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- 88°FA typical summer high
- 26°FA typical winter low
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Heat pump or gas furnace for a Spokane house?
Spokane winters are cold enough that the old heat pump reputation still lingers, and warm enough in summer that a heat pump's cooling is useful. The honest answer depends on your gas service, your ducts and how cold you want the backup to handle.
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NBy Nell Bradshaw, HVAC Guides Editor · Updated September 2026
Quick answerFor most Spokane homes with gas service, a dual-fuel system, a heat pump paired with a gas furnace, gives the lowest operating cost and reliable heat on nights that drop below zero. Homes without gas do well with a cold-climate heat pump plus electric backup. A standard heat pump alone is not a good fit here.
How cold Spokane actually gets
Over a typical year Spokane temperatures run from about 26 to 88 degrees and are rarely below 11 degrees. Severe winters can reach minus 10, and the city averages about 132 frosty nights a year. A heat pump has to be judged on those nights, not the average ones.
Standard heat pumps lose much of their capacity in the teens. Cold-climate models use variable-speed compressors that keep producing useful heat well below zero, which changes the calculation.
What a gas furnace does well
A gas furnace makes the same amount of heat at minus 10 as at 40 degrees, and it delivers hot air that feels warm at the registers. It is simple, reliable and familiar. On the downside, it does nothing for cooling, and it burns fuel every hour it runs.
What a heat pump does well
A heat pump moves heat rather than making it, so on a 35 degree day it can deliver far more heat per dollar than electric resistance and compete well with gas. It also cools in summer, replacing the air conditioner. The trade-offs are lower supply air temperature, which some people notice, and reduced output in deep cold.
A cold-climate heat pump sized from a load calculation narrows that gap, and a correctly set thermostat keeps backup heat from running when it is not needed.
Want both options priced for your house?
Call (509) 404-0016Why dual fuel fits Spokane
Dual fuel pairs a heat pump with a gas furnace. The heat pump carries fall, spring and milder winter days; the furnace takes over below a changeover temperature. You get efficient electric heat most of the season and gas heat on the coldest nights, with cooling in summer from the same heat pump.
For a house that already has a good furnace and an aging air conditioner, replacing the AC with a heat pump is often the lowest-risk way to start.
Installation costs to plan around
Cost data from 226 Spokane-area projects puts a typical heat pump installation around $5,198 to $6,838, with jobs ranging from about $2,739 to $9,863. Spokane furnace projects show the furnace unit at roughly $650 to $1,500 plus $1,800 to $4,000 in labor. The federal 25C efficiency tax credit ended after 2025, so check utility rebates instead. The furnace cost guide breaks the furnace side down further.
What happens on the coldest night
Every heat pump system in Spokane needs a plan for the coldest nights. In a dual-fuel system, the thermostat switches to the gas furnace below a set outdoor temperature. In an all-electric system, electric strips in the air handler add heat when the heat pump cannot keep up. The settings that control this, the changeover temperature and the auxiliary lockout, decide whether a heat pump saves money or quietly runs on expensive backup heat.
When our technicians install or service a heat pump, they set those values for the specific equipment and write them down, so the next person who opens the thermostat menu knows why they were chosen. Our thermostat setup covers the same settings on a new thermostat.
Which one fits your house
A few questions settle it quickly:
- Gas at the street and a furnace under 12 years old: add a heat pump in place of the AC for dual fuel.
- No gas service: cold-climate heat pump with electric backup, or ductless for homes without ducts.
- Old furnace and old AC: price a new furnace plus AC against a dual-fuel system.
- Baseboard heat: compare a ductless heat pump with a gas conversion.
More Spokane heating and cooling guides
Heat pump and furnace questions
Will a heat pump keep my house warm at minus 10?
A cold-climate model will produce some heat, but on the coldest nights backup heat or a gas furnace carries part of the load.
Is a heat pump cheaper to run than gas?
On mild days it often is. On very cold days gas usually wins, which is why dual fuel is common here.
Do I need new ducts for a heat pump?
Not if your ducts are sized well for the airflow. Some homes need a larger return.
Can I add a heat pump to my existing furnace?
Yes. That is a dual-fuel system, and it is usually the simplest upgrade.
What about ductless?
Ductless heat pumps suit homes without ducts, additions and rooms the main system does not reach.
Compare heat pump and furnace options for your home.
Call for a sizing visit in Spokane, WA.
