Key takeaways
- Truly free solar exists for some Delaware homes. DNREC’s Low- to Moderate-Income Solar Program installs up to 4.0 kW at no cost for low-income homeowners, in every utility area.
- Moderate-income homes pay part. The program pays 70% of a system up to 6.0 kW, and the homeowner pays 30%.
- Everyone else can get $0-down solar through a loan, lease or power purchase agreement (PPA). Delaware law lets leased and third-party-owned systems use net metering.
- A lease or PPA gives up the state grant. Delmarva Power’s Green Energy Program pays $0.80 per watt (up to $10,000) on owned systems and nothing on a lease or PPA.
- The grant and the SRECs are an either-or. Taking a state or co-op grant means signing your solar renewable energy certificates (SRECs) over to the state’s Sustainable Energy Utility.
About this review
Every Delaware figure comes from the program, utility, statute or IRS page in the sources, checked September 29 to October 5, 2026. The writer and checker named above link to their profiles. This is not tax, legal or financial advice.
How we pick sources and fix mistakes: editorial process and content standards.
In Delaware, a no-money-down solar offer is a real product, not just a marketing line. State law lets a company own the panels on your roof while you still use net metering. That changes the question. It is not whether free solar exists in Delaware. It is who ends up holding the money a Delaware system makes.
There are three pots: a one-time state or co-op grant, the SRECs (one certificate for each 1,000 kWh your panels make), and the savings on your bill. Ownership decides who gets each one. For low-income homeowners there is a fourth answer, and it comes from the state itself.
Start with the state’s income-based program
The one Delaware route where solar can cost you nothing and you still own it. You apply through the state’s weatherization agency or DNREC’s approved contractors, not through EcoGen.
DNREC Low- to Moderate-Income Solar ProgramRun by DNREC, the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control. Checked October 5, 2026.
- Low income
- Income at or below 200% of the federal poverty level: a cost-free system of up to 4.0 kW, with weatherization. Apply through the Weatherization Assistance Program.
- Moderate income
- County income limits posted by DNREC: the program pays 70% of a system up to 6.0 kW, you pay 30%
- Who qualifies
- Homeowners in a single-family home, in any utility territory. Income is checked from tax returns.
- Status
- Open. On October 5, 2026, DNREC’s page said grant funding is available and listed approved contractors for moderate-income homes. No end date or budget is posted.
Renters and Delmarva Power customers who cannot use rooftop solar can join community solar instead. For projects certified from September 3, 2026, state law requires savings of at least 10% after fees, or 20% for income-qualified subscribers, and you can cancel within 3 business days.
Zero-Down Solar in Delaware: Three Contracts, Three Different Owners of the Money
Above the income limits, $0-down solar in Delaware is one of three contracts. The first is the state’s own low-rate loan.
| Option | State or co-op grant | SRECs | Your monthly cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energize Delaware solar loan | Yours, if you apply before you install | Yours, unless you take the grant | A loan at 3.9% for up to 15 years |
Pros and cons in Delaware: Energize Delaware loanPros
Cons
Can fit if: you own your home, your roof gets good sun, and you want the grant to lower what you owe. | |||
| Solar lease | None. Delmarva’s grant sheet says “No Incentive” for a lease | Usually the company’s, by contract | A set fee that often rises each year |
Pros and cons in Delaware: leasePros
Cons
Can fit if: you cannot get credit for a loan and the first-year fee, with the escalator, sits well below your bill savings. | |||
| Power purchase agreement (PPA) | None, same as a lease | Usually the company’s | A price for each kWh the panels make |
Pros and cons in Delaware: PPAPros
Cons
Can fit if: the PPA price per kWh, after every yearly increase, stays below your utility’s per-kWh charges. | |||
Delaware lease or Delaware PPA?
Point | Lease | PPA |
|---|---|---|
The bill you get from the company | The same fee every month, before any escalator | Higher in June, lower in a grey December |
If the panels underperform | You still pay, unless output is guaranteed in writing | You pay for less power |
Town utility rules | Dover wants a copy of the contract | Dover caps the price at its own rate |
A 10.60 kW system making about 14,789 kWh a year. EcoGen calculation from DNREC’s July 1, 2026 grant sheet and the 2025 SREC Delaware results.
| Owned, with the state grant | $8,480 grant; SRECs signed over |
|---|---|
| Owned, selling SRECs instead | about $8,040 over a 25-year contract, if a bid wins |
| Lease or PPA | No grant; SRECs usually to the company |
SREC figure: about 15 SRECs a year at the 2025 Tier 1 average of $39.39 for 10 years, then $10 per SREC for the rest of a 25-year contract. Bids are taken only in a yearly window (the last was November 3 to 14, 2025), and no 2026 window was posted on October 5, 2026.
The federal tax credit no longer evens this out. Homeowners lost their federal credit for systems installed after December 31, 2025. A company that owns a leased system may still claim a business credit and pass some of it back through a lower payment. Your contract will not show how much. For loan terms and APRs beyond the state loan, see our solar financing guide.
Delmarva Power, the Co-op and the Town Utilities: What a Lease Is Priced Against
A Delaware lease or PPA is priced against your net metering credits. Since January 1, 2024, credits on Delmarva Power and the co-op are worth the per-kWh supply and delivery charges, not the full bill, so “full retail” claims overstate them. A 2025 law makes unused credits carry into the next year, with billing updated by December 1, 2026. Home systems can be up to 25 kW.
| Your utility | Grant for an owned system | On a lease or PPA | Check first |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delmarva Powerabout 64% of Delaware homes | $0.80 per watt, up to $10,000 and no more than 50% of cost | No grant | Pre-approval before install; some paid grants wait in a queue |
| Delaware Electric Cooperativeabout 22% of Delaware homes | $0.70 per watt, up to $5,000 per address | No grant (owned systems only) | The co-op’s map: some areas are closed to new solar that exports |
| Town utilitiesabout 13% of homes, including Dover and Newark | Newark only, up to $3,500, with a waiting list | Ask the town in writing | Dover offers no grant and still reset credits yearly when we checked |
Sources: DNREC grant sheet, Solar Grant Delaware, City of Dover. Ask any company which utility and credit value it modeled, in writing.
