The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre has released a comprehensive set of country fiches examining heating and cooling patterns, building characteristics and the deployment of heat pumps across all 27 EU Member States. The publication compiles comparable information on residential energy use, technology choices and structural features of national building stocks, offering a consolidated view of the sector’s current situation.

Across the EU, heating and cooling represent a substantial share of household energy consumption, with notable differences between Member States depending on climate conditions, fuel availability and building age. The fiches show that a large proportion of Europe’s buildings were constructed before the introduction of modern energy performance requirements, which influences heating demand and the suitability of different technologies. Heating degree days and cooling degree days vary widely, shaping national patterns of energy use and technology uptake.

The analysis also highlights the role of heat pumps in the transition to cleaner heating. All fiches include information on heat pump stocks, sales trends and the relative share of gas boilers, as well as the potential energy and emission savings associated with replacing fossil‑fuel systems. While the level of market development differs across countries, the data confirm that heat pumps can reduce energy use and carbon emissions when compared with conventional boilers, with performance depending on building insulation, electricity‑gas price ratios and user behaviour.

Financial and structural factors also influence the pace of change. Several Member States provide subsidies for heat pump installation, and the fiches include information on operational cost ratios and electricity‑gas price dynamics. The publication situates these findings within the EU objective of doubling annual renovation rates by 2030, noting that efficient buildings and clean heating technologies are both essential for reducing emissions from the residential sector.