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Ottawa home energy rebates and loans

Ottawa homeowners can borrow up to $125,000 for a heat pump and other upgrades through the city’s Better Homes Ottawa Loan Program. Most Ottawa homes heat with natural gas, so Ontario’s Home Renovation Savings Program pays up to $2,000 for an air-source heat pump (up to $7,500 if you heat with electricity, oil or propane). The federal National Heat Pump Rebate will add $2,000, or up to $10,000 below the median income, once it opens.

Ottawa has long, cold winters and a housing stock that runs from century brick homes in the Glebe and Centretown to post-war bungalows and newer suburban townhouses. Most homes heat with a natural gas furnace, so heating is the biggest energy cost to cut.

Programs last verified

A red-brick Ottawa house with a deep front verandah in winter, snow on the roof and a heat pump on a raised stand beside it.

Ottawa at a glance

Ottawa’s own programs
1 current
Air-source heat pump, gas-heated home
$2,000$7,500 if heated by electricity, oil or propane
Heat pump financing
Up to $125,000
Current programs that apply here
11 local, Ont. and federal

Ottawa’s own programs

Only for homes inside Ottawa.

  • OpenMunicipal

    Better Homes Ottawa Loan Program

    Ottawa homeowners can borrow $10,000 to $125,000 at a fixed 4.33% over 20 years for energy retrofits, repaid on the property tax bill. The program also offers per-ton heat pump incentives and a limited-time $600 loan reduction for EnerGuide assessments.

    $125,000

    max loan

    Loan
    Last verified October 12, 2026
Closed Ottawa programs1 program no longer taking applications, with what replaced them
  • ClosedProvincialToronto, York Region, Ottawa

    CoolSaver Program (Save on Energy Local Initiatives)

    CoolSaver offered a free central air conditioner or heat pump tune-up and $1,000 off an 18 SEER central air conditioner in parts of Toronto, York Region and Ottawa. The 2025 program closed: work orders had to be signed by October 31, 2025 and installed by December 31, 2025.

    $1,000

    max discount

    Instant discount
    Last verified October 17, 2026

How Better Homes Ottawa Loan Program works

Open

Better Homes Ottawa offers 20-year, fixed-rate financing for energy retrofits, repaid as a local improvement charge on your property tax bill. It covers insulation, air sealing, ENERGY STAR windows and doors, green roofs, air-source and ground-source heat pumps, heat or energy recovery ventilators, thermostats, duct sealing, efficient water heaters, solar PV, battery storage, Level 2 EV chargers, and water-efficiency and flood-protection measures. Gas-fired equipment such as furnaces and gas water heaters is not eligible. A rental suite can be financed up to 30% of the loan.

What it pays
Up to $125,000 · Loan
  • Retrofit loan$10,000 to $125,000 (or 10% of assessed value, if lower)
  • Cold-climate air-source heat pump incentive$700 per ton
  • Ground-source heat pump incentive$1,000 per ton + $5 per metre of well or loop
  • EnerGuide assessment loan reduction$600
Who qualifies
  • Detached, semi-detached, townhouse or multi-unit residential building of 3 storeys or less in Ottawa with a City property tax account.
  • Property taxes, utilities and other City accounts in good standing for the past 5 years; owners with less history need a credit score of at least 600.
  • Not in CMHC's mortgage deferral program or the City's tax deferral program.
  • Only costs incurred after the Notice to Proceed are eligible.
Steps, in order
  1. Submit the online application at betterhomesottawa.ca. Review takes about two weeks.
  2. Receive the Notice to Proceed, then complete a pre-retrofit EnerGuide assessment and collect quotes.
  3. Submit a Funding Request and sign the Property Owner Agreement. Up to 50% can be advanced up front.
  4. Complete the work and the post-retrofit EnerGuide assessment, then submit the Project Completion Report.
  5. Receive the final payment (about 4 weeks). The charge starts on your June property tax bill in the year after the project is finished and runs for 20 years.
Energy assessment
Yes, before work starts
Run by
City of Ottawa (with EnviroCentre)
Official Better Homes Ottawa Loan Program page(opens in a new tab)Full details and sourcesVerified

What an air-source heat pump can get in Ottawa

Every rebate you could combine for an air-source heat pump in Ottawa, with the city’s programs counted, if you qualify for each. Each program has its own rules about equipment, contractors and pre-approval, so treat this as the most you could get, not a quote.

Heat pump rebates in Ontario

Heat pump · Ottawa

As of October 19, 2026

Heat pump rebates available in Ottawa, stacked
ProgramUp to
Provincial
Home Renovation Savings ProgramCold-climate air-source heat pump (home heated by electricity, oil, propane or wood)$7,500
Open today, up toProgram maximums for an air-source heat pump if you qualify for each. Loans are listed separately and never added.$7,500
When the National Heat Pump Rebate opens (not open yet)+ $2,000
Ground-source (geothermal) heat pump instead (open programs)up to $12,000

Financing

Repayable, never added to the total

Ontario and federal programs that also apply

These cover homes across Ontario or Canada, so they stack on top of the city’s own programs.

Federal programs

Run by the Government of Canada. These apply everywhere.

5 programs

  • OpenFederal

    Multigenerational Home Renovation Tax Credit

    A refundable federal tax credit worth up to $7,000 for 2026 ($7,250 for 2025) for building a self-contained secondary unit so a senior or an adult with a disability can live with a relative.

    $7,000

    max credit

    Tax credit
    Last verified October 12, 2026
  • OpenFederal

    Electric Vehicle Affordability Program

    A point-of-sale discount of up to $5,000 on a new battery-electric or fuel-cell vehicle (up to $2,500 for plug-in hybrids), applied by the dealer. Amounts drop starting in 2027.

