The European Air Conditioning Buyer's Pack (2026)
An 8-chapter pack you read online or print, with sizing, running-cost and quote spreadsheets, for households in Europe choosing air conditioning in 2026: one room or a whole flat, owner or tenant.
- 8chapters
- 19worksheets and tables
- 37checklist items
- 5official sources cited
Checked before every release
- 54automated testsrun at every release: prices, links, pages and data checked before publication.
- 5primary sourcesevery rule and number linked to the official text, for you to open.
- October 17, 2026editionrules and numbers checked on this date, updated when a text changes.
Built from the texts and data of Commission européenne (Eurostat), EUR-Lex.
Whether you are looking at a portable for a rented bedroom or a multi-split for a flat, the money and the regrets are decided before the purchase: the right category for the building, the right size, the label read properly, the real cost of a summer on your own tariff, the consent of the building and a quote you can compare. This pack is the working file for those decisions.
Every rule is quoted with its official source (Eurostat, EUR-Lex regulations, the European Commission) so you can check it yourself. We do not install, sell air conditioners or recommend installers: the pack is on your side of the table.
€29
Get the pack, €29Read chapter 1 free- 8 chapters (about 4,800 words): which machine for which room, kW sizing, the EU label and F-gas dates, running cost, permission, installers and quotes, installation day, settings and upkeep
- 19 worksheets and reference tables, including household electricity prices for 29 countries (Eurostat) and a three-quote comparison sheet
- Two spreadsheets (CSV: Excel, Numbers, Google Sheets): room sizing with running cost, and the quote comparison
Instant access: right after payment your pack page opens in your browser; print it or save it as a PDF. €29 is the total, VAT included, paid once, no subscription.
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What you get
- The choice for each room: single-duct portable, wall monobloc with no outdoor unit, single split, multi-split or reversible heat pump, compared on what each needs from the building, noise, efficiency and use.
- Sizing in kW: the heat-gain classes, the corrections for high ceilings, people and equipment, and a room-by-room worksheet.
- The EU energy label class by class (Regulation 626/2011), the legal minimum (206/2012) and the F-gas dates that matter for a buyer (2025, 2027, 2029, 2035).
- What a summer costs in each of 29 countries, from Eurostat household electricity prices, and the one-line formula to do it with your own bill.
- Permission: the building, the landlord, the municipality, the noise checks, and a request letter you can adapt.
- Twelve questions for every installer, indicative installed ranges, a three-quote comparison sheet and the red flags.
- Installation-day and commissioning checklists, the document file, the remote-control modes decoded and an upkeep calendar.
Free guides or the pack
The free articles answer one question at a time. The pack puts the whole purchase in order and gives you the sheets to fill in.
Free guides
€0
56 free articles
- ✓The rules explained, official sources cited
- —Every decision in order, from the right type of unit to installation day
- —19 worksheets and reference tables
- —Spreadsheet ready to fill in
- —Print it or keep it as a PDF
Buyer's pack
€29
VAT included, paid once
- ✓The rules explained, official sources cited
- ✓Every decision in order, from the right type of unit to installation day
- ✓19 worksheets and reference tables
- ✓Spreadsheet ready to fill in
- ✓Print it or keep it as a PDF
As described, or refunded in full
In pictures
Illustrative photos, published by their authors under free licences.
Who it is for
- Households in the EU, the EEA, Switzerland or the UK about to buy a first air conditioner, a portable, a wall monobloc or a split, for one room or a whole flat
- Tenants and co-owners who need to know what they are allowed to install and how to ask the landlord or the building
- Anyone holding installer quotes who wants to compare them on the same basis before signing
Contents
- Which machine for which room free below
- Sizing each room in kW
- The EU label and the refrigerant rules
- What a summer will cost you: real electricity prices
- Permission: the building, the landlord, the municipality
- Installers and quotes: what to ask, how to compare
- Installation day and commissioning
- Running it well: settings, modes and upkeep
- Sources
In the paid chapters: 33 checklist items, and 19 worksheets or reference tables across the pack, each built on the official rule or data it cites.
Introduction
This pack is the working file for a cooling purchase in Europe. The free guides on Claude AC explain the rules one topic at a time; this document puts them in the order you need them, with worksheets to fill in: which machine suits each room, how many kilowatts, what the label really says, what a summer will cost on your own electricity bill, who has to agree before anything is drilled, and how to read and compare installer quotes.
How to use it: print it (Ctrl+P or Cmd+P, then "Save as PDF", or print on paper) and keep it with your quotes. A spreadsheet version of the sizing, running-cost and quote worksheets is on your access page. Start with chapter 1: it tells you which machine to look at and which chapters matter for you.
The figures quoted are official: electricity prices from Eurostat (dataset nrg_pc_204, second half of 2025, read on October 17, 2026), efficiency classes from Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) No 626/2011, minimum performance from Commission Regulation (EU) No 206/2012, and refrigerant dates from Regulation (EU) 2024/573 as summarised by the European Commission. Every chapter names its source so you can read it yourself. Price ranges for equipment and installation are indicative market ranges, stated as such.
Chapter 1: Which machine for which room
Most cooling regrets in Europe come from buying the wrong category, not the wrong brand. The building, the tenancy and the room decide the category; the brand comes last.
