Popular Searches

SEIA Membership Benefits
Advocacy Priorities
Download SEIA App
Energy Storage
Finance, Tax, and Buyers Registration

Quick Links

State Solar Data
Solar Market Insight Report
Solar + Storage Dictionary
Sponsor Opportunities
Domestic Manufacturing
Press Releases
REPORT: U.S. Adds 10 GWh of New Energy Storage Capacity in First Quarter, Marking Largest Q1 on Record

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. energy storage industry installed 9.7 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of new capacity in the first quarter of 2026, the strongest first quarter in the sector’s history. According to the U.S....

Solar and storage in the United States is booming. Along with our partners at Wood Mackenzie Power & Renewables, SEIA tracks trends and trajectories in the solar industry that demonstrate the diverse and sustained growth of solar across the country. SEIA also collaborates with Benchmark Mineral Intelligence to follow the latest developments in the storage industry, showing storage’s rapid growth in recent years.

Below you will find charts and information summarizing the state of solar and storage in the U.S. If you’re looking for more data, explore our resources page. In addition, SEIA Members have access to presentation slide decks that contain this data and much more. Not a SEIA Member? Join today!

Davey Solar Energy Solutions
Westlake Financial Ad

Solar Deployment Grows at Record Pace

Solar has seen massive growth since 2010. There are now nearly 288 gigawatts direct-current of solar capacity installed nationwide, enough to power over 43 million homes. In the last decade, solar deployments have experienced an average annual growth rate of 28%. Strong federal policies like the solar Investment Tax Credit (ITC), rapidly declining installation costs, and increasing demand for clean electricity across the private and public sector have driven this growth.

The U.S. Installed a Record 30 GWh of Energy Storage in the First Half of 2026

The U.S. added a record 30 GWh of energy storage in the first half of 2026, largely due to an all time high 20.2 GWh added in Q2. This is a 23% year-over-year increase, demonstrating the strength of the storage market. Now, the U.S. has installed 195 GWh of energy storage, a 207% increase since the end of 2023. This is enough to power 5.9 million American homes for an entire day on a single charge. Falling costs for battery energy storage systems (BESS), increased demand for reliable electricity, and federal and state policy incentives have driven the increase.

Solar is Creating Jobs and Driving Economic Growth

The Interstate Renewable Energy Council (IREC) has reported that 280,000 Americans work in solar, as of 2023. Over 10,000 solar companies across U.S. states are responsible for this employment, with workers with a wide variety of backgrounds and job functions supporting the solar industry. In addition, the industry generated over $70 billion of private investment in the American economy in 2024. As solar deployment grows and advanced manufacturing facilities ramp up, more solar jobs will emerge across the U.S.

Solar and Storage Lead New Capacity Additions

Solar and storage have become the backbone of new electricity infrastructure in the U.S. Combined, these technologies represented over 91% of new capacity added in Q1 2026. Solar and storage’s increasing competitiveness against other technologies has allowed them to quickly increase its share of total U.S. electrical generation.

Solar Economy Stimulates Growth Across Sectors

In addition to the direct employment of the industry, solar is responsible for additional employment in other industries as well. The University of Louisiana, Lafayette found that, in 2023, solar supported over 600,000 total jobs, when accounting for indirect jobs (created by business to business transactions with other industries) and induced jobs (created when workers spend their earnings).

Solar’s Share of U.S. Energy Production Rises Across States 

Solar’s share of U.S. electricity generation has risen from less than 0.1% in 2010 to nearly 8% today. Solar has grown to play an increasing role in many states, now making up more than 20% of electricity production in four states. As electricity prices continue to rise and electricity demand continues to grow, states and utilities have turned to solar as the lowest cost option for meeting incremental demand quickly and affordably.  

Batteries are Trending Towards Longer Duration for Reliable, Consistent Power

The majority of BESS on the grid can discharge at full power for two to four hours, but there has been a surge in batteries that are built to discharge for four or more hours. States like California and Arizona target longer duration storage for evening renewable energy shifting, while states like Texas prefer shorter duration batteries for energy arbitrage and responding to quick price spikes. Since Texas has rapidly increased its deployment of these shorter batteries since 2025, average duration of batteries deployed dropped slightly in the first half of 2026.

Solar Prices See Volatility Due to Policy Fluctuations

Solar’s growth has been enabled by the technology’s rapid cost declines since the early 2010s. Module prices are a fraction of what they once cost, but as the technology has matured, prices have now begun to fluctuate. Rapidly changing trade policy, the global pandemic, and inflation have impacted solar prices. While prices fluctuate quarter to quarter, solar remains a cost effective solution for all types of customers.

