Massachusetts solar incentives arrive in small, steady pieces, not as one big check. Your utility pays you each month for the power your panels make. It also credits your bill for the power you send out. The state adds a tax credit of up to $1,000. The monthly money depends on who sends your electric bill. Eversource, National Grid and Unitil customers get it. A home served by a town-owned utility follows its town’s rules.
Recently changed: SMART 3.0 replaced the older SMART program. A home system now earns a flat $0.03 per kWh for 20 years. The older program paid small systems for 10 years. The Department of Public Utilities approved the utilities’ payment rules on July 8, 2026. Next year’s rate is not set yet. A state review of bill credits (D.P.U. 25-200) has a meeting on net metering set for October 15, 2026, under a July 2026 notice. Draft SMART rates for 2027 were due on October 1, 2026.
Which Massachusetts solar incentives pay the most in 2026?
Six things matter for a home that buys solar. None of them is an upfront rebate from the state.
| Incentive | What it is worth | How it reaches you | Who is left out |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net metering bill credit | Extra solar power is credited at close to the full per-kWh price | A credit on your electric bill, each month | Homes served by a town light plant, which sets its own credit |
| SMART payment | $0.03 per kWh of solar power made, for 20 years: about $3,900 in total for a typical system | A monthly check or bill credit from your utility | Town light plant customers. In a lease, the company is paid |
| State income tax credit | 15% of the cost, up to $1,000 | A lower state income tax bill | Leased systems, and homes that are not your main home |
| Battery payment (ConnectedSolutions) | $275 per kW a year. $1,375 for a battery that gives 5 kW | A payment once a year, after the summer | Unitil and town light plant customers, and homes with no battery |
| Sales tax exemption | No 6.25% sales tax on solar equipment | Your installer does not charge it | Equipment for a home that is not your main home |
| Property tax exemption | The solar system is not taxed for 20 years | Your city or town leaves it out of your property tax | Systems over 25 kW that also make more than 125% of the home’s yearly power |
The federal tax credit is $0 for systems switched on after December 31, 2025. A typical system costs $15,362 before any of the items above.
Eversource, National Grid, Unitil or a town light plant: who sends your bill?
The name is at the top of your electric bill. Open your group to see what you can get.
Eversource or National GridIncludes Cape Light Compact towns on Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard, where Eversource delivers the power.SMART, bill credits and a battery payment
What you can get with Eversource or National Grid
- SMART paymentabout $205 a year
$0.03 per kWh of solar power your panels make, for 20 years. Shown for a typical 5.07 kW system in its first year. Paid by check or as a bill credit.
- Bill credit for extra powerClose to full price
This is net metering: power you send to the grid becomes a credit on your bill.
- Battery payment$275 per kW a year
The program is called ConnectedSolutions. Your utility draws on your battery on hot summer afternoons and pays you for it. A battery that gives 5 kW on average earns $1,375 a year. A 0% loan can pay for the battery.
Your bill credits
Each extra kWh earns a credit worth four lines of your bill: basic service (the power itself), distribution (the local wires), transmission (the long-distance lines) and transition (a small extra line). The fixed monthly charge and some other per-kWh lines, such as the energy efficiency charge, are left out. That is why the credit is a little below the full price.
Credits you do not use move to the next month. Cape Light Compact warns its customers that Eversource will generally not pay out unused credits as cash.
Watch out: SMART goes to whoever owns the system. In a lease or a power purchase agreement (PPA), a company owns the panels on your roof and collects the SMART payment. Ask how much of it lowers your monthly price.
Also for every Massachusetts home: the state tax credit and two tax exemptions, and loans and community solar.
UnitilLook for the Unitil name at the top of your electric bill.SMART and bill credits, no battery payment
What you can get with Unitil
- SMART paymentabout $205 a year
$0.03 per kWh of solar power your panels make, for 20 years. Shown for a typical 5.07 kW system in its first year.
- Bill credit for extra powerClose to full price
This is net metering: power you send to the grid becomes a credit on your bill. Unitil follows the same state rule as Eversource and National Grid.
- Battery paymentNone
Unitil customers cannot join ConnectedSolutions, the state’s battery payment program, at this time.
Your bill credits
Each extra kWh earns a credit worth the power itself, the local wires and the long-distance lines on your bill. Credits you do not use move to the next month.
Watch out: A quote that counts on $275 per kW a year for a battery does not fit a Unitil home.
Also for every Massachusetts home: the state tax credit and two tax exemptions, and loans and community solar.
