Clement Boston Heat Pumps installs ducted systems that qualify for the Mass Save heat pump rebate, as a participating contractor in Mass Save’s Heat Pump Installer Network. The rebate can take thousands off a whole-home heat pump, but only if the house, the equipment and the paperwork line up before the first day of work.
Which tier fits your house?
Mass Save has three residential tiers, and the fuel you heat with today mostly decides yours. Fuel switching earns the big per-ton amounts; updating a heat pump or central AC earns the basic one.
| Tier | Installed through 2026 | Installed from January 1, 2027 | When it applies |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whole-home | $2,650 per ton, up to $8,500 | $2,350 per ton, up to $7,500 | The heat pump carries all the heating and the old system is removed or disconnected |
| Partial-home | $1,125 per ton, up to $8,500 | $1,000 per ton, up to $7,500 | Oil, propane or gas stays for some zones or the coldest hours, with an integrated control |
| Basic | $250 per ton, up to $2,500 | No fuel switch: replacing a heat pump or central AC, additions, homes unoccupied in winter | |
| Income-eligible | Up to $16,000 for whole-home | Income-verified households replacing oil, propane or electric resistance |
Partial-home projects can add a $500 weatherization bonus and a $500 sizing bonus for a heating load calculation with the system sized at 90 to 120% of the load. Basic and whole-home or partial-home rebates combined cap at $8,500 per account.
Who pays: your utility account decides
The rebate comes from the Mass Save sponsor that serves the fuel you’re replacing. That one detail sorts out most eligibility questions before anyone looks at equipment.
- Replacing oil, propane or electric resistance: your electric company must be a sponsor: Eversource, National Grid, Unitil or Cape Light Compact.
- Replacing natural gas: your gas company must be a sponsor: Eversource, National Grid, Liberty, Berkshire Gas or Unitil.
- Municipal gas: not eligible for the basic rebate unless your electricity comes from a sponsor.
Boston, Cambridge, Somerville, Newton and most inner suburbs have Eversource or National Grid electric service, so the standard Mass Save path applies. Gas homes there use the gas sponsor’s rebate.
What the whole-home rebate asks for
Whole-home pays the most and asks the most. Every condition below has to be true when the forms go in, so we check them at the first visit, not after the install.
- Equipment: ENERGY STAR Cold Climate and on the Mass Save Heat Pump Qualified Products List
- Installer: a contractor in the Mass Save Heat Pump Installer Network
- The old system: removed or disconnected, and noted on the invoice; a boiler may stay only to make hot water
- Weatherization: a house built in 2000 or later, a Home Energy Assessment showing under $1,000 of recommended work, or the post-2013 recommendations completed
- The form: a signed Whole-Home Heat Pump Verification Form
- Occupancy: lived in full time through the winter, one whole-home rebate per account
The weatherization line catches people most. A load calculation done after air sealing also tends to land on a smaller, cheaper system.
How the per-ton math works
Mass Save counts tons from the equipment’s rated cooling capacity: the AHRI-listed BTUs divided by 12,000. It is not the size printed on the old unit, and it’s not something an installer can round up.
Three worked numbers
- A 3-ton whole-home system installed through 2026: 3 × $2,650 = $7,950.
- The same system installed from January 1, 2027: 3 × $2,350 = $7,050.
- A 3-ton dual fuel system on the partial-home tier through 2026: 3 × $1,125 = $3,375.
Bigger isn’t better here. The cap arrives at about 3.2 tons, and an oversized system costs more, runs worse and can fail the sizing test. Size from the house; the rebate follows.
The dates that matter
Mass Save rebates follow the calendar year of the install. Systems installed during a program year are paid at that year’s rates, and their forms are due by the end of the following February.
Since October 1, 2026, the forms need the equipment serial numbers, so the outdoor unit and air handler labels get photographed at startup, part of our installation process. The 2027 step-down applies to systems installed from January 1, 2027; a job finishing in late December is paid at the earlier rate only if it’s actually installed by then.
Paid after, not off the top
Rebates are paid after the work, not deducted on day one. Many owners pair them with the HEAT Loan, which covers the cost up front at 0% interest.
Two-families and three-deckers
The whole-home rebate is counted per account. If each unit has its own gas or electric account, each unit can earn its own rebate; if one meter serves the whole building, the building gets one.
That makes a separate system per floor the natural fit for most three-deckers, each sized for its own unit and billed to its own meter.
Towns with their own light plant
Where the town runs its own electric utility, Mass Save’s electric-side rebates don’t cover oil, propane or electric-resistance switches. The light plant runs its own program instead, with its own amounts and rules.
| Light plant | What it pays for a heat pump |
|---|---|
| Belmont Light | $1,000 per ton for partial or whole home, up to $5,000 per account, plus bonuses for weatherization and removing the fossil system |
| Braintree Electric Light Department | $1,250 per ton up to $7,500 for non-gas homes; $750 per ton up to $4,500 for gas homes, who can also use Mass Save |
| Wellesley Municipal Light Plant | Whole-home $8,500 with the old system removed, $6,500 if not; partial $1,125 per ton up to $5,000 |
| Reading Municipal Light (Reading, North Reading, Wilmington, Lynnfield Center) | Up to $11,500 for a new heat pump, up to $7,500 for a replacement |
Gas-heated homes in a light plant town can still use Mass Save through their gas sponsor. We confirm which program your address falls under before we write the estimate; see Braintree and Peabody for two light plant towns we serve.
The federal credit is gone
The federal 25C heat pump credit isn’t available for systems placed in service after December 31, 2025. The separate 25D credit never covered air-source heat pumps. For a ducted job now, the incentives are Mass Save’s or your light plant’s.
How we handle the rebate on your job
Every estimate names the rebate tier, the ton count that sets it and what the house still needs to qualify. We install equipment from the qualifying list, record the serial numbers and startup readings, and keep the paperwork straight so the forms match the job.
If the house needs weatherization first, we say so before you sign, because finding out after the install costs the whole-home amount. Read the cost guide for what the rebate comes off, or call us to book the first visit.