This paper proposes a novel indirect-expansion solar-assisted multifunctional heat pump (IX-SAMHP) which integrates a domestic heat pump with a solar water heater. The IX-SAMHP can not only work in operation modes included in the two household appliances, but also operate in four new energy-saving operation modes for the space cooling, space heating and water heating. All operation modes have functioned successfully and can be switched to each other smoothly on a purpose-built experimental setup. Experiments of the heat pump water heating mode at outdoor air temperatures of 8 °C and 15 °C and the solar-assisted space heating mode at indoor air temperatures of 20 °C have been investigated in detail. Electric heaters were used to simulate solar radiation intensity in different weather conditions. The experimental results show that the IX-SAMHP can produce hot water with much less electric consumption in cloudy days compared with a solar water heater and can operate in much higher coefficient of performance than a domestic heat pump in cold winter. The IX-SAMHP is especially suitable for the regions abundant in solar radiation where the space heating, space cooling and water heating are required all the year round.