Rhode Island Solar Incentives (2026): A Grant or a Fixed Payment, Not Both

What does Rhode Island pay for home solar in 2026?

The first three rows are tied together: the grant goes with net metering, and the fixed payment stands alone.

Ask a tax preparer whether any Rhode Island tax credit applies to your system. The federal tax credit ended for systems switched on after December 31, 2025.

The grant path and the RE Growth path, side by side

The two programs cannot be combined. The grant rules say applicants choose one, not both. Your installer files the paperwork for either path, so the choice is often made inside the quote.

How does the Renewable Energy Fund grant reach you?

The Renewable Energy Fund (REF) is run by Rhode Island Commerce, the state’s economic development agency. It pays $1.65 per watt of panel capacity on systems up to 8.8 kW. Larger systems get the maximum of $14,500. Example: a 5 kW system is 5,000 watts, so the grant is $8,250.

You do not get a check. Your installer gives you the grant as a discount, and the state repays the installer after the system passes inspection.

1. Your installer applies in an open round. Money is reserved first come, first served as installers send in projects.
2. Your contract names the grant. It must show the system size, the total price, the grant amount and what you owe after the grant. It should also say what happens if the grant is not approved.
3. REF approves, then the system is built. A system installed before approval, even partly, gets no grant. The project must be finished within 12 months of signing.
4. Inspection, then payment to the installer. You sign completion forms so the installer can be paid.

• You must own it: both the property and the system. Leases do not qualify, and neither does a system on RE Growth.
• Your roof needs enough sun: a TSRF of at least 80%. TSRF is a shade score. It compares the sun your roof gets with a roof in perfect conditions. Your installer measures it.

Watch out: The last small-scale round of 2026 has a closing date of October 16, 2026. A round closes sooner if its money is used up. No 2027 dates were posted when we checked.

What does Renewable Energy Growth pay, and for how long?

Renewable Energy Growth is run by Rhode Island Energy, the electric utility for most of the state. It pays a fixed price for every kWh your panels make, used at home or not. The price is locked for the whole term.

• How you are paid: part comes as a credit on your electric bill. The rest is paid in cash to the system owner.
• What you give up: the REF grant and net metering. Rhode Island Energy also keeps the RECs, the certificates that prove your power came from solar. After the term, the system can move to net metering.
• Who can apply: Rhode Island Energy home customers with a new system of 25 kW or less. It must not be running or under construction when you apply, and it must be running within 24 months of approval.
• Taxes: Rhode Island Energy asks participants for a W-9, a federal tax form. Ask a tax professional how these payments are taxed for you.

These prices apply to the program year that began April 1, 2026. Example: 1,000 kWh earn $315.50 at the first price.

Watch out: Space is limited. The program takes 3 MW (3,000 kW) of small solar, first come, first served, until March 31, 2027. We could not confirm how much space is left. Ask Rhode Island Energy before you rely on this path.

How do net metering credits work with Rhode Island Energy?

Net metering means your utility credits your bill for solar power you send out. It is the path that goes with the grant. The rules sit in state law (R.I. Gen. Laws chapter 39-26.4) and in a Rhode Island Energy tariff, the utility’s official rule sheet, in effect since May 12, 2026.

• Power up to your own use: earns a credit close to the full electric rate. The credit adds up the supply price, which Rhode Island Energy calls Last Resort Service, and the main delivery charges per kWh. A few smaller charges are left out.
• Power beyond your own use: earns a lower rate, the wholesale price of power in New England. Wholesale is the price power plants are paid.
• Leftover credits: carry forward to later bills. You can cash out a credit balance once a year.
• System size: since June 27, 2025, a home system of 25 kW or less no longer has to be sized to your past power use.

Are there battery incentives in Rhode Island?

Yes, three. Ask your installer in writing which ones your project can combine.

Does Rhode Island tax home solar equipment?

No, on two counts. Neither one needs a state application.

Block Island and Clear River customers: what is different?

Two small utilities set their own credit rules. RE Growth and ConnectedSolutions do not apply here. Ask Rhode Island Commerce about the state grant.

• Block Island Utility District: all solar output is credited at 15.40 cents per kWh in 2026, a rate that resets each year. All power you use is billed at the normal rate. A credit held longer than two years is lost. Projects can be up to 30 kW. The district caps total solar and had 507.73 kW of room left.
• Clear River Electric and Water District (formerly Pascoag): all solar output is credited at the district’s power supply rate, about 7.15 cents per kWh in 2026. Credit left after the December bill is paid by check. Home systems can be up to 10 kW, and you pay for a second meter.

Watch out: Contact your district before you sign a contract.

Who misses out on Rhode Island’s grant and payments

• Your quote counts the grant and RE Growth together. One system gets one or the other. A quote that shows both is wrong.
• You lease the panels or sign a PPA. A PPA is a contract where a company owns the panels and sells you the power. The grant is only for systems you own. On RE Growth, the payment can go to the company that owns the system. See free solar offers in Rhode Island.
• Work starts before the grant is approved. A system installed before REF approval gets nothing. The last 2026 round closes on October 16, 2026, or sooner if the money runs out.
• RE Growth fills before you apply. It takes 3 MW (3,000 kW) of small solar this program year, first come, first served.
• You were waiting for the ASAP solar lease for lower-income homes. The state energy office said on April 21, 2026 that the program is paused and takes no new applications.

From quote to first payment: who files what in Rhode Island

1. Before you sign: pick your path. Ask the installer to write in the quote if it uses the REF grant with net metering, or RE Growth.You, with your installer.
2. Before any work: the application goes in. On the grant path, your installer applies to the Renewable Energy Fund in an open round, with your signed contract. On the RE Growth path, the application goes to Rhode Island Energy with the interconnection application, the request to connect your system to the grid.Your installer.
3. Before switch-on: sign the utility form. On the net metering path, you sign Rhode Island Energy’s net metering form, called Schedule B. On the grant path, you also sign completion forms after the install. The state then pays the grant to your installer.Your installer files. You sign.
4. Taxes: check two documents. Your invoice should show no sales tax on the panels, inverters and racking. Your next property assessment should not include the system.You.

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