Air conditioning decision help

Decide the right aircon path for your home.

We help people in UK homes work out whether portable cooling, a single-split, or a multi-split is the better fit. The calculator gives a rough size band, the install-cost ranges published on this page, and a plain running-cost illustration. Sharing an enquiry with installers is optional and capped at three. We are not an installer and we do not sell the equipment.

Use the calculator How it works

Not a quote. Not a survey. Not a booking.

A room in ordinary daylight, not a showroom. Caption hook for the hero photograph.

Who we are

LookBefore is a decision guide. We help you choose a cooling path before anyone tries to sell you a system. The install figures we are willing to publish sit in Methodology. They are national guide bands, not a price for your home.

  • Portable

    A unit you buy and wheel in. Nothing is fixed to the wall. This is the usual option if you rent, if you need cooling this week, or if you want to try one room before a survey.

  • Single-split

    One indoor unit and one outdoor unit, supplied and fitted to the building. This is the usual fitted path for a single room once a portable is not enough. An F-Gas installer does the work. We are not that installer.

  • Multi-split

    More than one indoor unit, usually sharing one outdoor unit. This is the conversation for two rooms, or for three to four. Two separate single-splits are sometimes simpler. The installer should say which.

If you opt in, the service is designed to share your enquiry and contact details with up to three local installers so they can contact you about a quote. That intro is not exclusive to one firm. It is not an approved, accredited, or exclusive network. You can ignore anyone you do not want to speak to.

What we are not: we do not fit equipment, we do not sell the units, and we are not F-Gas or REFCOM certified. Certification is a question for the person who handles the refrigerant. We do not offer a guaranteed or fixed quote. We do not claim MCS or Boiler Upgrade Scheme support for air conditioning.

Someone at home on a hot afternoon. Caption hook for home comfort.
Where an outdoor unit actually sits, pipework included. Caption hook for the outdoor unit.
A survey visit, not a sales handshake. Caption hook for the installer visit.

How it works

Four steps. The guide is not a formal quote and it does not commit you to buy. You can stop after the calculator.

  1. Answer a few questions

    Rooms, a rough floor area, the floor, glass, whether a portable has already disappointed you, who can authorise the work, an outward postcode, and your timeline.

  2. Read the guide

    You get a size band, the install-cost band that matches the path, a running-cost illustration with the assumptions written out, and questions to take to an F-Gas installer.

  3. Decide if anyone may contact you

    The enquiry form stays off until you tick consent. If you do not tick it, we do not take the enquiry.

  4. Up to three installers, only if you opt in

    If you consent, LookBefore receives the enquiry and may pass it to up to three local installers. They may contact you. You can say no. Sending does not book a visit and does not assign an installer.

Decision calculator

Portable, single-split, or multi-split. Every question is required, except floor area if you tick that you do not know it. The result is a range. The cost figures are the bands in Methodology.

How many separate rooms do you want cooled? Count closed-door rooms, not open-plan zones as one each.

Length × width of the main room(s). A typical UK double bedroom is about 12–15 m²; a living room often 15–25 m². Estimate is fine.

Ground, first, second, loft conversion, or basement. Affects noise, pipe runs, and outdoor-unit options — not a formal survey.

South-facing glass?

Large windows or patio doors that get strong afternoon sun. Yes usually means a higher cooling band.

Loft or flat roof room?

Rooms under the roof or with poor insulation often need more capacity than a mid-floor room of the same size.

Have you already tried a portable unit?

Yes / No. Helps us show when a fitted system is usually the better step-up on noise and running cost.

Owner-occupier, landlord, or tenant. Tenants usually need landlord permission before a fixed install.

Outward code is enough (for example SW19 or B1). Used for rough install-cost geography and, with consent later, matching local installers.

This week / before next summer / just researching. Helps set expectations — fitted installs are not usually same-day.

Your guide

Your guide will appear here after you answer the questions. It will be a range, not a quote.

What happens after you enquire

The form is optional. The calculator works without it.

