Integration of the variable refrigerant flow (VRF) and heat pump desiccant (HPD) systems was investigated in a field performance test for a heating season. The HPD systems use only the moisture in the outdoor air and return air to humidify the indoors during ventilation in the heating season. Three different operating modes: non-ventilated, HPD ventilation assisted and HPD ventilation-humidification assisted VRF systems were investigated. It was found that the VRF systems provided an average of 93.5% of the total heating energy for the HPD ventilation assisted mode. The remainder was the recovered heat by the HPD systems during ventilation. The VRF systems provided an average of 46.8% of the total heating energy for the HPD ventilation-humidification assisted mode. The remainder was covered by the HPD systems which provided additional sensible and latent heating. Overall, among the three operating modes, it is concluded that the HPD ventilation-humidification assisted VRF outdoor units consume less energy than the HPD ventilation assisted ones (about the same energy as the non-ventilated ones), while providing the best indoor thermal comfort and indoor quality conditions. For the total system, the HPD ventilation-humidification assisted VRF systems consume less energy than the HPD ventilation assisted ones. (c) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.