You Likely Will Not Qualify If
- You rent, or live in a condo. The income program is for homeowners in single-family homes. Community solar is the route for renters on Delmarva.
- Your credit does not clear the bar. Leases, PPAs and the state loan all check credit. Only the low-income program does not ask you to borrow.
- You installed before getting grant pre-approval. Delmarva and co-op grants reserve money before work starts. Install first and you may lose it.
- Your co-op area is closed to exporting solar. Check the co-op’s map before any company designs a system.
Five Clauses to Read in a Delaware Offer
- Who holds the SRECs?
The law says you keep them unless you sign them away. Find the clause that does, and read it before the price.
- Does the payment rise, and by how much?
An escalator that grows faster than your utility rates turns a saving into a cost partway through the term.
- What is the cash price next to the $0-down price?
Compare with what solar costs in Delaware: a typical 10.60 kW system is about $29,998 before the grant.
- What happens at the end, and when you sell?
Look for the buyout price, renewal or removal, who repairs the roof, and what a buyer must sign. See solar lease exit options.
- Is the output guaranteed?
Ask what you get back if the panels make less than promised.
Pause if a seller says a lease comes with the state grant, calls a lease “the state program”, or asks you to sign the same day.
Read the solar scam warning signs and compare written offers from our Delaware solar companies guide.
Get Delaware Quotes With and Without the Grant
Ask each installer for two prices, owned with the grant and $0-down with a lease or PPA, and who keeps the SRECs in each.
Start with your ZIP code: owned and $0-down prices
This is a commercial quote request, not an application for the Low- to Moderate-Income Solar Program. Installers and financing depend on your ZIP code and your home. For the income program, use DNREC’s official page.
How EcoGen is paid
EcoGen America does not sell or install solar. When you request quotes, we pass your request to solar providers serving your area, and they pay us for the introduction. Providers can include installers, solar marketplaces and lead exchanges, and more than one may contact you. You never pay us.
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More Delaware Solar Guides
Delaware Free Solar FAQs
Can I really get free solar panels in Delaware?
Yes, if your income is at or below 200% of the federal poverty level: DNREC’s program installs up to 4.0 kW at no cost, and you own it. For everyone else, “free” means a lease or PPA. The panels stay the company’s property, and you pay for them monthly.
Can I get zero-down solar in Delaware?
Yes. Leases and PPAs are sold here, and Energize Delaware lends $5,000 to $50,000 at 3.9% for up to 15 years, covering the whole eligible cost. Only the loan keeps the state or co-op grant open to you.
Who gets the tax credit on a Delaware solar lease?
The company, if anyone. The homeowner credit ended for systems installed after December 31, 2025. A company that owns the system may claim a business credit and pass back as much of it as it chooses.
Who keeps the SRECs under a Delaware solar lease?
Usually the company. Delaware law gives SRECs to the customer unless a contract signs them away, and leases normally do. An owner can sell them or trade them for the grant, not both.
Is leasing better than buying in Delaware now that the credit is gone?
It is closer than it was, because a company can claim a credit you cannot. But a typical owned Delmarva system can get a $8,480 grant, and a lease gets none. Compare total payments over the term, with the escalator, against total savings.
What should I check in a Delaware solar lease contract?
Five things: who holds the SRECs, the escalator, the end-of-term terms, what a buyer of your house must do, and whether output is guaranteed.
Sources and review
Delaware program, utility and tax figures were checked between September 29 and October 5, 2026. Program rules change; the administrator’s current page always wins.
- DNREC, Green Energy Program Incentives, effective July 1, 2026 (checked September 30, 2026)
- DNREC, Green Energy Program page (checked September 30, 2026)
- DNREC, Low- to Moderate-Income Solar Pilot Program (checked September 30, 2026)
- Solar Grant Delaware, incentive notice effective July 1, 2026 (checked September 30, 2026)
- Delaware Electric Cooperative, tariff revised June 2026, Schedule NEM (checked September 29, 2026)
- Delaware Electric Cooperative, Solar Interconnections (checked September 29, 2026)
- Delaware Municipal Electric Corporation, Newark photovoltaic grant application (checked September 30, 2026)
- City of Dover Electric Department, Solar (checked September 30, 2026)
- Delaware Code, Title 26, Chapter 10, § 1014 and § 1022, net metering and community solar (checked September 30, 2026)
- Laws of Delaware, Volume 85, Chapter 83, Senate Bill 175, net metering credit carry-over (checked September 30, 2026)
- SREC Delaware, 2025 Procurement and results (checked September 30, 2026)
- Delaware Public Service Commission, Community Solar (checked September 30, 2026)
- Energize Delaware, Residential Solar Loan Program (checked September 30, 2026)
- IRS, Residential Clean Energy Credit (checked September 30, 2026)
- U.S. Energy Information Administration, Form EIA-861, 2024 data, Sales to Ultimate Customers (checked September 30, 2026)
- Delaware Code, Title 26, § 1014(d), (e) and (j): net metering for leased and third-party-owned systems, and who keeps the RECs (checked October 5, 2026)
- SREC Delaware, home page and procurement notices (checked October 5, 2026)
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