Free Solar Panels in Hawaii (2026): GEM$ Loans vs $0-Down

Key takeaways

Hawaii does not give away solar. The state says so itself. A “free” offer here is a $0-down lease, PPA or loan.
The real state help is low-cost, not free: GEM$ on-bill financing at a fixed 5.5% for up to 25 years, for Hawaiian Electric households under 140% of area median income.
The 35% state tax credit follows ownership. Worth up to $5,000 (the full amount on a typical system), it goes to the leasing company if you lease.
From tax year 2027, an income limit applies: no credit above $175,000 of adjusted gross income, or $350,000 on a joint return.
Export credits change by island and by hour, from 6.6 cents in the Maui daytime to 40.8 cents in the Lanai evening. Kauai has its own co-op rules.

About this review

Every Hawaii credit, export rate and loan term on this page was checked against the statute, utility, state agency or city source listed at the bottom, between September 30 and October 5, 2026. GEM$, the Honolulu loan and Solar for All were rechecked on October 5, 2026. This guide explains offers and programs; it is not tax, legal or financial advice.

How we choose sources and correct errors: editorial process and content standards.

Hawaii is one of the few states where a no-money-down solar offer is genuinely available, and also one where accepting one can cost you the most. A Hawaii system earns a 35% state tax credit worth up to $5,000, and it belongs to whoever owns the equipment. Sign a lease and you hand it to the company before your first bill arrives.

In March 2026 the state warned that door-to-door sellers were falsely claiming a state program gives away panels: “the state does not provide free solar PV systems.” What Hawaii offers is cheaper money for households that qualify.

GEM$: Hawaii’s low-cost solar loan, repaid on your power bill

The Hawaii Green Infrastructure Authority (HGIA), a state agency, lends for solar and batteries, repaid as a charge on your electric bill. It is a loan, not a grant. You apply through HGIA with a participating contractor, not through EcoGen.

HGIA: GEM$ On-Bill ProgramRun by the Hawaii Green Infrastructure Authority. Not offered on Kauai. Checked October 5, 2026.

Who it is for: Hawaiian Electric homeowners and renters (with the owner signing) under 140% of area median income, with 6 months of utility history
Terms: Fixed 5.5% a year for up to 25 years. The project must pass a minimum bill-savings test.
Status: Taking applications: HGIA’s program page had its Apply Now portal live on October 5, 2026, and HGIA says funds are first come, first served.

On Oahu, a city loan too. Honolulu’s Rehabilitation Loan Program lends at zero percent interest, up to $300,000, repaid over 15 or 20 years, to owner-occupants within its income limits ($123,200 for a family of four). Its June 2026 brochure allows solar panels alongside repairs. Processing can take a year or more.

What about Solar for All? HGIA’s federal Solar for All grant was ended by the EPA in August 2025, and HGIA said in December 2025 the funds remain in litigation. Federal courts ruled the termination unlawful in September 2026; the EPA is weighing an appeal. On October 5, 2026, HGIA’s Solar for All page returned “not found”. Status: on hold, nothing to apply for.

Zero-Down Solar in Hawaii: Who Claims the Credit and the Battery Payment

Hawaii allows all three zero-down routes, including power purchase agreements (PPAs), where a company owns the panels and sells you their power by the kWh. Ownership decides who gets paid. The Department of Taxation lets only the system’s economic owner claim the credit, and in a true lease that is the company. Hawaiian Electric’s battery incentive works the same way.

