Europe Is Battling Deadly Heat, Yet Only 20% Of Homes Have Air Conditioning: Here’s Why

Last Updated:June 25, 2026, 10:24 IST

As extreme heat overwhelms homes, schools and hospitals, Europe is being forced to confront its long reluctance to adopt cooling.

Europe is facing hotter, longer and more frequent heatwaves, but millions of homes across the continent still do not have air conditioning.

Nearly 90% of homes in the United States have AC, compared with around 20% in Europe, according to CNN. The figure rises to about 25% in France and 50% in Spain and Italy, the BBC reported.

For decades, Europeans largely managed summer heat with fans, shutters, cold showers and ice packs. But as temperatures approach 40 degrees Celsius, schools shut and hospitals struggle to function, the continent’s longstanding resistance to air conditioning is coming under increasing pressure.

The hesitation is not simply cultural. It is rooted in Europe’s climate history, ageing buildings, high energy costs, environmental policies and concerns that mass adoption of air conditioning could worsen the climate crisis.

Europe Historically Had Little Need For Air Conditioning

Air conditioning never became an essential feature of European homes because much of the continent, particularly northern Europe, did not historically experience sustained periods of extreme heat.

Heatwaves occurred, but they were generally less prolonged and severe than those now becoming increasingly common. Homes were therefore designed primarily to cope with cold winters rather than scorching summers.

“In Europe… we simply don’t have the tradition of air conditioning… because up to relatively recently, it hasn’t been a major need," Brian Motherway, head of the Office of Energy Efficiency and Inclusive Transitions at the International Energy Agency, told CNN.

This history also shaped public attitudes. Air conditioning was widely viewed as a luxury rather than a necessity, especially because installing and operating it could be expensive.

“We haven’t been in the habit … of thinking about how we stay cool in the summer. It really is a relatively recent phenomenon," Motherway said.

That assumption is now being tested as climate change drives temperatures higher and heatwaves arrive earlier in the year.

Europe’s Buildings Were Not Designed For Modern Heat

Architecture is another major reason air conditioning remains uncommon.

Many European buildings are old and were constructed before modern cooling systems became widespread. In England, for example, one in six homes was built before 1900, according to CNN.

Older properties can be more difficult to retrofit with central air conditioning. External condenser units may also face planning restrictions, particularly in protected neighbourhoods and historic buildings.

Richard Salmon, director of the UK-based Air Conditioning Company, told CNN that applications are often rejected “on the basis of the visual appearance of the outdoor condenser unit, especially in conservation areas or on listed buildings".

The situation is different in parts of southern Europe, where traditional homes were built to withstand heat. Thick walls, smaller windows and designs that improve airflow helped keep interiors cooler and reduced the perceived need for artificial cooling.

But even these buildings are being challenged by heatwaves that are more intense and last longer, particularly when temperatures remain high through the night.

High Electricity Costs Make AC Less Attractive

The cost of air conditioning has also slowed its adoption.

Energy prices in many European countries are higher than in the United States, while household incomes are often lower. That makes both installation and regular use expensive.

Even when residents can afford to buy an air-conditioning unit, running it continuously during a heatwave may be beyond their budget.

Portable units are increasingly being bought during periods of extreme heat because they can be installed quickly. In France, there has been a rush to purchase them as residents struggle to sleep in overheated apartments and schools attempt to keep classrooms usable.

Salmon said residential enquiries to his company had more than tripled over the past five years. “This heatwave in particular has sent things through the roof… People just can’t function when they’re boiling at 3 a.m.," he told CNN.

Europe Fears Air Conditioning Could Worsen Climate Change

Environmental concerns have played an equally important role in Europe’s reluctance to embrace air conditioning.

The European Union has pledged to become climate-neutral by 2050, and a rapid increase in cooling demand could make that target harder to achieve.

Air conditioners consume large amounts of electricity. In countries where power is still generated using fossil fuels, greater use of AC can increase greenhouse gas emissions.

Radhika Khosla, an associate professor at the University of Oxford’s Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, told CNN that fossil fuel-powered cooling can create “a vicious cycle of worsening climate change".

As temperatures rise, more people use air conditioning. That increases energy consumption and emissions, which contribute to further warming and even greater demand for cooling.

Air-conditioning systems also use refrigerant gases that can leak and act as powerful greenhouse gases.

There is another concern in densely populated cities: air conditioners cool indoor spaces by pushing heat outside.

A study cited by CNN found that widespread AC use in Paris could raise outdoor temperatures by around two to four degrees Celsius.

These concerns have shaped government policy. Spain introduced rules in 2022 requiring air conditioning in public places to be set no lower than 27 degrees Celsius in order to save energy.

Building and renovation policies in Europe have instead focused on insulation, greenery and ventilation systems intended to reduce the need for mechanical cooling.

France’s Resistance To Air Conditioning Is Weakening

France has become the centre of Europe’s changing debate over air conditioning.

The country has traditionally been sceptical of air conditioning, commonly called la clim in French. Environmental groups argued that it merely made the effects of global warming easier to tolerate without addressing its causes.

They also warned that air conditioning could distract from the need to reduce emissions while simultaneously increasing electricity use and urban heat.

But record temperatures, school closures and deteriorating conditions in hospitals are now forcing a rethink.

Thousands of French schools have had to shut during extreme heat, while medical and nursing staff have complained that conditions in hospitals and care facilities are becoming intolerable.

Marie Tondelier, head of France’s Ecologists party, broke with what she described as “anti-clim dogma" by acknowledging that air conditioning would now be necessary in some places. “There are places where we just can’t do without it now," she said, referring to schools and hospitals.

Valérie Pécresse, the conservative president of the Paris regional council, has also criticised what she called the state’s “anti-clim ideology". She wants all buses and trains in the Paris region to be equipped with air conditioning by 2032.

Is Europe Now Moving Towards More Air Conditioning?

Europe is already beginning to adopt more cooling systems.

The International Energy Agency has estimated that the number of air-conditioning units in the European Union could rise to 275 million by 2050, more than double the 2019 figure.

The issue is therefore no longer whether Europe will use more air conditioning, but how it can do so without sharply increasing energy demand and emissions.

“Our homes need to be resilient not just to the cold, but to the increasingly brutal heat," Yetunde Abdul, director at the UK Green Building Council, told CNN.

Experts argue that stronger efficiency rules will be crucial because every new unit can shape energy consumption for years.

About the Author

Karishma Jain

Karishma Jain, Chief Sub Editor at News18.com, writes and edits opinion pieces on a variety of subjects, including Indian politics and policy, culture and the arts, technology and social change. Follo...Read More

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