December2805$154
What size heat pump for a Santa Clarita home?3 ton for 2,000 sq ft
  • 1,000 sq ft house2 ton · heating load 15,000 BTU/h
  • 1,500 sq ft house2.5 ton · heating load 22,500 BTU/h
  • 2,000 sq ft house3 ton · heating load 30,000 BTU/h
  • 2,500 sq ft house3 ton · heating load 37,500 BTU/h

Average insulation, 8 ft ceilings. Size calculator for your own home

Questions4
Do heat pumps work in Santa Clarita winters?
Santa Clarita barely needs heating; choose on cooling efficiency (SEER2 and EER2). The average winter low is 46°F, and the heating season adds up to 1,226 heating degree days (NOAA 1991-2020 normals).
How much does it cost to run a heat pump in Santa Clarita?
A typical 3-ton central heat pump (17.0 SEER2, 9.0 HSPF2) uses about $663 of electricity a year for heating and $912 for cooling in Santa Clarita, at the California average of 33.1¢/kWh. The most efficient models cost less - see the rankings above.
Is a heat pump cheaper than a gas furnace in Santa Clarita?
Not on heating alone at today's prices: about $663 a year with a typical heat pump versus $402 with a 95% gas furnace (California averages: 33.1¢/kWh, $2.12/therm). A high-HSPF2 model narrows the gap, and a heat pump also replaces the air conditioner. Against propane, oil or electric heat it is usually far cheaper.
What size heat pump do I need for a 2,000 sq ft house in Santa Clarita?
With average insulation, roughly a 3-ton system: the estimated cooling load is 32,100 BTU/h and the heating load 30,000 BTU/h. Use the size calculator for your own house, and ask installers for a Manual J calculation.

Nearby cities

Climate: NOAA 1991-2020 normals, station VAN NUYS AP (23 km away).