Homeowners are now asking ChatGPT which HVAC company to call. Meanwhile, half of contractors have not touched AI at all. That gap is an opening for the shops that move first, as long as they move carefully.
What the New Numbers Say
Homeowners Are Using AI to Choose Contractors
The ACHR NEWS released its third annual Homeowner Study on October 20, 2026. It surveyed 782 homeowners and 205 contractors. Thirty-seven percent of homeowners said they would use AI tools like ChatGPT to research HVAC contractor reviews. That beats Facebook at 35 percent and nearly ties Yelp at 38 percent. Google Business still leads at 54 percent.
In plain terms, AI is becoming part of how a homeowner decides who gets the service call.
Contractors Are Just Getting Started
The same study found that 50 percent of contractors do not use AI. Those who do mostly use it for follow-up messages (30 percent), scheduling and customer service (23 percent), and estimates (20 percent). Among users, 36 percent saw better efficiency and speed, and 31 percent saw a better customer experience. Only 9 percent reported problems.
ServiceTitan’s 2026 State of AI in the Trades report tells a similar story. Two-thirds of AI users save at least three hours a week. Yet fewer than half report higher profits, and 58 percent of contractors say they have little or no trust in AI.
Where Homeowners Draw the Line
Homeowners are not against AI. They are against losing the technician. The top concern, named by 36 percent, was the loss of human judgment and expertise. Comfort was highest for practical uses like equipment suggestions (41 percent), a first price estimate (40 percent), and scheduling or basic questions (36 percent).
Southern Home Services in Orlando gets this. Chief strategy officer Jarrod Brinker said the company chose not to automate “the relationship moments in the customer journey.” He also believes customers should always know when they are talking to AI.
Four Places to Put AI to Work Now
Follow-Up and Maintenance Reminders
This is the most common use for a reason. AI can draft reminder texts, maintenance alerts, and estimate follow-ups from your customer list. Keep a real person on the follow-up after a big repair or replacement.
Overflow Calls and Booking
A virtual agent can catch the calls your CSRs miss on a 100-degree Monday. Davis A/C & Heating in Houston spent about a month training its virtual agent on company procedures before going live. It now reports a 98 percent booking rate. Always give callers a quick way to reach a person.
Back-Office Paperwork
Look for manual data entry. Gulfshore Air Conditioning & Plumbing is testing AI invoice review that cut accounting time from about 30 minutes per invoice to 5 to 10 minutes.
Your Reputation in AI Search
If homeowners ask ChatGPT for a contractor, your reviews and website feed the answer. Ask for a review after every job and respond to each one. Make sure your website states your services, service area, and licenses in plain words.
Start Small and Supervise
Consultant Jenny Benbrook warns that AI is only as good as the data behind it. Clean up your field service software before you add AI on top. Pick one problem, test one tool for a few weeks while a person watches, and measure the result. Then decide whether to keep it.
Also decide how you will use the hours you save. Saved time only turns into profit when you put it toward more calls, more maintenance agreements, or better closing rates.
Your Next Step
Do not try to automate everything at once. This week, list every task your office repeats more than ten times a day. Circle the one that eats the most time. Test one AI tool on that task for 30 days with a person reviewing the work.
Then open ChatGPT and ask it to recommend an HVAC company in your town. If your name is missing, that is where you start. Reach out to All Contractor if you need help
Sources
- 36% of Homeowners Draw the Line at AI Replacing HVAC Expertise, The ACHR NEWS, October 20, 2026
- HVAC AI Adoption: How Contractors Can Improve Profitability and Build Trust, Contracting Business, October 23, 2026
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