HomeCostGuideNew Central Air Installation Cost (No Existing Ductwork)
Written and reviewed by the HomeCostGuide editorial team
Quick answer
$8k–$15kinstalled, including new ductwork
Installing central air in a home with no existing ductwork typically costs $8,000–$15,000, roughly 1.5 to 2x the cost of a straight AC replacement into ductwork that's already there. The difference comes almost entirely from adding ductwork itself — cutting chases through walls, floors, or ceilings, fabricating and running supply and return runs, and patching and finishing afterward. Older homes without existing ducts (common with houses originally built with radiators or window units) see the widest range, since duct routing complexity varies enormously by floor plan and construction type.
How this differs from a full ac replacement
This page covers new installation where no ductwork currently exists — a meaningfully different (and more expensive) project than a straight swap of an existing central air system. If your home already has ductwork and you're replacing an aging or failed unit, see the full AC replacement cost guide instead, which covers that more common scenario.
What's typically included
Included at this scope
- New ductwork design and installation
- Cutting and patching chases through walls, floors, or ceilings
- New central air unit and equipment
- Thermostat and electrical connection
Not included (see the full guide)
- Straight replacement into existing ductwork (see the full AC replacement cost guide)
- Ductless mini-split systems (see the ductless mini-split cost page)
- Whole-house electrical panel upgrades beyond what the new system requires
What affects the price
- Ductwork routing complexity
- A single-story home with open floor plans and an accessible attic or crawlspace routes ductwork far more cheaply than a multi-story home with finished ceilings and tight wall cavities.
- Home construction type
- Homes originally built with radiator heat or window units often have no existing chases at all, which pushes toward the high end of this range.
- Number of zones
- A single-zone system serving the whole home costs less than a multi-zone system with separate ductwork runs and dampers for different areas.
Frequently asked questions
Why does installing central air without existing ductwork cost so much more?+
Ductwork installation is a substantial construction project on its own — cutting chases, fabricating and running duct, then patching and finishing the resulting openings — on top of the AC equipment itself, which is why this scope runs roughly 1.5–2x a straight replacement into existing ducts.
Is a ductless mini-split cheaper than adding ductwork?+
Often, especially for a partial-home installation — see our ductless mini-split cost page. Ductless systems skip ductwork entirely, though they don't distribute air through the home the same way a ducted central system does.
Full guide
Cost ranges on this page are a narrower cut of our full AC Replacement Cost guide, which covers labor share, regional adjustment, resale value, financing, and sourcing in full. See it for the complete breakdown this page’s figures are drawn from.