Town light plantA municipal light plant: an electric utility owned by your town. Belmont, Hingham, Holyoke, Ipswich, Reading, Taunton and Wakefield are examples.No SMART. Your town sets the rules.
What you can get with Town light plant
- SMART paymentNone
SMART is only for Eversource, National Grid and Unitil customers.
- Bill credit for extra powerSet by your town
State net metering rules do not cover town light plants. Each one sets its own credit. Holyoke Gas & Electric, for example, does not offer net metering. It credits all the power your panels make at about $0.063 per kWh.
- Local solar rebateIn some towns
Hingham pays $0.60 per watt of system size, up to $6,000 ($3,000 for a 5 kW system). Wakefield pays up to $0.80 per watt while its yearly fund lasts. Ipswich pays $0.30 per watt, up to $3,000. Ask your town if it has one.
- Battery credit$30 a month
Paid in towns that take part in a program called Connected Homes, where the utility may draw on your battery at busy times. Some of these towns also pay a rebate of $100 per kWh of battery size: $1,200 for a 12 kWh battery.
Your bill credits
Ask your light plant in writing how much it credits for each kWh you send out. Do this before you ask for quotes, because the answer decides how big your system should be.
Watch out: Do not use an Eversource or National Grid example to estimate your savings. The state tax credit and the two tax exemptions still apply to you.
Also for every Massachusetts home: the state tax credit and two tax exemptions, and loans and community solar.
The state tax credit and the two tax exemptions apply in every group. They are explained below.
How much does SMART 3.0 pay a Massachusetts home?
SMART stands for Solar Massachusetts Renewable Target. It pays you for all the power your panels make, even the power you use yourself. A home system of 25 kW or less earns a flat $0.03 per kWh. The rate is fixed when your system qualifies and stays the same for 20 years.
Example: 1,000 kWh of solar power earns $30. A typical 5.07 kW system makes about 6,840 kWh in its first year, which earns about $205. Over 20 years that adds up to about $3,900, because panels make a little less each year.
SMART comes on top of your bill credits. Your system qualifies if on-site building work started on or after June 20, 2025 and it never got an earlier state solar incentive. Applications for this program year opened on January 1, 2026 and are handled in the order they arrive.
- Lower-income homes get double. The rate is $0.06 per kWh, which is about $410 a year for a typical system. You qualify if you are on your utility’s low-income rate, if you get fuel assistance, SNAP or Medicaid, or if you state that your income is at or below 80% of the area median income (the middle income where you live).
- The rate can change each year. The $0.03 per kWh is for systems that qualify in the 2026 program year. Rates are reset each year. Under the state’s schedule, draft rates for 2027 were due on October 1, 2026, and final rates follow on December 1, 2026. Ask your installer which year’s rate your quote uses. A system that has already qualified keeps its rate.
Watch out: A quote that shows a SMART payment for only 10 years uses the old program. Ask your installer where your application stands and when the first payment is due. Ask a tax professional whether you must report the payments as income.
Request quotes for your utility area
Your ZIP code starts a quote request with installers near you. A good quote names your utility and shows the SMART payment and the bill credit as separate lines.
- Your utility sets the monthly moneyEversource, National Grid and Unitil pay SMART. Town light plants follow their own rules.
- No cost to compareRequesting quotes is free, and you never have to sign.
- Shared with matched installers onlyYour details go to the installers you are matched with.
Is net metering still available in Massachusetts, and will the credit change?
Yes, for Eversource, National Grid and Unitil customers. Net metering means your utility gives you a bill credit for solar power you send to the grid. State law sets the credit: each extra kWh is worth the basic service, distribution, transmission and transition charges on your bill. These are the power itself, the local wires, the long-distance lines and a small extra line. Together they are close to the full price of a kWh.
Example: your panels make 600 kWh in June and your home uses 500 kWh. The extra 100 kWh becomes a credit. It moves forward and lowers a later bill, such as one in December.
A home system of 25 kW or less gets net metering without waiting for room under the state’s program limits. Your installer files an interconnection application, which is the request to connect your system to the grid, before the install.
The credit may not stay this high. On December 15, 2025 the Department of Public Utilities, the state agency that oversees utilities, opened a review called D.P.U. 25-200. One of its goals is to decide whether the value of the net metering credit should be adjusted, to reduce the costs of net metering. A July 2026 notice set a meeting on net metering for October 15, 2026. No change had been ordered when we checked. The dates can move, so check the docket on the Department’s website.