Hawaii’s zero-down routes and where the two biggest payments land
Route	The 35% state credit	Battery incentive ($400 per kW)	Your monthly cost
$0-down loan, including GEM$	Yours, claimed on Form N-342	Yours	A loan payment, or a GEM$ charge on your bill
Pros and cons in Hawaii: $0-down loan Pros You claim the credit: the full $5,000 on a typical system. GEM$ fixes the rate at 5.5% and the charge stays with the meter if you move. The battery payment is yours to keep. Cons The credit arrives with your tax return, not at signing. No federal home credit for systems installed after December 31, 2025. GEM$ is not offered on Kauai. Can fit if: you owe enough Hawaii income tax to use the credit, or accept the smaller refundable version.
Solar lease	The leasing company’s	The leasing company’s	A fixed monthly fee that may rise each year
Pros and cons in Hawaii: lease Pros Nothing upfront, and no tax liability needed. The company handles repairs and paperwork. Cons The company claims the credit and the battery payment. You see them only if the fee is lower. A yearly fee increase (an escalator) compounds over a long contract. Can fit if: your income is above the tax year 2027 limit, or the fee is well below what the panels save at your island’s rates.
Power purchase agreement (PPA)	The company’s	The company’s	A price for every kWh the panels make
Pros and cons in Hawaii: PPA Pros You pay only for power produced, so a cloudy month costs less. No upfront cost or repairs. Cons You pay the PPA price even for kWh you export, which may earn as little as 6.6 cents on Maui. The company keeps the credit and battery payment. A yearly price increase can erase the gap with your bill. Can fit if: the price per kWh, after increases, stays below both your bill rate and the evening value a battery could capture.

Lease: you rent the equipment

The same fee in a rainy windward month as a sunny one. You carry the output risk unless production is guaranteed.

PPA: you buy the power

The company carries the output risk. But every kWh costs the same, even the midday kWh your utility credits at its lowest rate.

Who collects the Hawaii payments on one system

A typical 7.49 kW system at $23,519, plus a battery committing 5 kW to Hawaiian Electric’s Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) Plus program, the utility’s own example.

Hawaii payments on a typical system, owned versus leased
Owned: state tax credit	$5,000
Owned: battery incentive, 5 kW	$2,000
Lease or PPA: both, to the company	$7,000

A household under 140% of area median income gets a further $400 per kW for the battery ($4,000 in total on 5 kW), again only as owner. Taking the credit as a refund cuts it by 30%, to $3,500.

The One Case Where a Lease Genuinely Wins

Act 24, signed May 21, 2026, rewrote the credit. From tax year 2027, you cannot claim it if your adjusted gross income is above $175,000, or $350,000 filing jointly. It is a cliff, not a taper. A household above that line installing in 2027 or later gets nothing from the credit by owning.

For that household, a lease costs nothing on the credit side: the income line is written for individual and joint returns, and the company claims as owner. Ask whether its credit lowers your fee. Compare loan terms in our solar financing guide.

The act also requires a certified statement to the Hawaii State Energy Office by March 1 of the next year, caps total credits at $40,000,000 a year (split in proportion among all claimants, companies included, if claims exceed it), and ends the credit for tax years beginning after December 31, 2029.

For 2026 installs there is no income test, and Executive Order 26-02 keeps systems finished, or relied on, before May 21, 2026 out of the cap. Owning is the stronger case for almost everyone installing this year.

Why a Hawaii Offer Must Name Your Island

Hawaii homes paid an average of 48.00 cents per kWh in July 2026, the highest of any state, so any PPA price looks cheap. But exported power does not earn your bill rate. New Hawaiian Electric customers get Smart Renewable Energy Export, a credit set by island and time of day. Net metering closed on October 13, 2015.

What one exported kWh earns in Hawaii, by island and hour (agreements signed April 2024 to April 2027)
Island and utility	Daytime	Evening peak	Overnight
OahuHawaiian Electric	13.5 cents	32.9 cents	18.9 cents
MauiHawaiian Electric, formerly Maui Electric	6.6 cents	18.2 cents	13.1 cents
Hawaii IslandHawaiian Electric, formerly Hawaii Electric Light	10.6 cents	23.1 cents	14.8 cents
MolokaiHawaiian Electric	17.9 cents	27.2 cents	17.4 cents
LanaiHawaiian Electric	26.7 cents	40.8 cents	25.9 cents
KauaiKauai Island Utility Cooperative (KIUC)	Schedule Q: one rate that moves monthly with fuel costs, 14.33 to 27.14 cents per kWh so far in 2026

Daytime is 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., evening peak 5 p.m. to 9 p.m., overnight 9 p.m. to 9 a.m.. Hawaiian Electric locks these rates for the first 7 years of every new agreement; the lock is automatic, not an extra. KIUC limits system size to your use, for example 2.5 kW for a home using up to 500 kWh a month.

