[api_or_ipa]

Why wouldn’t running a heat pump in reverse to heat a room be ~same energy as running it in forward to cool a room?

I suspect you’re comparing an airconditioner against a resistive heating unit.

[flightster]

Yes with heat pumps you're 100% correct but right now most of the US north does not use heat pumps to heat their house while the vast majority of the south US does use A/C which is way better per degree of temperature change than say heating oil which the vast majority of New England still uses.