Honeywell Home T9 Smart Thermostat wiring for heat pump, no c wire

The Honeywell Home T9 Smart Thermostat works with this setup, but you’ll need an adapter or extra wire (details below).

A heat pump with R, Y, G, O/B and AUX has a reversing valve and backup electric heat but no C wire. Heat pumps are exactly where smart thermostats get picky about power.

1Snap a photo of your old thermostat’s wires (optional)

AI reads the terminal letters and wire colors, then you double-check them. Photos are not saved.

2Tick every terminal that has a wire

Pull the faceplate off your old thermostat. Use the letter printed next to each wire, not its color. Skip short jumper wires between two terminals.

More labels (W3, X, X2, K, PEK, L, S, T, U, HUM, DEHUM)

3A few quick questions

Do you have a heat pump?

A heat pump is an outdoor unit that both heats and cools. Heat pump thermostats usually have an “EM HEAT” or “AUX” setting.

Do any of these apply?

4Your wiring

Your system: Heat pump, 1-stage compressor, 1-stage aux heat, fan, no C wire · 5 wires

Which smart thermostats work with your wires?

Honeywell Home T9 Smart Thermostat

Works with an adapter
No C wire: install a Honeywell wire saver at the furnace. It frees up a wire to become C, with the Y wire moving to K.
Wires from the wallHoneywell T9Rred · 24 V powerRYyellow · Cooling, stage 1KGgreen · FanCO/Borange · Reversing valve (O/B)O/BAUXwhite · Auxiliary heatW2 / Aux
WireColorJobConnect toNote
Rred24 V powerR
YyellowCooling, stage 1KAdapter carries cooling + fan on this wire
GgreenFanCMoves to C with the adapter
O/BorangeReversing valve (O/B)O/B
AUXwhiteAuxiliary heatW2 / Aux

Install steps

  1. Turn off power to the furnace/air handler (switch or breaker) and the AC condenser. Confirm the old thermostat is dead.
  2. Photograph the old wiring, then label each wire with the letter it came off. Ignore short jumpers.
  3. Install the adapter at your furnace or air handler following its instructions, with power still off.
  4. Connect each wire to the Honeywell T9 terminal shown above. Cap unused wires one at a time.
  5. Restore power and finish setup in the app using the settings below.
  6. Test heat, cool and fan. If a breaker trips or equipment runs nonstop, power off and call a pro.

App settings to choose

  • Reversing valve (O/B): set to O or B (O for most brands; B for Rheem, Ruud and some others).
  • Equipment type: heat pump with auxiliary (electric strip) heat.

What you need

  • Honeywell Home T9 Smart ThermostatThe thermostat itselfCheck price
  • Honeywell Home wire saver moduleCreates a C wire from 4 wiresCheck price

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Confirm against the official Honeywell Home install guide. The app also checks your wiring during setup.

Frequently asked questions

Where does each wire go on the Honeywell T9?

R → R; Y → K; G → C; O/B → O/B; AUX → W2 / Aux.

Do I need a C wire for the Honeywell T9?

No C wire: install a Honeywell wire saver at the furnace. It frees up a wire to become C, with the Y wire moving to K.

Other thermostats for this setup

Honeywell T9: other setups