Steve rang me last month. Again. “Mate, you need to get underfloor heating.”
“You’ve told me this five times already.”
“Yeah, but my bathroom’s so warm now. No freezing tiles when I get out the shower.”
This is the sixth month of Steve banging on about his bathroom. But fair play, when I visited his place last week, I got it. Walking on warm tiles in December feels absolutely brilliant.
So I started asking around. How much does underfloor heating cost anyway? Turns out there’s no simple answer, which is typical.
Electric Or Water-Based
Two main types exist. Electric systems are simpler. Heating mats go under your floor, connect to the mains, and are sorted. Good for bathrooms and kitchens.
Water systems are more complicated. Pipes connect to your boiler, run under the floor, and heat everything properly. Better for big spaces or whole houses.
Steve went electric for his bathroom because it’s small and made sense. His brother did water pipes when building an extension. Different jobs need different kit.
What You’re Actually Paying
How much does underfloor heating cost Per M² right now? Electric runs about £40 to £90 per square metre with installation. Water systems are £85 to £130 per square metre.
Big range, I know. Location matters loads. London costs way more than Birmingham or Manchester. Labour in London hits £60 per hour sometimes. Up north you might pay £30 to £40.
Steve’s bathroom is 4 square metres. It cost him about £800 total because small spaces are fiddly. More cutting around toilets and sinks takes longer per metre.
His brother’s living room is 40 square metres. Worked out to about £95 per metre because the installer could just get on with it. Same quality, just easier work.
New Build Vs Ripping Up Your Floor
Installing this stuff during a build is dead easy. Nothing to rip up, no mess, just lay it down. Keeps costs at the lower end.
Retrofitting an existing room, though? Now that’s a whole different story. Pull up the old floor, level everything, possibly raise the floor height, and make a right mess. This pushes costs way up.
Steve’s bathroom was a retrofit. Had to remove all the old tiles, sort the subfloor, then tile it again. If he’d done it during a full renovation, he would’ve saved a few hundred quid.
Running Costs Matter More
Installation costs sting once. Running costs keep going forever.
How much underfloor heating costs to run depends on your setup. Electric links to your electricity rate, currently about 25p per kilowatt hour. Steve’s bathroom runs maybe 4 hours a day. It costs him about £10 monthly.
Water systems connected to gas boilers are way cheaper. His brother’s big living room costs maybe £30 monthly even running most days. Gas is cheaper than electric by miles.
How much does underfloor heating cost per hour for electric? Steve’s bathroom costs about 12p hourly. His brother’s living room on water heating runs about 26p per hour.
Steve only heats his bathroom mornings and evenings. Maybe 80p daily during winter. Less than he expected because it heats fast and he’s not leaving it on all day.
Single Room Breakdown
Want to know how much does underfloor heating costs for one room? Here’s what people are actually paying in 2025.
- Small bathroom (4 to 5 m²): £320 to £425 for electric, £400 to £550 for water
- Kitchen (12m²): £720 to £1,080 for electric, £1,140 to £1,560 for water
- Living room (20m²): £1,200 to £1,800 for electric, £1,900 to £2,600 for water
Steve’s bathroom sits right in that small bathroom price. His brother paid about £3,800 for 40 square metres of water heating in the extension. Painful upfront but the bills are lower now.
Daily Running Costs In Real Life
How much does underfloor heating cost per day when you actually use it? Steve’s bathroom costs under a quid daily. Morning shower, evening bath, and that’s it.
His brother’s living room runs most of the winter days because they work from home. Still only about £1.50 to £2 daily for a massive warm space. Beats blasting radiators constantly.
Smart thermostats help loads. Different temperatures for different rooms at different times. His brother cut about 25% off bills just by setting proper schedules.
Stuff Nobody Tells You
Insulation boards under the heating cost extra. Maybe £10 to £15 per square metre. But skip them and you’re heating the room below instead of yours. Steve’s installer insisted on this and he was right.
Floor type matters too. Tiles heat up fast. Carpet insulates, which sounds good but actually blocks the heat. You need higher temperatures, which costs more to run.
Steve nearly put carpet over his bathroom heating. Would’ve been mental. The installer talked him into tiles.
Comparing To Radiators
Radiators cost a few hundred quid fitted. Cheaper upfront, no question. But they heat rooms unevenly, take wall space, and can be less efficient overall.
Water underfloor heating beats radiators by 25% efficiency with boilers and 40% with heat pumps. That efficiency gap shrinks bills despite costing more to install.
Steve’s old radiator took half an hour to heat the bathroom. Now it’s warm in 15 minutes. He loves it.
London Vs Everyone Else
London prices are absolutely mental. The same system costing £90 per metre in Manchester might hit £140 in London. Labour, materials, and even parking charges add up.
The Midlands and North get better deals. Steve’s in Birmingham; his brother’s in Surrey. Same work, but Surrey cost 30% more.
Online Calculators
Loads of companies have underfloor heating cost calculators online. They’re alright for rough numbers but get proper quotes.
Steve tried three calculators. Got estimates from £600 to £1,200 for his bathroom. Actual quotes from fitters came in at £750 to £850.
Calculators can’t account for awkward layouts, dodgy existing floors, or access problems. Real quotes do.
Should You Bother?
After seeing Steve’s place and talking to his brother, yeah, I’m probably doing my bathroom next year.
It costs more upfront than a radiator; there’s no getting around that. But warm floors in winter are genuinely brilliant. No radiator eating wall space. Even heat that works properly.
Steve reckons he’d have paid double and still been happy. Coming from someone who moans about everything, that’s saying something.
When people ask how much underfloor heating costs, the answer’s complicated. Depends on room size, location, electric or water, new build or retrofit. But probably less than you’re worried about and more worth it than you’d think.
Just get proper quotes, think about long-term bills, and don’t cheap out on insulation. Warm floors are absolutely worth it according to everyone I know who’s got them.
Steve’s still banging on about his bathroom six months later. But honestly? I get it now.