    $5,000

    max discount

    Instant discount
    Last verified October 12, 2026
  • OpenFederal

    Home Accessibility Tax Credit

    A non-refundable federal tax credit on up to $20,000 a year of renovations that make a home safer or more accessible for a senior or a person with a disability, worth up to $2,800 for 2026 ($2,900 for 2025).

    $2,800

    max credit

    Tax credit
    Last verified October 12, 2026
  • OpenFederal

    Canada Greener Homes Affordability Program

    Federally funded, no-cost home energy upgrades for low- and median-income homeowners and tenants. You apply through your province's or utility's partner program, not through Ottawa.

    Free

    Free upgrade
    Last verified October 12, 2026
  • UpcomingFederal

    National Heat Pump Rebate

    A new federal rebate announced on October 8, 2026 that will pay $2,000 toward an eligible cold-climate air-source heat pump, or up to $10,000 for households below the median income. Applications are not open yet.

    $2,000

    max rebate

    Up to $10,000 if income-qualified

    Rebate
    Last verified October 12, 2026

Ontario programs

Run by the provincial or territorial government or its energy agency.

3 programs

  • OpenProvincial

    Home Renovation Savings Program

    Ontario's main home-retrofit rebate program. You can claim single upgrades such as a heat pump, attic insulation, solar with a battery, a smart thermostat or ENERGY STAR appliances without an energy assessment, or do an assessment and two or more upgrades for envelope rebates.

    $12,000

    max rebate

    Rebate
    Last verified October 12, 2026
  • OpenProvincial

    Peak Perks

    Get $75 for enrolling an eligible smart thermostat that controls central air or a heat pump, then $20 for each year you stay enrolled. On a few hot weekday afternoons, your cooling is adjusted slightly.

    $75

    max rebate

    Rebate
    Last verified October 12, 2026
  • OpenProvincial

    Energy Affordability Program

    Income-qualified Ontario electricity customers can get free energy upgrades. These range from free saving kits to a full home visit that can include new appliances, insulation, draft-proofing and, for electric or oil-heated homes, a cold-climate heat pump.

    Free

    Free upgrade
    Last verified October 12, 2026

Utility programs

Offered by electricity and gas utilities to their own customers.

2 programs

  • OpenUtility

    Home Winterproofing Program

    Income-qualified households heated by Enbridge natural gas can get a free home energy assessment, plus free insulation, draft-proofing and a smart thermostat where needed.

    Free

    Free upgrade
    Last verified October 12, 2026
  • Closing soonUtility

    myEnergy Rewards

    Hydro One customers in eligible postal codes can get a $100 prepaid card for enrolling a compatible smart thermostat in its demand-response program. The current offer ends November 30, 2026, or earlier if spots run out.

    $100

    max rebate

    Rebate
    Last verified October 12, 2026

Good to know in Ottawa

Who supplies energy here

  • Hydro OttawaElectricity (most of the city)
  • Hydro OneElectricity (some rural areas)
  • Enbridge GasNatural gas

Utility rebates only go to that utility’s customers. Check the name on your bill.

Wait for the Notice to Proceed
Better Homes Ottawa only pays for costs incurred after the City issues your Notice to Proceed, so book the assessment and sign contracts after that, not before.
Ask for the advance
Up to half of the loan can be advanced before the work is done, which helps cover installer deposits.

Rebates by upgrade in Ottawa

Totals include the city’s programs where they pay for that upgrade. Each link opens the full Ontario breakdown.

Ottawa rebate questions

Answers are generated from the programs above, so they change when the programs do.

Yes. As of October 19, 2026, the city’s Better Homes Ottawa Loan Program offers low-interest financing of up to $125,000.

Up to $7,500 for an air-source heat pump today, through Home Renovation Savings Program, if your home and equipment qualify. If your home is heated by natural gas, Home Renovation Savings Program pays up to $2,000 instead. A ground-source (geothermal) system can reach $12,000. The National Heat Pump Rebate will add $2,000 (up to $10,000 below the median income) once it opens; it isn’t open yet. Financing is separate and never counted: Better Homes Ottawa Loan Program (up to $125,000).

The program lists Home Renovation Savings Program and Peak Perks as programs it can be combined with. Each program sets its own rules for the same upgrade, so check them before you count on both.

Detached, semi-detached, townhouse or multi-unit residential building of 3 storeys or less in Ottawa with a City property tax account. Property taxes, utilities and other City accounts in good standing for the past 5 years; owners with less history need a credit score of at least 600. Not in CMHC's mortgage deferral program or the City's tax deferral program. Full rules are on the official program page.

Submit the online application at betterhomesottawa.ca. Review takes about two weeks. Receive the Notice to Proceed, then complete a pre-retrofit EnerGuide assessment and collect quotes. Submit a Funding Request and sign the Property Owner Agreement. Up to 50% can be advanced up front. The program page lists the remaining steps.

Yes. Canada Greener Homes Affordability Program, Energy Affordability Program and Home Winterproofing Program offer free or enhanced support to income-qualified households. Income limits depend on household size.

Hydro Ottawa: electricity (most of the city); Hydro One: electricity (some rural areas); Enbridge Gas: natural gas. Utility programs only apply to that utility’s own customers, so check whose name is on your bill.

Other Ontario places with their own programs

See Ontario rebates

Get up to 3 quotes from installers in Ottawa

Tell us what you’re planning. We’ll send your request to up to 3 installers who work in Ottawa and know the Ontario rebate paperwork.

We’re independent. We never take rebate applications or charge you to apply; always apply through the official program.

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Free, no obligation. We pass your request to up to 3 independent installers who serve your area and, where a program requires it, are registered with it.

  1. 1. Your project
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Step 1 of 2: your project

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We use it to find installers who serve your area.

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What kind of home is it?Optional
How do you heat it today?Optional
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