The five options, side by side
| Single-duct portable | Wall monobloc (no outdoor unit) | Single split | Multi-split | Air-to-air heat pump (reversible split) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| What it needs from the building | A window opening and a socket | Two wall bores (about 160 to 200 mm) and two grilles | One outdoor unit position and one small wall bore | One outdoor unit for several rooms | Same as a split |
| Refrigerant circuit opened on site? | No | No | Yes: certified installer required | Yes: certified installer required | Yes: certified installer required |
| Label metric | EER (full load) | EER (full load) | SEER and SCOP (seasonal) | SEER and SCOP | SEER and SCOP |
| Typical capacity per unit | About 2 to 3.5 kW | About 2 to 3.5 kW | 2 to 7 kW | Several indoor heads | 2 to 7 kW |
| Noise in the room | Highest: the compressor is in the room | Compressor in the room, quieter models exist | Lowest: the compressor is outside | Lowest | Lowest |
| Electricity for the same cooling | Highest | About double a good split | Lowest | Lowest | Lowest |
| Typical reason to choose it | Renting, short use, no consent possible | Consent refused for an outdoor unit, one room used every summer | One room, consent available | Two rooms or more | Heating in winter matters as much as cooling |
The efficiency gap is not marketing. A single-duct portable takes the air it uses to cool its condenser from the room and blows it outside, so the room is put under slight negative pressure and warm outdoor air leaks back in through every gap. The EU label reflects this: portables and monoblocs are rated on a full-load EER and their class scale is different from the seasonal SEER scale of splits (chapter 3).
The decision in six questions
- Do you own the wall the machine would go through? In a flat, the façade and the walls are usually common property: an outdoor unit or a wall bore needs the building's consent (chapter 5). If the answer is "no, and the building will not agree", your choice is between a portable and a fully reversible window solution, not a split.
- Are you a tenant? A split or a monobloc is a change to the dwelling and needs the landlord's written agreement. A portable needs nothing but a window.
- How many rooms? One room: single split or monobloc. Two rooms or more: price a multi-split as one job, because the outdoor unit, the electrical supply and the installer's visit are paid once.
- How many hours a year? Two weeks a year in a rented studio: the portable is rational. Every summer, every night, in a bedroom: the running-cost and noise gap of chapter 4 makes a split or a monobloc worth the trouble.
- Is it a bedroom? The compressor of a portable or a monobloc sits in the room. Read the indoor sound power on the label before anything else.
- Do you also need heating? In most of Europe a reversible split is an air-to-air heat pump. If you heat with electric radiators today, its heating performance (SCOP) may matter more to your bills than its cooling.
Your room list (fill in)
| Room | Floor area (m²) | Ceiling height (m) | Floor (top floor under the roof?) | Main window orientation | External shading (shutters, awning) | Hours of use per summer (estimate) | Category chosen |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Before you go further
- I know whether I need the building's or the landlord's consent (chapter 5)
- I know which category I am pricing for each room
- I have checked what external shading and night ventilation can do first: removing heat costs nothing to run
- I have my latest electricity bill at hand for chapter 4 (price per kWh, all taxes included)
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Sources you can check
5 official sources cited in this pack. We install nothing and sell no equipment. Terms of sale.
Frequently asked questions
What does the pack contain that the free guides do not?
The free guides answer one question each. The pack puts the decisions in order and turns them into worksheets you fill in: a room list, a kW sizing sheet, a running-cost calculation with the Eurostat price of your country, a consent tracker, twelve installer questions, a three-quote comparison sheet and the installation-day checks, plus two spreadsheets.
How do I receive the pack?
Right after payment you are taken to your pack page, with the two spreadsheets to download. Bookmark it: the link stays valid and always shows the latest version. To keep a copy, print it or save it as a PDF from your browser (Ctrl+P or Cmd+P, then “Save as PDF”). Stripe emails you the receipt.
Is VAT included? Is it a subscription?
€29 is the total you pay, VAT included, once. There is no subscription and nothing is charged later. You pay on Stripe’s secure checkout page; your card details go to Stripe and never reach us.
Does it apply in my country?
The EU rules it explains (energy label, ecodesign minimum, F-gas Regulation) apply in every EU member state, and electricity prices are given for the 27 member states, Norway and Liechtenstein. Permission procedures, noise limits and subsidies are national or local: the pack tells you who to ask and what to ask, not your municipality’s exact rule. UK readers can use everything except the Eurostat price table, with their own unit rate.
Do you recommend brands or installers?
No. Claude AC is an independent information publisher: we do not install, sell air conditioners or take commissions from installers. The pack helps you compare what you are offered; your certified installer designs and commissions the system.
What is the guarantee?
The pack is guaranteed as described: if it does not open or contains an error, we fix it, and if we cannot, we refund you in full (refund policy in the terms of sale). A duplicate payment is always refunded.
Free guides on the same topics
- The EU energy label for air conditioners, read properly
- Portable vs split in Europe: renting, rules and the real math
- AC noise rules in Europe: keeping the neighbours (and the law) calm
- What air conditioning really costs to run in Europe
- Sizing an air conditioner in kW for a European home
- What it costs to install air conditioning in Europe
- Permission to install air conditioning in Europe: who has to say yes
- What temperature to set your air conditioner to, and what each degree costs
- Grants for air conditioning in Europe: what actually qualifies
- Air conditioning without an outdoor unit: the wall monobloc, honestly
- Installing air conditioning yourself in Europe: what the law allows
- Venting a portable air conditioner through a European window
- Air conditioner modes explained: every remote control symbol and setting
- Choosing an air conditioning installer in Europe, and reading the quote properly
€29 is the total you pay, VAT included: nothing is added at checkout. Payment by Stripe; your statement shows “CLAUDE AC”. See our terms of sale, which include our refund policy. Access is immediate after payment. Claude AC is an information publisher, not an installer; the pack is not legal, engineering or financial advice.