  1. If you do not tick consent, we do not take the enquiry. The button stays off.
  2. If you do tick consent, you agree that LookBefore may share your enquiry and contact details with up to three local air conditioning installers so they can contact you about a quote.
  3. You can ask LookBefore to stop sharing by emailing privacy@lookbefore.co.uk. You can ignore any installer you do not want to speak to. Nothing here books a survey or commits you to buy.
  4. Sending records the enquiry for LookBefore. It does not assign an installer and it does not book a visit.

Installers who later receive your details would not get a fixed price from this page, and three replies are not promised. Their own privacy notices cover what they do with your details after that.

Ask an F-Gas installer

Take these seven points to the visit. LookBefore is not the installer and is not F-Gas certified.

  • Outdoor unit site
  • Pipe run
  • Condensate
  • Noise for neighbours
  • Electrical capacity
  • Warranty
  • What the quote includes (commissioning certificate)

Methodology

How the guide gets to a band, and the only cost figures it is allowed to use. Refreshed 22 Sep 2026.

The figures load with the page. If this sentence is all you see, the script did not run.

Questions people actually ask

Are you an air conditioning installer?

No. LookBefore helps you decide which path to look at. We do not fit systems and we do not sell the equipment. An installer intro, later, is optional and only happens if you consent.

Are LookBefore or this website F-Gas or REFCOM certified?

No. We are not certified to handle refrigerant and we do not claim REFCOM approval. If you want a fitted split system, ask the installer to show their own F-Gas certification. The checklist asks what the quote includes, including the commissioning certificate.

Is the calculator a quote?

No. It shows ranges: a rough cooling band, the install-cost bands in the methodology, and an illustration of running cost. It is not a fixed price, not a guaranteed quote, and not a survey.

Will you send my details to lots of companies?

Only if you tick consent. The agreement is that we may share your enquiry with up to three local installers. It is not exclusive to one firm, and it is not an approved network. You can ask us to stop by emailing privacy@lookbefore.co.uk. Sending the form records that consent. It does not book a visit.

Can I get a grant? Is aircon covered by MCS or the Boiler Upgrade Scheme?

We do not claim MCS or Boiler Upgrade Scheme support for air conditioning. Using this calculator is not an application for a grant, and we do not suggest you should expect one.

I rent. Can I have a split system?

A portable is usually the option you can buy yourself. A single-split or multi-split is fixed to the building, so you need the owner’s agreement in writing. The calculator will not mark a tenant enquiry as ready for fitted quotes.

How long do you keep an enquiry?

Enquiry records are kept for up to 24 months from last contact, then deleted or anonymised. We honour earlier deletion requests. Email privacy@lookbefore.co.uk to ask what we hold or to opt out of further contact from us.

Why isn’t there one exact BTU, or a savings figure?

A single BTU would pretend we had surveyed the room. A savings percentage would be a number we made up. The band is wide on purpose. Your bill depends on your tariff, the weather, and how often the unit actually runs. We do not turn your postcode into a labour price either.

Leave your details

Optional. Tick consent if you want LookBefore to be able to share this enquiry with up to three local installers. Until you tick it, the button stays off. Read what happens after you enquire and the privacy note first.

Tick consent, then send. LookBefore receives the enquiry and may share it with up to three local installers. Nothing is booked.

An email address, or a phone number we can read back.

A full postcode or an outward code, such as B15 2TT or SW1A.

For example: one bedroom, or the summary copied from the calculator.

Enquiry records are kept for up to 24 months from last contact, then deleted or anonymised. privacy@lookbefore.co.uk

Privacy

We collect the details you enter (such as postcode, ownership, rooms or system interest, timeline, and contact details) so we can give you a guide result and, if you consent, pass your enquiry to matched local installers. We use this information for that purpose and to improve the tool. We keep enquiry records for up to 24 months from last contact, then delete or anonymise; we honour earlier deletion requests. To ask what we hold, or to opt out of further contact from us, email privacy@lookbefore.co.uk. Installers who receive your details are responsible for how they use them under their own privacy notices.

LookBefore is operated by Friskk Ltd (company number 09478908). The registered office is in the footer of this page.