Residential Market Faces End of 25D

The residential solar market has gone through significant changes in recent years, and policy changes will force the market to continue to adapt. Changes to California’s net metering rules drove a spike and subsequent decline in deployment, high interest rates have hampered demand, and the repeal of the 25D tax credit is likely to hamper deployment through 2031. Still, increasing electricity bills and power outages have led to sustained interest in residential solar, and companies are expected to pursue new state markets and adapt their business models to offer solar leasing options, driving growth in later years.

Key Provisions for C&I Solar Preserved

The commercial solar market, which consists of on-site solar installations for businesses, non-profits and governments, has historically been dominated by a handful of markets: California, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York. However, new state markets are emerging, with Pennsylvania and Illinois both overtaking Massachusetts and New Jersey. C&I installations reached a record high in 2025, and businesses are continuing to turn to solar to offset rising electricity costs.

Community Solar Looks to New States for Growth

While early growth for community solar installations was led primarily by three key markets – New York, Minnesota, and Massachusetts – a growing list of states with community solar programs have helped diversify the market. In Q1, Illinois and New York accounted for 31% and 25% of installations respectively. While the development of new markets has stalled, many states have proposed enabling legislation (states with yellow border) that could provide access to solar and savings for a wider segment of residential and commercial customers.

Tax Credit Changes to Shape Utility-Scale Deployment Timelines

The passage of HR1 will negatively impact the utility scale segment, but developers are expected to safe harbor significant project volume before the July 2026 deadline. In Q4 2025, many developers focused on safe harboring equipment ahead of the July 4th, 2026, deadline, leading to lower than expected 2025 deployment. This pipeline will support the market throughout the decade, but volumes will continue to fluctuate. Over 242 GW of new capacity will be installed, but uncertain tax and permitting policy could drop deployment numbers.

Lithium Iron Phosphate Continues its Dominant Share of the Storage Market

Lithium ion chemistry is and is likely to remain the dominant battery chemistry on the market. At the beginning of the 2020s, lithium iron phosphate (LFP) and nickel manganese cobalt (NMC) had a nearly even market share. Since then, LFP has taken the lion’s share of the market, with 77% of the storage currently deployed and 90% deployed so far in 2026. LFP will have a similar market share through 2030, but non lithium chemistries, such as sodium ion and flow batteries are expected to deploy at scale towards the end of the decade thanks in part to data centers signing offtake agreements with long duration energy storage (LDES) batteries that use these non-lithium ion chemistries.

Forecasted Deployment is Resilient, but Risks Remain

Solar is expected to deploy significant volumes to the grid over the next five years, but policy changes have already hindered future deployment, and additional actions from the Trump administration pose a further threat to the industry. Deployments will average 40 GW annually over the next five years, but the risk posed by attacks on the permitting of solar projects, further treasury guidance, and uncertainty in the solar supply chain could further reduce deployment by over 20%.

Federal Policy Actions Hinder Solar Market Growth

While forecasts from early 2025 projected up to330 GW of new solar to be installed from 2025-2030, actions by the Trump administration threaten to cut that volume by up to 38%. Wood Mackenzie’s base case forecast for the industry fell in the immediate aftermath of OBBBA, but the past two quarters have seen significant upward revisions thanks to demand for cheap, reliable electricity generation.

 Energy Storage Looks to Continue Setting Annual Records Through 2030

Energy storage is expected to continue its exponential growth through the end of the decade and beyond. Storage will set new deployment records every year over the next five years, adding an additional 486 GWh by 2030. Increased demand from data centers and homeowners looking for reliable power could raise projections, while trade action and treasury guidance could lower them.

Solar is Key to Meeting Rising Electricity Demand

After years of flat electricity demand, forecasters project electricity demand will surge in the near future. Spurred by electrification of homes and businesses, the rapid growth of data centers, and increased buildout of U.S. manufacturing, rising electricity demand is the central challenge to the electricity sector, and solar will play a key role in meeting this demand. Without the benefits of solar’s speed and affordability, U.S. electricity customers will be forced to pay higher prices and face power outages.

Storage is Key for Grid Reliability

Storage deployments since the beginning of 2025 have focused on improving grid reliability and firming renewable energy generation. By storing excess solar electricity produced during the day and discharging it in the evening, batteries help meet demand more efficiently while reducing reliance on expensive, high-emitting peaker plants.

Standalone Storage Leads as Solar Paired Storage Continues to Grow

The rise in storage deployment coincides with increases in solar deployment. Just over 48% of the storage on the grid today is paired with solar, allowing utility scale solar arrays to charge the onsite storage when there is excess capacity on the grid, preventing curtailment. Recent years have also seen a boom in standalone storage, as storage brings flexibility, reliability, and savings to electricity providers and can be deployed quickly anywhere, allowing storage to help serve growing electricity demand.