Replacing a 10 SEER, 3-ton unit with a 15.2 SEER2 unit saves about $300 a year at 8 full-load hours a day for six months and $0.17/kWh. Enter your own system, hours and rate below.
Hours are compressor full-load hours, not hours the thermostat is on. Defaults match the bill calculator.
| Current unit, yearly | — |
| New unit, yearly | — |
| Energy saved | — |
| Over 10 years | — |
| Simple payback | — |
DOE minimums for systems made or installed from January 1, 2023 (10 CFR 430.32). North is set by manufacture date; Southeast and Southwest by installation date.
| Equipment | North | Southeast | Southwest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Split AC, under 45,000 Btu/h (under ~3.75 tons) | 13.4 SEER2 | 14.3 SEER2 | 14.3 SEER2 + EER2 11.7 (9.8 if SEER2 ≥ 15.2) |
| Split AC, 45,000 Btu/h and up | 13.4 SEER2 | 13.8 SEER2 | 13.8 SEER2 + EER2 11.2 (9.8 if SEER2 ≥ 15.2) |
| Split heat pump | 14.3 SEER2 and 7.5 HSPF2 nationwide | ||
| Packaged AC | 13.4 SEER2 | 13.4 SEER2 | 13.4 SEER2 + EER2 10.6 |
| Packaged heat pump | 13.4 SEER2 and 6.7 HSPF2 nationwide | ||
Southeast: AL, AR, DE, FL, GA, HI, KY, LA, MD, MS, NC, OK, SC, TN, TX, VA, DC, Puerto Rico and US territories. Southwest: AZ, CA, NV, NM. North: all other states. For comparison, ENERGY STAR heat pumps need at least 15.2 SEER2.
| SEER2 | What it is | Yearly cost | Saving vs your current unit |
|---|
The only official side-by-side figures are the federal minimums. DOE replaced the 2015 SEER minimums with SEER2 minimums on January 1, 2023, measured with a new test procedure. These are the two tables from 10 CFR 430.32.
| Equipment | 2015–2022 minimum | From 2023 minimum |
|---|---|---|
| Split AC, North | 13 SEER | 13.4 SEER2 |
| Split AC, Southeast | 14 SEER | 14.3 SEER2 (13.8 for 45,000 Btu/h and up) |
| Split AC, Southwest | 14 SEER + EER 12.2 (11.7 for 45,000 Btu/h and up) | 14.3 SEER2 + EER2 11.7 (13.8 SEER2 + EER2 11.2 for 45,000 Btu/h and up; EER2 9.8 if SEER2 ≥ 15.2) |
| Split heat pump | 14 SEER, 8.2 HSPF | 14.3 SEER2, 7.5 HSPF2 |
| Packaged AC | 14 SEER | 13.4 SEER2 |
| Packaged heat pump | 14 SEER, 8.0 HSPF | 13.4 SEER2, 6.7 HSPF2 |
Do not read this table as a conversion chart. DOE set some new minimums to be stricter than before, not just restated. It says “some types of central air conditioners will have to be more efficient than previously required”. You can see it in the table: a packaged AC went from 14 SEER to 13.4 SEER2, while a split AC in the North went from 13 SEER to 13.4 SEER2. No single factor fits both. DOE’s own wording is that SEER2 ratings are “similar” to SEER ratings “but not directly comparable”.
Sources: 10 CFR 430.32(c); DOE 2023 CAC standards FAQ.
Not an official one. SEER2 comes from DOE’s newer test procedure (Appendix M1). DOE says SEER2 ratings are similar to SEER ratings but not directly comparable, and neither DOE nor AHRI publishes a conversion factor. Many websites multiply SEER by about 0.95; that is a rule of thumb, not an official figure.
How to compare an old unit with a new one honestly:
More detail in SEER vs SEER2 vs EER.
SEER2 is defined (AHRI 210/240) as the cooling delivered over a season in Btu divided by the electricity used in watt-hours. So yearly electricity ≈ yearly cooling (Btu) ÷ SEER2 ÷ 1,000, in kWh. Yearly cooling here is system size × 12,000 Btu/h × full-load hours.
Old SEER labels: units sold before 2023 were rated in SEER, which DOE says is measured differently and is not directly comparable with SEER2. There is no official conversion factor, so if you enter an old SEER figure the calculator uses it as-is and flags the result as approximate. Older units also tend to perform below their original rating, which this calculator does not add.
There is no official one. DOE says SEER and SEER2 are measured with different test procedures and are not directly comparable, and neither DOE nor AHRI publishes a conversion factor. The common ×0.95 figure is a rule of thumb. Compare each unit against the federal minimum of its era instead.
It depends on how much you run the system and your electricity rate. Yearly electricity is roughly yearly cooling divided by SEER2, so going from 14.3 to 17 SEER2 cuts cooling electricity by about 16% (1 − 14.3/17). The calculator turns that into dollars for your hours and rate.
Not officially. DOE says SEER2 is measured with a different test procedure and the two ratings are not directly comparable, and neither DOE nor AHRI publishes a conversion factor. Use the figure as a rough comparison.
For a split central AC it is 13.4 SEER2 in the North and 14.3 SEER2 (13.8 for 45,000 Btu/h and up) in the Southeast and Southwest, which also has EER2 minimums. Split heat pumps need 14.3 SEER2 and 7.5 HSPF2 everywhere (10 CFR 430.32).
Only if the yearly saving repays the price difference within a time you are comfortable with. Enter the extra cost of the more efficient unit to see the simple payback. Long cooling seasons and high rates pay back fastest.
There is no official conversion. 14.3 SEER2 is today’s federal minimum for a split heat pump and for a split AC in the Southeast and Southwest. Before 2023 the minimums for those same systems were 14 SEER (heat pump, and southern ACs). That is a comparison of minimums, not a conversion: DOE says the two ratings are not directly comparable.
They are the old and new federal minimums for a split AC in the North, so a new 13.4 SEER2 unit is the entry-level equivalent of an old 13 SEER unit. They are not the same number on the same scale: SEER2 is measured with a different test procedure.
Official sources only, checked October 2026.
actonnagecalc.com is not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the U.S. EPA, ENERGY STAR®, DOE or the ICC. Their publications are cited as sources.