Tool
Central AC, heat pump or mini-split: which fits your home?
Ducts, heating and how much of the house you cool decide most of it. Answer five questions and the tool shows which system types fit, why, and the published Dallas–Fort Worth price range for each.
Compare the systems for your home
Ranges are published by named DFW sources, not by us. The tool runs in your browser and sends nothing.
How the tool decides what fits
- Ducts. Central AC and a ducted heat pump need usable ducts; no ducts point to a mini-split, or to new ducts at extra cost.
- Heating. A heat pump also heats, so it fits best when the furnace is old or the home uses resistance heat. Keeping a healthy furnace favors central AC, or a heat pump on that furnace (dual fuel).
- Scope. Cooling part of the house favors a mini-split priced by zone.
- Utility. The tool names your utility's situation but never subtracts a rebate, because terms change.
How to answer the five questions well
The result is only as useful as the answers. Most people get the size question roughly right and the duct question wrong, so spend a few minutes checking before you rely on the cards.
Ducts: good, old or none
Pick "old or leaky" if the ducts are original to a house built before the 1990s, if some rooms never cool as well as others, or if you can see crushed, taped or disconnected runs in the attic. ENERGY STAR estimates that about 20 to 30 percent of the air moving through a typical duct system is lost to leaks, holes and poorly connected ducts. That loss is why the tool adds a duct note instead of treating every duct system as reusable.
If you are unsure, choose "old or leaky". It costs nothing to ask a contractor to inspect the ducts, and it is far cheaper to learn about a problem before you sign than after.
Heating: keeping the furnace or not
Look at the furnace label for its install date, or the date on the last service sticker. A furnace that already needs regular repairs belongs under "near the end of its life". Choose "electric resistance heat or none" if your heat comes from electric strips in the air handler or baseboard heaters.
Scope, size and zones
"Part of the house" means a specific space: an addition, a converted garage, a bonus room over the garage that the main system never reaches. The size question is a rule of thumb only; use the sizing preparation tool if you have no idea. For zones, count the separate rooms or open areas that would each need their own indoor head.
Utility
Your electric bill names the wires company. Most of DFW is Oncor territory; Garland has its own city utility, Garland Power & Light. The answer changes only the incentive note, never the price.
Three worked examples
The homes below are hypothetical, not case studies. The prices are the same published third-party ranges the tool uses, not quotes from this site.
A 1980s ranch with a healthy furnace
Say a 1,800 square foot house with attic ducts in decent shape, a gas furnace that is a few years old, and the whole house to cool. Answers: ducts good, keeping the furnace, whole house, 3 tons. Central AC comes out as the good fit, at the published DFW range of $5,500–$16,500 for a 3-ton AC on existing ducts. The heat pump card reads "possible fit", because a heat pump would duplicate a furnace that still works.
The useful question for this household is whether a heat pump paired with the existing furnace (dual fuel) costs much more than plain AC. Ask two contractors to price both.
An older house with a tired furnace and leaky ducts
Now say the same size house, but the furnace is near the end of its life and the ducts are original. The heat pump card becomes the good-fit candidate, at the DFW band of $6,500–$14,500 for all sizes, because one outdoor unit would cover both cooling and heating. Both ducted cards add a duct note, since repair or sealing sits on top of either price.
Compare that against central AC plus a new furnace, not against AC alone. The cost guide lists the published adders for ductwork and furnaces.
A garage conversion
Say the main house is fine and only a converted garage needs cooling. Answers: ducts good, keeping the furnace, part of the house, 1 zone. The mini-split card is the good fit at $2,000–$5,200 for one zone in Dallas. Extending the main ducts into the garage is the alternative to price, but it adds load to a system that was not sized for that room.
How to read the result
Each card shows three things: a fit label, a reason and a published range. Read them in that order.
| Label | What it means | What to do with it |
|---|---|---|
| Good fit | Your answers match how this system is normally used. | Ask every contractor to quote it. |
| Possible fit | It can work, but one answer pulls the other way. | Ask one or two contractors to quote it as an alternative. |
| Weak fit | It would need extra work, such as new ducts, to suit the house. | Skip it unless a contractor gives a specific reason. |
The price line is a published range from named DFW sources, not a quote. A wide range reflects real spread in equipment tier, brand and what is included. Where a card is a weak fit, the price is still shown so you can see what you are ruling out.
Common mistakes when comparing systems
- Comparing a heat pump to AC alone. A heat pump replaces the furnace too, so the fair comparison is AC plus the furnace you will eventually need.
