ECO4 ends on 31 December 2026, according to Ofgem's Energy Company Obligation page. March 2026 was the earlier end date, before the extension.

Was ECO4 extended past March 2026?

Yes. The ECO4 end date was previously March 2026 and the government extended it to 31 December 2026. Ofgem's ECO page gives the current date.

Can I still apply in late 2026?

The official end date is 31 December 2026, but surveys, paperwork and installer capacity need lead time. Waiting until the last weeks is risky, because capacity can tighten before the end date.

Will funding stop before 31 December 2026?

Possibly, in some areas. Installer capacity and supplier delivery plans can mean new work stops being accepted before the end date. We do not know of a published national early cut-off, so treat this as a capacity warning rather than a countdown.

Is there an ECO4 replacement scheme confirmed?

No direct ECO4 successor for free boilers is confirmed on the official pages. The live routes are ECO4 until 31 December 2026 and the Warm Homes: Local Grant, which is England only and run by local councils. The Warm Homes Plan is the government's wider programme that follows on from these schemes.

Does the deadline mean my boiler is guaranteed if I apply now?

No. Eligibility does not guarantee an installation. Funding sits with obligated suppliers after assessment. Contributions may apply.

Is the free boiler scheme the same as ECO4 ending?

Households often mean ECO4 when they say “free boiler scheme”. Our free boiler scheme guide explains it in plain English and our ECO4 scheme page covers how it works. This page explains what the 31 December 2026 end date means.

What should I do if I’m not on benefits?

Ask whether your council runs ECO4 Flex (LA Flex). Councils that opt in publish a Statement of Intent and can refer households who do not get a qualifying benefit, for example on a gross annual household income under £31,000 or a health condition made worse by a cold home. Our LA Flex guide explains the routes.

What other grants exist after ECO4?

The Warm Homes: Local Grant is the main live alternative in England. It is run by local councils for privately owned homes with an EPC of D to G, with £500m allocated for delivery from April 2025 to March 2028. Apply on GOV.UK and the council then contacts you. Do not assume a free boiler continues automatically after ECO4.

ECO4 deadline

10 min readLast updated: 2 October 2026

ECO4 Ends 31 December 2026: What the Deadline Means

Q: Is this ECO4 end-date guide official government information?

No. ApplyFreeBoiler.uk is run by Reliant Energy Solutions Ltd, an ECO4 heating and insulation installer. We are paid by the energy supplier for each installation we complete under ECO4, not by households. We are not government, Ofgem or a supplier.

ApplyFreeBoiler Team

Early disclosure

ECO4 ends on 31 December 2026. It was previously due to end in March 2026 before the extension. The urgency here is about lead time and local capacity, not invented scarcity. You should never pay a fee to apply.

On this page

Short answer: when does ECO4 end?
Completion vs stopping new applications
Why ads say “ending soon”
What ECO4 is (short)
What happens after ECO4?
Should you check eligibility now?
How ApplyFreeBoiler helps
FAQ

Short answer: when does ECO4 end?

ECO4 (Energy Company Obligation) ends on 31 December 2026. The end date was previously March 2026 and was extended by government. That date is the scheme end; surveys and installer capacity can mean new work stops sooner in practice. ECO is not a cash grant scheme, and eligibility does not guarantee a free boiler: a survey decides what can be funded.

End date: 31 December 2026, extended from the earlier March 2026 date.
Ofgem: ECO is not a cash grant scheme.
Eligibility ≠ guaranteed install; contributions may apply.

Sources: Ofgem Energy Company Obligation and GOV.UK ECO4 end-date outcome .

Completion deadline vs stopping new applications

The official end date is not a promise that you can start on 30 December and finish later in every case. Surveys, paperwork, and installs need lead time into winter and late 2026.

Installer capacity and supplier delivery plans can mean new work stops being accepted before the end date in some areas. Treat that as a capacity risk, not a published national cut-off.

Why ads say “ending soon” (and what is scammy)

A real deadline exists. Fake scarcity, “only X left in your postcode,” or fees to “release” an application are red flags. You should never pay to apply.

Trust triage: Is the free boiler grant a scam?.

What ECO4 is and who it is for

ECO4 is a Great Britain supplier obligation (Energy Company Obligation) administered by Ofgem. Obligated energy suppliers fund energy-efficiency measures for eligible households; Ofgem does not run a household cash-grant portal.

ECO4 targets the least efficient homes, generally EPC bands D to G, with separate rules for private rented and social housing. It takes a whole-house approach, so insulation (including cavity wall insulation) can be part of a package, and certain heating measures have minimum insulation preconditions. The detail is in Ofgem's ECO4 delivery guidance.

For private housing, the qualifying benefits under Help to Heat are:

Child Benefit (subject to an income threshold)
Housing Benefit
Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance
Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
Income Support
Pension Credit (Guarantee Credit or Savings Credit)
Universal Credit

Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit ended in April 2025 and are not qualifying benefits. Ofgem lists the current benefits on its homeowners and tenants page.

Plain-English guides: free boiler scheme · how ECO4 works.

What happens after ECO4?

No direct ECO4 successor for free boilers is confirmed on the official pages. The Great British Insulation Scheme has closed and no direct replacement is confirmed either. Once ECO4 ends, the live route is the Warm Homes: Local Grant: England only, run by local councils, and covering insulation, low-carbon heating such as heat pumps, solar panels and smart controls for privately owned homes (owner-occupied or private rented) with an EPC of D to G. Household income is usually £36,000 a year or less, or the home is in a qualifying low-income postcode, or someone gets certain means-tested benefits. £500m is allocated for delivery from April 2025 to March 2028.

You can apply on GOV.UK and the council then contacts you. The Warm Homes Plan is the government's wider programme that follows on from these schemes; read our Warm Homes Plan guide.

Also see: all grants · air source heat pump grant · LA Flex without benefits.

Should you check eligibility now?

Yes, if you may qualify. Installer capacity can tighten as winter and the December 2026 end date approach, and we make no “X grants left” claims.

Check your eligibility

Thinking about waiting until next year? ECO4 ends on 31 December 2026, so a free, no-obligation check now is the safer option. We'll be honest if you may not qualify.

Check eligibility How to apply

How ApplyFreeBoiler helps (and what we are not)

ApplyFreeBoiler.uk is run by Reliant Energy Solutions Ltd, an ECO4 heating and insulation installer. We are paid by the energy supplier for each installation we complete under ECO4. We are not paid by households. We are not government, Ofgem or a supplier, and a survey decides what is funded. See our editorial policy and about page. You can also contact an obligated supplier or your local authority directly.

FAQ

Remember

ECO4 ends 31 December 2026. Check now if you may qualify, without scam pressure.

Free eligibility check Free boiler scheme guide