[Xarodon]

I think our misunderstanding comes from different meanings of the word efficient (or applying it in different contexts). I think the more accurate word you're looking for economical. Heat pumps for heating may be 5x more economical (use less energy overall, but they aren't as efficient with it), but resistance heating is 100% efficient (if we look at the efficiency after the electricity has left the socket, all that energy turns into heat inside your house; 100% efficient.)

And while heat pumps are transferring energy, there is loss due to inefficiencies. If you're trying to transfer heat from inside to outside, especially when outside is hotter than inside (like in almost every AC scenario), you need to spend energy to compress a refrigerant, cool it, move it inside (meanwhile it's gaining heat during the entire transfer process) and then use it. Also, components like the compressor and radiator fan aren't 100% efficient, and will be giving off heat.

[jhayward]

Well, I suppose you can invent your own language, but that is no where near the industrial or scientific use of the term "energy efficiency".

A heat pump will consume 1/5th the electricity to maintain a given room temperature as compared to resistive heating, including all system losses outdoors.

That is how energy efficiency is defined. Energy consumed to create the outcome vs an alternative.

[Xarodon]

What I wrote isn't hard to understand, I'm sure you understand what I'm getting at.

If you want to be obtuse, be my guest.

P.S - I should've just used "efficiency", that is the correct word, not "energy efficiency"

[SigmundA]

You may be technically correct, but just barely, all of the energy put into a heat pump is turned into heat, not only does it move heat it also adds it own and that conversion is 100% efficient. Now a 100% of heat generated by the compressor may not make it into the space being heated but most of it is along with a bunch it pulled from the outside environment.

Honestly you are the one being obtuse. Efficiency can be measured many ways, but in the case of heating and cooling I think everyone would agree the efficiency that actually matters is energy efficiency for both economic and environmental reasons.