PVC or aluminium apertures in Malta? An honest comparison

Most people asking this question in Malta have already had two quotes that do not resemble each other, and are trying to work out whether the difference is the material, the glazing, the fitting or the salesman. This piece sticks to what is actually published and says plainly where nothing is.

Heat: the thermal break is the dividing line

Aluminium is a metal, and a plain aluminium frame carries heat straight through itself from the outside face to the inside face. The industry answer is a thermal break — an insulating barrier inside the profile separating the two halves. The Maltese price guide treats this as the main split in the aluminium market: non-thermal double-glazed aluminium windows at EUR 200-450 per square metre supplied and fitted, thermal-break at EUR 350-700 per square metre. That gap is the cost of the break.

PVC does not need the equivalent because the frame material itself is not a metal conductor.

What nobody publishes — and what we are not going to invent — is how any of this translates into a figure on your Enemalta bill. We make no energy-saving or payback claim.

The one hard number worth knowing is the grant threshold. The REWS Roof Insulation and Double Glazing (Retrofitting only) scheme requires a final U-value of 3.7 W/m2K or better. That applies whatever the frame is made of. A thermal-break aluminium window and a PVC window are judged on the same number, and neither price list above tells you which products reach it. The retailer provides the manufacturer's certificate; the installer certifies the gap.

Frame size, big sliders and aperture sizes

Aluminium's structural advantage shows up at the top end of the size range. Large sliding openings onto a terrace or a roof are where it dominates in Malta, and the published guide puts a typical two-panel sliding patio door at EUR 700-2,000, a spread wide enough to cover almost any specification. Fly screens are quoted separately at EUR 40-120 per opening and integrated roller shutters at EUR 250-700 per opening — worth noting, because a quote that bundles them and one that does not will never match.

PVC's published offering here is the opposite end: ready-made standard sizes in white, double-glazed tilt and turn, delivered. That suits a bedroom or bathroom opening that happens to match a stock size. Maltese openings frequently do not, because the aperture was formed when the shell was built.

Sea air, finishes and hardware

Everyone in Malta knows the coastal problem, and the sources do not quantify it, so we will not pretend to. What we will say from the quoting side is that on a seafront or a roof facing open water, the question is rarely the frame material and almost always the finish and the hardware — the coating specification on aluminium, and the grade of hinges, handles, rollers and locks on either material. Those are line items that a cheap quote tends to leave unspecified. Ask for them in writing.

Maintenance and the look on a traditional façade

PVC in white is what the published range covers; anything else is a special order. Aluminium is powder coated, and the colour and finish are part of the spec rather than an afterthought.

The planning point matters more than either. Under Schedule I Class 1(ii) of the Development Notification Order (S.L. 552.08), replacing apertures and security elements on windows, doors, balconies — including timber balconies — and gates is permitted development, with no notification required, and that applies even in scheduled buildings and buildings of conservation value. The condition is that the works must not materially alter the character and/or context of the building and its surroundings.

There is a second, harder rule. In scheduled buildings or buildings of conservation value, original wooden apertures, balconies and wrought iron that form part of the historic character and are restorable shall be retained and restored and shall not be replaced. Not "preferably". And under Article 2(4)(d), where opinions differ, the Authority's opinion prevails. If you have a townhouse in Valletta, Mdina, the Three Cities or a village core, that paragraph decides the material question before any salesman does.

The published prices, and what they are not

The aluminium figures are described by their publisher as market estimates and do not state whether VAT is included. The PVC figures are a retail supply-only list. There is no published fitted price for PVC in Malta and no published price for a double-glazed unit on its own. Those are quoted after the measure-up, and anyone giving you a per-square-metre PVC figure over the phone is guessing.

The REWS grant, whichever material you pick

The retrofitting scheme pays 50% of eligible cost including VAT, capped at EUR 1,000 for double glazing, and has been extended to 31 December 2026 by GN 2031/2025. Things that catch people out:

1. Part A goes in before you buy. You apply online, wait for the funds confirmation letter, and only then purchase. Receipts dated before approval do not count.
2. It is first come, first served. Whether funds remain is not something we can verify.
3. The product and the retailer must be registered with REWS.
4. The grant is valid six months from the funds confirmation letter — fit inside that window.
5. The applicant must be a resident aged 18+, freehold owner or a lessee with more than five years left with the owner's consent, and the property must be used principally as their own private residence. Landlords, business use and developers are excluded.
6. Part B needs fiscal receipts and invoices, before and after photos, a PA permit where needed, a 5-year guarantee, a completion certificate and a residential electricity bill. The system must stay in place for five years.
7. Extended warranties, plastering and decorating, and permit or certification costs are not eligible.

There is no EPC and no property-age requirement. We cannot tell you that you qualify — read the guidelines, or ask us to walk through them at the survey. Budget 2027 is due on 26 October 2026 and may change the position.

Three other schemes that come up in searches are closed: the Birżebbuġa 2024 scheme, BCA Irrinova Darek 2026 and PA Irrestawra Darek 2026.

Apartments, shell form and Gozo

Much Maltese property is sold in shell form, so the first set of apertures is often part of the finishing budget rather than a replacement — which means openings are whatever the shell gave you, and stock sizes rarely land. In apartments, condominium rules bind works to the common façade, and that is a conversation to have before ordering, not after. For Gozo, every delivery crosses on the ferry, and large glazed panels are handled accordingly.

How the work gets done

Every job is surveyed and measured by us. It is then delivered either by us as contractor, using CheckYourTraders-verified installers, or by a vetted partner who contracts with you directly. You will be told which before you commit, and who is responsible for what.

More detail by material: PVC apertures and aluminium apertures.