Midday power a PPA bills you for can be worth 6.6 cents on Maui. A battery that shifts it to the evening earns far more. A quote modeled on a statewide average uses a rate no island pays.

You Likely Will Not Qualify If

You expect the state credit on a leased system. It goes to the company as owner.
You want GEM$ on Kauai. It serves Hawaiian Electric customers only.
You rent and the owner will not sign. GEM$ needs the owner too. Hawaiian Electric’s Shared Solar, a community solar program paying 15 cents per kWh on Oahu, may fit instead.
You install in 2027 or later with income above the line. Owning no longer brings the credit.

How to Check a Hawaii Offer Before You Sign

Is anyone calling this a state program?
The state sells nothing door to door. GEM$ runs through HGIA’s own portal and participating contractors.
Who claims the 35% credit, in writing?
If a loan quote subtracts it, ask when you will receive it, and whether you can use it against your tax bill.
Which island rates and hours did the company model?
Ask for the export credit it assumed and how much power goes to the grid at midday.
Who gets the battery incentive?
At $400 per kW committed, it is real money. In a lease it goes to the company.
What is the cash price next to the $0-down price?
A typical 7.49 kW system costs about $23,519. See what solar costs in Hawaii.

Under Hawaii’s door-to-door rules you have three business days to cancel a home sale without penalty. Report false “free state solar” claims at consumercomplaint.hawaii.gov.

Learn the solar scam warning signs and solar lease exit options.

Get Owned and $0-Down Prices From Hawaii Installers

Ask each installer for a cash price and a lease or PPA price on the same system, with your island’s export rates and who claims the credit written in.

Enter your ZIP code to compare Hawaii installers

This is a commercial quote request, not an application for GEM$, the state tax credit or Solar for All. Offers depend on your ZIP code and home. For the state loan, use HGIA’s GEM$ page.

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More Hawaii Solar Guides

Hawaii Solar FAQs

Can I get free solar panels in Hawaii?

No. The state says it does not provide free solar systems. Qualifying households can get low-cost GEM$ financing or, on Oahu, a zero-interest city loan. Everything else is a lease, PPA or loan.

Can I get zero-down solar in Hawaii?

Yes: leases, PPAs and $0-down loans, including GEM$. With a loan you own the system and claim the 35% credit. With a lease or PPA the company claims it.

Who gets the Hawaii state solar tax credit on a leased system?

The company. Only the economic owner may claim it, and in a lease that is the lessor: $5,000 on a typical system. Ask whether your fee reflects it.

Is a solar lease ever the better choice in Hawaii?

In one case. From tax year 2027, a household above $175,000 of adjusted gross income ($350,000 joint) cannot claim the credit, so owning no longer brings it. For 2026 installs there is no income test, and owning is usually stronger.

Is Hawaii Solar for All open?

No. HGIA said on December 8, 2025 that the federal funds remain in litigation. Courts ruled the federal cancellation unlawful in September 2026, but HGIA had posted no sign-up on October 5, 2026.

Does a Hawaii solar offer work the same way on every island?

No. Export credits differ by island and hour, and Kauai’s co-op sets its own monthly rate. Ask which island the offer modeled.

Sources and review

Figures were checked September 30 to October 5, 2026; program statuses on October 5. The agency’s or utility’s current page always wins.

Read our editorial standards.

Free Solar Panels in Hawaii: Zero-Down Offers and Who Keeps the State Tax Credit (2026)