Watch out: Nobody can promise what the credit will be in ten years. Ask each installer to show your savings twice: with today’s credit and with a lower one. The cents per kWh differ by utility and change with its rates, so ask for the current credit in writing.
What is the Massachusetts solar tax credit, and which taxes does solar skip?
These three apply everywhere in the state, also in towns with a light plant.
State income tax credit: up to $1,000
You get a credit on your Massachusetts income tax of 15% of what the system cost you, up to $1,000. The home must be your main home, and you must own the system. The law is M.G.L. chapter 62, section 6(d).
Example: 15% of a typical $15,362 system is $2,304. That is above the limit, so the credit is $1,000. Any system that costs more than $6,667 reaches the limit.
If the credit is more than the state tax you owe that year, you can use the rest in the next 3 years.
Watch out: A credit lowers the tax you owe. It is not a check. In a lease or PPA you do not own the system, so you cannot claim it.
Source: M.G.L. chapter 62, section 6
Sales tax: not charged on solar equipment
Equipment for a solar system that powers your main home is exempt from the 6.25% Massachusetts sales tax (M.G.L. chapter 64H, section 6(dd)). Example: on $10,000 of equipment, that is $625 of tax you are not charged.
Check that your quote shows no sales tax on the solar equipment. The law does not name batteries, so ask your installer how it treats one.
Source: M.G.L. chapter 64H, section 6
Property tax: the system is exempt for 20 years
A solar system on your home is exempt from local property tax for 20 years (M.G.L. chapter 59, section 5, clause Forty-fifth). It qualifies if it is 25 kW or smaller, or if it can make no more than 125% of the power your property uses in a year. Owned and leased systems both count, and so does a battery installed with the panels.
Ask your city or town assessor what it needs from you. The law says the system size is checked with your SMART paperwork or your utility’s approval letter. Keep both.
Source: M.G.L. chapter 59, section 5
What does ConnectedSolutions pay for a home battery?
ConnectedSolutions pays $275 per kW each year. Here kW means the average power your battery sends out during the program’s events. It is run by Mass Save, the energy savings program of the state’s utilities, for Eversource, National Grid and Cape Light Compact customers. You do not need solar panels to join.
Example: a battery that gives 5 kW on average earns $1,375 for the year. National Grid says its customers have received $1,200 a year on average.
Events run from June 1 to September 30, between 3 p.m. and 8 p.m.. There are no more than 60 each summer, and each lasts at most 3 hours. You can skip an event. For new systems the rate is locked for the first 5 years.
- How to join: after the battery is installed, you enroll through the company that made your battery.
- Deadline: applications received by May 31 count for that whole summer.
- When you are paid: once a year, in October, November or December.
- Paying for the battery: the Mass Save HEAT Loan lends up to $25,000 at 0% interest for a battery you enroll. The limit is shared with other home upgrades on the same loan. It does not cover solar panels.
Watch out: The payment depends on what your battery really delivers. A battery that is empty or offline during an event earns less. Do not plan on $1,375 unless your installer can show that your battery gives 5 kW for a full event.
A state loan for solar, and community solar for renters
Energy Saver Home Loan
This state loan can pay for solar panels and a battery. The rate is fixed for 20 years: 0.5% if your household income is under 80% of the area median income, or 2.0% if it is under 135%. Area median income is the middle income where you live. You can borrow $10,000 to $100,000.
It is for owners who live in a home with one to four units. Condos do not qualify. The whole project must cut your home’s energy use by at least 20%.
Watch out: This loan is a second mortgage on your home. Read the terms with the same care as your first one.
Renters and condo owners: community solar
No roof of your own? Eversource, National Grid and Unitil customers can sign up for a share of a larger solar project somewhere else. You get credits on your electric bill and pay the project owner for them. Your saving is the gap between the two. Read the price, the length and the exit terms before you sign.
When a Massachusetts incentive will not reach you
- Your bill comes from a town light plant. No SMART payment and no state net metering rules. You get the tax credit, the two tax exemptions and what your town offers. The battery payment is also closed to Unitil customers.
- You lease or sign a PPA. The company that owns the panels collects the SMART payment and you cannot claim the $1,000 state credit.
- You owe little state income tax. The credit only lowers tax you owe. What you cannot use in the first year and the next 3 years is lost.
- Your system is much bigger than your use. Unused bill credits roll forward, but they are generally not paid out in cash.
- Your quote still counts the federal tax credit. It is $0 for systems switched on after December 31, 2025. Ask for a new quote.