- Treating the size selector as a sizing method. It only picks a price row. Dallas enforces the 2021 International Residential Code and 2021 IECC with Dallas amendments, effective 12 May 2023. The IRC requires equipment to be sized from a load calculation (ACCA Manual J) rather than a rule of thumb.
- Assuming old ducts are fine. A new system on leaky ducts can still leave rooms warm.
- Counting a rebate before it is confirmed. Ask the contractor in writing whether they participate in a program and what it pays.
- Choosing by refrigerant or efficiency alone. Texas is in the DOE Southeast region. Since 1 January 2023 a split-system central AC under 45,000 BTU (about 3.75 tons) must be at least 14.3 SEER2 on the date it is installed; larger systems need 13.8. Split heat pumps need 14.3 SEER2 and 7.5 HSPF2 nationwide. Those minimums apply to every option, so any quote below them is a red flag.
Assumptions and limits
Central AC ranges assume usable ducts and keep the furnace. Heat pump prices are one all-sizes DFW band, because no DFW source publishes them by size. No running-cost figure appears here; use the calculator with your own rates.
The tool does not look at your electrical panel, the location of the air handler, the condition of the slab or pad, or any city permit rule. It shows no four-zone mini-split range because no source we read published one. It cannot tell you which brand to buy, and it does not rate or recommend contractors.
What to do next
- Note the good-fit and possible-fit systems. Those are the options to ask about.
- Prepare for sizing. Fill in the prep sheet and give it to each contractor.
- Check running costs. If a heat pump is on the list, run the heat pump vs AC calculator with your bills.
- Check the license. Look each contractor up with the TDLR license check.
- Compare like with like. Put the quotes side by side in the quote comparison tool, and read the system options guide if a contractor proposes something the tool did not.
Sources
- Cold Factor Heating & Air (Flower Mound, TX) (page dated 2026) (retrieved 2026-09-23)
- HVAC Services Pro (DFW) (page dated 2026-04-13) (retrieved 2026-09-23)
- HVAC Services Pro, DFW installation guide (page dated 2026-03-06) (retrieved 2026-09-23)
- HVACProjectCost.com, Dallas page (page dated 2026-08-02) (retrieved 2026-09-23)
- Filterbuy, Dallas mini-split installation (an equipment seller) (Dallas, page dated 2026-08-07) (retrieved 2026-10-20)
- ENERGY STAR, "Duct Sealing" (retrieved 2026-10-20)
- City of Dallas, "Current City Code" (retrieved 2026-09-23) — verify before relying on it
- AHRI, "2023 Energy Efficiency Standards"; DOE regional standards (retrieved 2026-09-23)
- HVACProjectCost.com, Dallas page (retrieved 2026-09-23)
- HVAC Services Pro, DFW installation guide (retrieved 2026-09-23)
Questions
Which is cheaper to install in Dallas, central AC or a heat pump?
On published 2026 DFW ranges, a 3-ton central AC on existing ducts runs $5,500–$16,500 and a ducted heat pump $6,500–$14,500 across sizes. The heat pump also replaces the furnace, so compare it against AC plus a future furnace.
When does a mini-split make more sense than a ducted system?
When the house has no ducts, the ducts are in poor shape, or you are cooling only part of it: an addition or a garage conversion. Each zone is a separate indoor head, so cost grows with zone count.
What does "possible fit" mean?
The system can work in your house, but one of your answers points elsewhere: an old furnace that a heat pump would replace, or leaky ducts that need work first. Treat it as a question to put to the contractor, not a rejection.
Can I keep my gas furnace and still get a heat pump?
Yes. That pairing is called dual fuel: the heat pump cools and handles mild winter days, and the furnace takes over in hard cold. Ask contractors to quote it next to plain central AC if your furnace is healthy.
Why does the tool not show a rebate in the price?
Utility incentive terms change, and in the Oncor area they are paid through participating contractors rather than to you. The tool names your utility situation so you know what to ask, and leaves every published range untouched.
Does this tool tell me what to buy?
No. It shows which system types fit your answers and the published price range for each. A contractor visit and a Manual J load calculation decide the actual system and size.
Next step
Free quote request
Get a quote to check against these numbers
- Tell us about the job. Service, ZIP, property and timing. The form says right away if your ZIP is outside the area.
- We check the license first. Requests go only to contractors whose TDLR air conditioning license we have matched on the state register. None is signed yet: if no checked contractor covers your ZIP, we email you and say so.
- Compare what comes back. Line the written quotes up in the quote-comparison tool.
No cost and no obligation. We are a publisher, not a contractor. Partner contractors will pay us for introductions; none is signed yet. How that works.
Request AC installation quotes
Free and no obligation. We pass a request on only to a contractor whose TDLR license we have checked and who covers your ZIP.