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Split systems vs ducted:
run both numbers

Tell us how many rooms you actually cool and where you live. We'll price both paths, upfront and over 10 years.

Rooms you'd cool
Daily use in summer

Split vs ducted

Pick rooms, usage and city, both totals appear here.

What the model assumes

Upfront prices use your city's real installed ranges (midpoints): individual split systems room by room, versus a zoned ducted system sized to the room count. Running cost assumes splits only cool occupied rooms while ducted conditions the full zone set, summer usage across 90 days at your city's typical tariff, and 10 years of ownership with no price inflation, a deliberately conservative comparison.

The honest answer the industry doesn't love: for two or three rooms, splits nearly always win on total cost. Ducted earns its premium on whole-home coverage, aesthetics and resale, real value, but value you should price consciously.

Split vs ducted questions

Why do separate splits often beat ducted on running cost?
You only cool the rooms you're in. A zoned ducted system helps, but even zoned systems run one large compressor; three splits cooling three occupied rooms draw less than a 14kW ducted unit conditioning half the house. Over 10 years that gap compounds.
When does ducted clearly win?
Four or more rooms used daily, a home with good roof access, and owners who value invisible comfort and resale appeal. Per-room, ducted gets cheaper as the house gets bigger, and one system is one service bill, not four.
Can I mix the two?
Very common: ducted for the bedroom wing, a big split for the living zone (or vice versa). It often beats either pure option, ask installers to quote the hybrid when your layout splits naturally.

Get both quoted properly

We pass your room count along, ask installers to price the split path and the ducted path.

What do you need quoted?

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