From contract to first SMART check: who files what
- Check the name on your electric bill. Eversource, National Grid or Unitil means SMART and state net metering apply. A town light plant means you ask the town first.You.
- Read the SMART Customer Disclosure Form before you sign. Check the rate: $0.03 per kWh, or $0.06 per kWh if you qualify as lower-income.Your installer gives it to you.
- The SMART and grid applications go in. One goes to the SMART program and one to your utility, both before the install.Your installer.
- Your utility approves the system to run. Bill credits start. Your installer then files the final SMART claim. Keep the approval letter.Your utility, then your installer.
- Enroll your battery, if you have one. Do it by May 31 to be paid for the whole summer.You, through your battery maker.
- Claim the state credit on your Massachusetts income tax return. Keep your contract and receipts. Also ask your city or town assessor what it needs for the property tax exemption.You or your tax preparer.
Compare Massachusetts quotes that show the SMART rate
Enter your ZIP code to request quotes from installers in your area. Ask each one for the SMART Customer Disclosure Form and the name of your electric utility on the quote.
The form asks about your home first, then your contact details. EcoGen or its installer partners may contact you.
- Free quote requestYour ZIP code starts a request for quotes from local installers. You decide if you go ahead.
- Home questions firstA few questions about your home come first. Name, email and phone come last.
- Test each quoteUse this page to check the SMART rate, the tax credit and the utility named in each quote.
More Massachusetts solar guides
Massachusetts solar incentive questions
Does Massachusetts Have a Solar Tax Credit?
Yes. Massachusetts gives a state income tax credit of 15% of the system cost, up to $1,000, for a system you own on your main home. Unused credit can be carried forward for 3 years. The federal credit ended for systems switched on after December 31, 2025.
What Is the SMART 3.0 Rate for Homes in 2026?
$0.03 per kWh of solar power your panels make, for 20 years, for systems of 25 kW or less. Lower-income homes get $0.06 per kWh. A typical 5.07 kW system earns about $205 in its first year. Only Eversource, National Grid and Unitil customers can get it.
Does Massachusetts Still Have Net Metering?
Yes, for Eversource, National Grid and Unitil customers. Extra solar power earns a bill credit close to the full price of a kWh. The state opened a review of the credit value (D.P.U. 25-200) on December 15, 2025. No change had been ordered when we checked.
Is There Sales Tax on Solar Panels in Massachusetts?
No. Equipment for a solar system that powers your main home is exempt from the 6.25% state sales tax under M.G.L. chapter 64H, section 6(dd).
Do Solar Panels Raise Property Taxes in Massachusetts?
No, for 20 years. A system of 25 kW or less, or one that makes no more than 125% of the home’s yearly power, is exempt from local property tax. Ask your assessor what proof it wants.
How Much Does ConnectedSolutions Pay for a Battery?
$275 per kW of average power during summer events, each year. A battery that gives 5 kW earns $1,375. National Grid reports an average of $1,200 a year. It is open to Eversource, National Grid and Cape Light Compact customers.
Sources (18)
- Eversource SMART 3.0 tariff, M.D.P.U. No. 88 (rates in Appendix A): fileservice.eea.comacloud.net
- MassCEC, guide to the SMART 3.0 program (June 10, 2026): masscec.com
- M.G.L. chapter 164, section 139 (net metering): malegislature.gov
- Department of Public Utilities, Notice of Inquiry in D.P.U. 25-200 (April 3, 2026): nationalgridus.com
- M.G.L. chapter 62, section 6 (state income tax credit): malegislature.gov
- M.G.L. chapter 64H, section 6 (sales tax exemption): malegislature.gov
- M.G.L. chapter 59, section 5 (property tax exemption): malegislature.gov
- Mass Save, ConnectedSolutions for batteries: masssave.com
- National Grid, ConnectedSolutions battery program: nationalgridus.com
- Mass Save, HEAT Loan financing: masssave.com
- Cape Light Compact, solar resources: capelightcompact.org
- MassHousing, Energy Saver Home Loan: masshousing.com
- Hingham Municipal Lighting Plant, solar rebate: hmlp.com
- Wakefield Municipal Gas & Light Department, solar rebate: wmgld.com
- Ipswich Electric Light Department, solar rebate: nextzero.org
- NextZero, battery program and Connected Homes: nextzero.org
- Holyoke Gas & Electric, solar for residential customers: hged.com
- IRS, Residential Clean Energy Credit: irs.gov
