Guide
ECO4 is ending in 2026: what replaces it and what to do now
The Energy Company Obligation has funded insulation and heating work for lower-income households for years, and it now has a firm end date. This page sets out what the extension actually means, what is and is not replacing it, and the practical steps worth taking before December.
Last reviewed: 16 September 2026
The short answer
What the extension does, and what it does not
The nine-month extension is narrower than the headlines suggest.
The extension exists to let obligated energy suppliers meet their existing targets and to support remediation of installations found to be non-compliant. Critically, the government did not increase the obligation target when it extended the scheme. This is a completion and fixing window, not a fresh pot of work.
That means the December end date should not be read as “ECO4 is open to everyone until Christmas”. What a supplier will deliver in the remaining months depends on its remaining target, its assessment of your property and the measures it judges appropriate. If you are hoping for support under ECO4, the route is to check with an obligated supplier and read the current official guidance — not to hand your details to a generic “free grant” form, which is usually lead generation wearing the scheme's name.
What replaces ECO4?
Carefully: nothing like-for-like. The replacement is grant funding through councils, not another supplier obligation.
Instead of a successor supplier obligation, the government has committed an additional £1.5 billion of grant funding directed at upgrading low-income households, bringing the Warm Homes Plan to just under £15 billion of capital investment. The money flows through local-authority grant schemes rather than through energy suppliers.
Warm Homes: Local Grant (England)
This is the live route in England. Eligible homes must be privately owned or privately rented with an Energy Performance Certificate rating of D, E, F or G. Household income is usually £36,000 a year or less, but higher-income households can still qualify through certain postcode areas or qualifying benefits, so income alone does not rule you out.
If you are eligible and your local council has funding available, approved improvements can include wall, loft and underfloor insulation, air-source heat pumps, smart controls and solar panels. The council arranges the work and pays approved contractors directly; you do not receive cash. Our grants and funding page and solar grants guide set out the qualifying routes in more detail.
Boiler Upgrade Scheme (England and Wales)
For low-carbon heating specifically, the Boiler Upgrade Scheme remains a separate, installer-led route. Current grants are £7,500 for an air-source heat pump, £7,500 for a ground-source heat pump, £5,000 for a biomass boiler and £2,500 for an air-to-air heat pump. Until March 2027 there is an additional £1,500 for air-source or ground-source heat pumps where the property is heated by oil or LPG and has no mains gas connection, taking those qualifying grants to £9,000. Our heat pump grant guide explains which rate fits which property. If you may need to self-fund the balance, our heat pump installation cost guide sets out the costs to compare before you collect quotes.
What should I do now?
Three different situations, three different next steps.
- 01Hoping for ECO4 support: contact your energy supplier directly if it is a larger obligated supplier, and ask what it can still deliver before 31 December 2026. Read the current GOV.UK ECO4 guidance before trusting any third-party eligibility checker, and be sceptical of anyone who cold-contacts you about ECO4.
- 02In England, EPC D-G, household income around or below £36,000 (or in a qualifying postcode or on qualifying benefits): check the Warm Homes: Local Grant with your local council. The council arranges the survey and pays for approved work, so this is the scheme most worth checking before the year ends.
- 03Considering a heat pump: check the Boiler Upgrade Scheme and speak to an MCS-certified installer, who applies for the grant and deducts it from your quote. Use our heat pump grant guide to work out whether £7,500 or £9,000 is the rate that fits your property before you collect quotes.
Official sources
These are authoritative over this page. Schemes, values and dates change.
- GOV.UK — ECO4 and GBIS extensions: government response
- GOV.UK — Energy Company Obligation (ECO)
- GOV.UK — Apply for the Warm Homes: Local Grant
- GOV.UK — Boiler Upgrade Scheme: what you can get
Last reviewed: 16 September 2026. Sources: GOV.UK, Ofgem.
Compare the funded and self-funded routes
Check the live grant routes first. If funding does not cover the work, use the installation-cost guide to compare the likely balance before you collect quotes.
Related
Grants and funding
Warm Homes: Local Grant and the Boiler Upgrade Scheme in full.
The £9,000 heat pump grant
Every Boiler Upgrade Scheme rate, and which one fits your property.
Solar panel grants in 2026
Solar-specific support, the VAT relief and what to do if you do not qualify.
Solar calculator
Test the arithmetic with your own figures.
Heat pump installation costs
Typical cost components and what to compare before requesting quotes.
Methodology
How we date-stamp schemes and assumptions.