Key takeaway
A home battery stores solar energy so your home keeps power during an outage, and in Massachusetts it can also earn money through the ConnectedSolutions program. The federal tax credit for batteries ended with 2025, but Massachusetts homeowners can still use ConnectedSolutions and 0% Mass Save HEAT Loan financing for battery storage. A battery isn't required for home solar, but with high electricity rates and winter storms, it's worth a close look for a lot of homes.
Who this guide is for: Massachusetts homeowners adding battery storage to new solar, or wondering whether a home battery system is worth it.
More homeowners in Massachusetts are pairing solar with a battery. Part of that is storms. Part of it is high energy costs. And part of it is that Massachusetts pays battery owners to send electricity to the grid on the hottest days of the year.
Here's what a solar battery does, how battery backup works, which incentives are available in 2026, and how to decide if a battery makes sense for your home.
What Does a Home Battery Storage System Do?
A battery storage system operates like a big rechargeable battery for your house. It stores solar energy your solar panel system makes during the day so you can use that stored solar energy later, at night or when the power goes out.
In Massachusetts, a home battery system does three jobs :
- Backup power. When the grid goes down, the battery keeps your essential circuits running.
- Using your own solar. It can hold extra solar production for the evening, when your panels aren't making much.
- Helping the grid. Through ConnectedSolutions, your battery can send stored energy to the grid during peak demand, and you get paid for it.
How Does Battery Backup Work With Solar Panels?
Without a battery, a grid-tied solar system shuts off during a power outage to protect utility workers. With a backup battery, the energy storage system separates your home from the grid and runs the circuits you've chosen to back up. During the day, your solar array recharges the battery, even while the grid is down.
How long your battery backup lasts depends on its storage capacity, how much you're running and how much sun you get. Most homes back up the essentials, like the fridge, lights, Wi-Fi, a well pump and the furnace blower, rather than the whole house.
Solar Incentives for Battery Storage in Massachusetts (2026)
Even with the federal solar tax credit gone, Massachusetts solar incentives for battery storage are still worth knowing about.
The ConnectedSolutions Program: Earn Incentives With Your Battery
ConnectedSolutions is a Mass Save program run by Mass Save sponsors, including Eversource and National Grid. It's a demand response program: on a handful of hot summer afternoons, your battery sends stored energy to the grid during peak demand, when electricity is in short supply.
- ConnectedSolutions events run in the summer, with no more than 60 events a season and each one lasting up to three hours.
- Your payment is based on your battery's average performance across the season's events.
- There's also an optional winter season, and you can opt out of any single event.
- Most outages in New England happen in winter, while most ConnectedSolutions events happen in summer, so the program and your backup power rarely compete.
The program also helps the state meet the Massachusetts Clean Peak Standard, which rewards clean energy delivered when demand is highest. Mass Save sponsors earn the clean peak energy credits, and you earn incentives for your battery's performance. It's one of the ways Massachusetts is building toward a clean energy future with more renewable energy on the grid. Your installer usually handles the enrollment when the battery system is installed.
Mass Save HEAT Loan: 0% Financing for Massachusetts Residents
Massachusetts residents can use the Mass Save HEAT Loan for battery storage. It offers 0% interest financing through participating lenders for qualifying energy efficiency upgrades, and batteries are on the list. That can lower the upfront cost of adding storage to residential solar.
The Federal Tax Credit for Batteries Has Ended
The federal residential clean energy credit, which covered home batteries and solar, doesn't apply to systems installed after December 31, 2025. If a quote still counts the federal tax credit as savings for a battery you'd own, ask about it. Many solar quotes written before 2026 still show it.
SMART and Net Metering With Solar Battery Storage
Your solar system can still earn payments through the Solar Massachusetts Renewable Target (SMART) program and credits through net metering when you add a battery. Under SMART 3.0, the SMART program doesn't give home-sized solar projects an extra payment for adding storage, so the battery's money comes mainly from ConnectedSolutions.
Is There a Battery Rebate or Other Incentive Program?
Not a simple statewide rebate. The main battery incentive program is ConnectedSolutions, which pays for performance over time. Utilities have offered other battery offers at times, so ask your installer what's available when you get a quote. If your town has its own electric company, check with them, since municipal light plants run their own programs.
Got a solar and battery quote?
Send it to Mark. He'll check the battery size, the backup setup and how the incentives are counted.
Mark, review my quoteDo Massachusetts Homeowners Need a Battery With Residential Solar?
No. Solar works without one, and plenty of Massachusetts homeowners go without. A battery is worth a close look if:
- you lose power a few times a year, or for long stretches
- you have a well pump, a sump pump or work from home
- you want reliable backup power without running a generator
- you like the idea of earning ConnectedSolutions payments
If your outages tend to last days, it's worth comparing a battery with a generator. Some homes use both.
What Affects the Cost of a Home Battery System?
Like solar, there's no single price for a battery. These are the things that move the cost:
- Storage capacity. How much energy the battery holds, measured in kilowatt-hours (kWh).
- Power output. How much it can run at once, measured in kilowatts (kW).
- How many batteries. Backing up the whole home takes more than backing up the essentials.
- Electrical work. Some homes need a backup panel or panel upgrades.
- New or existing solar. Adding a battery during a new solar installation is usually simpler than adding one to an older system.
The cost of your whole system, solar and storage together, is what you should weigh against your savings, your incentives and the value of backup power.
Installing Solar and Energy Storage: New or Existing Solar Installation
The easiest time to add solar battery storage is when you're installing solar. Installing a battery storage system at the same time lets the solar installer design the panels and the battery system together and set up the backup circuits. The installer also usually handles your ConnectedSolutions enrollment once the battery system is installed.
If you already have solar, adding a battery is often possible, but it depends on your existing solar equipment. Ask the installer how the battery will connect to your current system before you sign.
FAQs About Solar Batteries in Massachusetts
Does Massachusetts pay you to have a solar battery?
It can. Through ConnectedSolutions, Massachusetts homeowners with an enrolled home battery get paid based on how their battery performs during summer peak demand events.
Is there a federal tax credit for solar batteries in 2026?
No. The federal residential credit that covered batteries ended for systems installed after December 31, 2025. Massachusetts still offers ConnectedSolutions and 0% HEAT Loan financing for battery storage.
Will my battery still work in an outage if it's in ConnectedSolutions?
Yes. When the grid goes down, your battery switches to backing up your home. Events mostly happen on summer afternoons, and you can opt out of any single event.
Can I add a battery to my existing solar system?
Often, yes. It depends on your current inverter and equipment, so have an installer look at your system first.
Do I need a battery to go solar in Massachusetts?
No. Solar works without a battery, and net metering credits your bill for extra power you send to the grid. A battery adds backup power and a chance to earn ConnectedSolutions payments.
About Mark Featherstone
Mark has been in solar for 14+ years, working at some of the biggest solar companies in the country, before co-founding Your World Solutions. His goal is simple: help homeowners get into solar deals that actually work for them, and make sure they understand every part of it before they sign.