Connecticut Solar Incentives Explained: What Homeowners Should Know
Updated August 2026 with the latest rates and program details from PURA, Eversource, and state program filings.
Thesis: New England's solar incentives changed meaningfully heading into 2026 — the federal credit is gone, but Connecticut's programs lock for 20 years, Massachusetts still pays retail for your extra power, and the biggest "incentive" of all is printed on your electric bill every month.
Connecticut — RRES: the program that matters most
Residential Renewable Energy Solutions is Connecticut's flagship solar program, run through Eversource and United Illuminating. You choose one of two tariffs, and your choice is locked in for a 20-year term:
- Netting. Power you use is power you don't buy; excess production earns bill credit at the retail rate. New for 2026: netting projects that apply this year carry a $0.0402/kWh charge on total solar production — a detail an honest quote builds into the math up front.
- Buy-All. Every kilowatt-hour your system produces is sold to the utility at a fixed $0.3289/kWh for 2026 applications, locked for 20 years, while you buy your power normally.
Massachusetts — net metering still pays retail
For typical residential systems, Massachusetts still offers traditional net metering: extra power flows to the grid and comes back as bill credit at or near the retail rate. With Eversource's Massachusetts supply rate rising to 17.32¢/kWh on August 1, 2026 and all-in rates above 30¢ — approaching 40¢ in some territories — those credits keep getting more valuable.
What ended: the federal tax credit
The 30% federal residential credit (Section 25D) expired December 31, 2025. We'd rather tell you that plainly than let you find out at tax time. It shifts the math toward $0-down structures and makes the state-level programs — and New England's rates — the real engine of solar value here.
Add-ons worth knowing
Battery owners can enroll in Connecticut's Energy Storage Solutions program or Massachusetts' ConnectedSolutions program ($275 per average kW each summer season), both of which pay you for supporting the grid at peak.
Why high rates are the quiet incentive
Even after Connecticut's 2026 relief, homes there pay about 23.5¢/kWh all-in — and Massachusetts above 30¢ — versus a national average near 18.8¢. The more the utility charges, the more every kilowatt-hour from your roof is worth. Programs evolve year to year; when we sit down with you, we walk through exactly which apply to your home right now, with current numbers — not last year's brochure.