Octopus has a smart way to cool your home without spending thousands on air conditioning – but there's a catch

Octopus Energy has unveiled the Cosy Cooler, a new gadget that turns its Cosy heat pump into a home cooling system, offering an alternative to installing a separate air-conditioning unit.

It's expected to launch in 2027, with an estimated price of £500-£600 when added to an existing Cosy heat pump system. That's considerably less than the £2,000 to £6,000 traditional air conditioning can cost to install.

The catch is that you'll need a compatible Cosy heat pump already installed, so that price tag doesn't include the cost of the heat pump itself. Government grants can currently make heat pumps more affordable, but the future of that support is also uncertain, with reports suggesting the grants could be significantly reduced from their current £7,500 level next year.

The Cosy Cooler is roughly the size of a tall kitchen bin, and if you have the compatible Cosy heat pump, it plugs directly into radiator pipework that circulates chilled water throughout the home. Depending on the Cosy heat pump model, users will also be able to cool a single room or run two to three units simultaneously in different rooms.

Greg Jackson, founder and chief executive of Octopus Energy, said: “Sadly, British homes need to be ready for freezing winters and increasingly hot summers. The Boiler Upgrade Scheme has helped give the industry the confidence to invest, innovate and drive costs down – and Cosy Cooler is the latest result of Octopus ingenuity.”

Live trials in homes and offices have already begun, but Octopus is still looking for additional testers that can sign up via this form if interested.