The 3 Best Heat Pump Water Heaters of 2025

Anyone who owns a home that uses hot water should at least consider getting a heat pump water heater.

Even if your current water-heating system is working fine, you should still start thinking about it. After all, regular access to heated water is a luxury we often take for granted, so it’s all the more frustrating when your system fails on you.

It might take 10, 15, even 20 years, but eventually, your hot water heater is bound to break. So you need to have a plan in place before that happens. Otherwise, you’ll be left without hot water for who knows how long. And no one wants that.

Heat pump water heaters are the future. In fact, in April 2024, the US Department of Energy adopted a new set of standards that will essentially phase out most non–heat pump models by 2029. But the question of whether it’s the best choice for you right now is a bit more complicated.

If you want the most energy-efficient option available, get a heat pump water heater. Unlike electric and gas heaters, which must create heat to warm the water, heat pump water heaters simply take the heat particles that already exist in the air and move them into the water. As a result, heat pump water heaters usually have an efficiency rating between 3.0 and 4.0 UEF (Uniform Energy Factor, the standard US measurement); that’s about three to five times higher than you get with even the best gas and standard electric water heaters out there.

You don’t have to worry about losing energy in the conversion process, either—every watt of energy that goes into a heat pump model results in three to four times the equivalent heat energy.

“A gas system is a great energy producer. But a heat pump water heater is a great energy transfer,” as Leo Pesegoginski, a project manager at Boston Standard Plumbing, succinctly explained it to us.

A heat pump water heater could help you save money, too. The amount of savings will depend on your current setup, as well as where you live. If you already have an electric water heater, for example, a heat pump will use only about a quarter of the energy, which can make a serious dent in your utility bills. Those monthly savings might not be quite as stark if you’re switching from a gas-powered system, but you’ll still save something. Heat pump water heaters can also qualify for local energy rebates or other incentives, depending on where you live. This can reduce the upfront cost and save you even more money in the long run.

It’s also great if you’re looking to electrify your home. In fact, there are some models—like the Rheem ProTerra Performance Platinum XE65T10HM00U0, or the A. O. Smith model we recommend—that can plug directly into a standard wall outlet without any additional electrical upgrades, making it easier than ever to move away from fossil-fuel dependence.

Most heat pump water heaters also come with smart-home-integration options, including Demand Response (which can help you sync up to the local electrical grid), and they further optimize energy use not just in your home but across your entire community. This sort of electrification is a major step toward broader decarbonization and sustainability goals.

That excess water still has to go somewhere, though. If you already have a sump pump or other wet-basement solution in place, then you should be fine; if not, you may need to add extra piping to make sure that water drains out with the rest of the plumbing.

But it isn’t a great choice if you expect heating on demand. “You can’t have hot water on demand because heat pumps only slowly accumulate the heat,” explained Joel Rosenberg, senior program manager for special projects at Rewiring America. As a result, heat pump water heaters tend to have a longer recovery time—that is, the time it takes to reheat a tank of water after you’ve used it all up.

Tank-based water-heating systems also inevitably deal with some level of standby heat loss, but heat pump units are so efficient that this should be minimal.

“Once the heat pump water heater gets to the right temperature, it maintains it with very little energy input,” Rosenberg said. (If you don’t want to deal with water storage or standby heat loss, you might want to look into a tankless system.)

A heat pump water heater might not be the best option if you value silence. Unlike other water heaters, heat pump water heaters use fans to help draw in the air. And fans tend to make a little noise (though it’s still quieter than what’s considered normal conversation level). If your water heater is tucked away in the basement or a utility closet, you might not even notice it; if it’s closer to your living space, however, it could be a source of frustration for some people. Anecdotally, we’ve found that most people don’t even hear it—but for the few who do, the sound is unbearable.

And it might not be the best choice if you have limited space. Most heat pump water heaters need a minimum of at least 700 cubic feet of space around them to have enough air from which to extract that ambient heat. Though some models, like the 120-volt A.O. Smith, need only about 450 cubic feet. (The US Department of Energy recommends 1,000 cubic feet for optimal performance.)

If you’re planning to install your water heater in an open part of the basement, that’s great! If you’re trying to replace a tankless unit or squeeze your water heater into a tight utility closet, you might need to add some sort of venting or duct system, which could add to the cost.

Another thing to note is that you may need to increase the capacity when replacing an electric or gas model with a heat pump. Most contractors and manufacturers recommend upsizing the tank by roughly 30%, to compensate for the extra-long recovery time. A home that ran on a 50-gallon natural gas water heater, for example, should upsize to a 65-gallon heat pump water heater. This helps to ensure that there’s always some extra hot water, in case you’re about to run out—but it also means you need a little more clearance space.

Also, be warned: A heat pump water heater can have a higher upfront cost. Most heat pump models cost at least twice as much as an equivalent-size electric or gas water heater; any additional installation complications can add to the price as well.

There may be some financial incentives available to help reduce those upfront costs, depending on where you live. And no matter, the increased efficiency of a heat pump water heater will almost certainly make up for the difference over time. But if you’re tight on money at the moment—and the rebates and tax breaks don’t work for you—then a standard gas or electric replacement might be the better choice right now.