HVAC Quotes HVAC Companies

One Request, Three Comparable Bids

Fill out one request and get matched with up to three top-rated HVAC companies working your area - no phone tag, no obligation, and your contact details go only to the matched companies. Each sends an estimator, each produces a written proposal, and the rest of this page teaches you to line those proposals up properly.

The Anatomy of a Complete HVAC Proposal

Equipment: model numbers, not brand names

A quotable proposal names exact outdoor and indoor model numbers - not a 3-ton high-efficiency system. Model numbers are how you verify tier, SEER2, staging, and whether two bids are even quoting the same class of machine.

Scope: what gets replaced, sealed, and tested

Line set, pad, electrical disconnect, thermostat, duct transitions, condensate handling, commissioning tests. Every one is either in the price or waiting to become a change order.

The exclusions section nobody reads

Code upgrades discovered during installation is the classic escape hatch. Ask each estimator what, specifically, might trigger it in your house - a good one will have looked.

Why Bids for the Same House Differ by Thousands

Three honest companies can produce three honestly different numbers: one quoted a code-minimum tier while another quoted variable-speed; one included $1,800 of duct sealing the second never inspected for; one carries the permit and disposal lines the third buried in fine print. The spread is information. The bid missing scope is cheap now and expensive later; fair market ranges tell you which end of the spread reflects reality.

Comparing Warranties: Parts, Labor, and the Gap Between

Manufacturer parts warranties run about 10 years registered - but parts warranties never cover labor, and labor is most of a repair invoice. The number that differentiates companies is the labor warranty: one year is thin, two to five signals a company that trusts its own installs. Confirm in writing who registers the equipment; unregistered systems quietly default to shorter terms.

The Site-Visit Test: Serious Bids Measure First

An estimator who quotes a replacement from the curb or the phone is guessing at the biggest purchase in your utility room. The serious ones go into the attic, look at the ductwork, check the electrical panel, measure rooms for a load calculation, and ask how the old system behaved. Fifteen-minute estimates produce change orders; ninety-minute estimates produce numbers that survive install day.

Normalizing Three Quotes: The Worksheet

Build an eight-row grid and force every proposal into it:

1. Outdoor and indoor equipment model numbers
2. Efficiency tier (SEER2 / AFUE) and staging
3. Ductwork scope and price
4. Electrical, thermostat, and code-upgrade lines
5. Permit and disposal included, yes or no
6. Commissioning tests promised, in writing
7. Parts warranty and who registers it
8. Labor warranty length

Ten minutes of filling boxes does what no gut feeling can: the padded bid shows its padding, and the cheap bid shows its holes.

Negotiation: What Flexes and What Should Not

Timing flexes - shoulder-season installs price better. Equipment tier flexes - a two-stage system instead of flagship variable-speed can close a budget gap honestly. Financing terms flex. What should never flex: the permit, the commissioning tests, insurance, or the labor warranty. A company that offers to drop the permit to hit your number has told you how it builds systems. It is fine to tell each company where the others landed - specifics, not bluffs - and let them respond on scope.

From Signed Proposal to Install Date

Expect a deposit between 10 and 30 percent, an equipment-availability check, and an install date measured in days to a few weeks by season. Before signing, run the finalists through the contractor vetting rules if you have not already - and start the whole thing from the top-rated HVAC companies, where the licensing and insurance screening is already done. Clear the work area, plan for six to ten hours of downtime, and keep the commissioning report with your warranty papers when the truck leaves.