Research and analysis
Comfort taking: evidence review
A rapid evidence assessment exploring ‘comfort taking’, where households choose to heat their home to a higher temperature following installation of a home decarbonisation measure.
Documents
Details
This report presents findings from an evidence review on ‘comfort taking’, a phenomenon that can occur following improvements to a home’s energy efficiency, in which the resident heats the home more than before the improvements.
The review aimed to:
- estimate the extent of comfort taking
- explore the types of households more likely to comfort take
- identify the drivers of comfort taking
- identify how to mitigate it where appropriate
DESNZ commissioned the review, which was carried out by London Economics.
Updates to this page
Published 11 March 2026