This page covers Portland General Electric customers specifically. For every Oregon incentive in one place, see Oregon Solar Incentives. If Pacific Power bills you instead, the amount is different: see Pacific Power solar incentives.
How much is the PGE solar incentive?
$3,500 per home, on a system of at least 2 kW-DC. It is a flat amount per home, not a rate per watt, so a quote showing you a per-watt Energy Trust figure for a standard residential job is working from the old structure. The amount is not fixed for the year, though. Energy Trust adjusts its incentive levels over time and targets no more than one small reduction per quarter on any given offer, with changes taking effect at the start of a quarter. The PGE amount has already moved once in 2026, upward, from $2,500 to $3,500. The next quarter boundary is October 1, 2026. Confirm the figure on the day you sign, not the day you were quoted.
The money comes from Energy Trust of Oregon, not from PGE. Energy Trust is funded by a charge on PGE and Pacific Power bills, which is why only customers of those two utilities can claim it. It is paid to your contractor and deducted from your project price, so there is nothing for you to file.
| Offer | PGE | Pacific Power |
|---|---|---|
| Solar for Homes (standard) | $3,500 per home | $2,500 per home |
| Solar Within Reach (income-qualified) | $1.25/W, up to $7,500 | $0.85/W, up to $5,250 |
| Battery storage (standard) | $400/kWh, up to $5,000 | $288/kWh, up to $3,600 |
| Battery storage (income-qualified) | $500/kWh, up to $6,250 | $400/kWh, up to $5,000 |
| Minimum system size | 2 kW-DC | 2 kW-DC |
Solar Within Reach pays considerably more
Solar Within Reach is the income-qualified version, and for PGE customers it pays $1.25 per watt up to $7,500 rather than the flat $3,500, with a larger battery incentive on top. The income limits are set by county and household size and reset every June 1. They run higher than most people assume, and a great many households who write themselves off actually qualify. Checking costs nothing.
What you have to do to qualify
Use an Energy Trust trade ally contractor. This is the one that catches people out. Only a trade ally can reserve the incentive, and the reservation has to be approved before anything is installed. A contractor who is not on that list cannot get you the money at all, and cannot add it back afterwards. Sunbridge Solar is a trade ally.
Your roof also has to meet Energy Trust’s solar access standard, measured as total solar resource fraction and sitting around 75%. A heavily shaded roof may not qualify no matter who installs it, and we will tell you that before you pay for a design. Beyond that the system must be new, grid-tied, net-metered and code-compliant, with warranties on the equipment.
Net metering, which genuinely is a PGE program
This is the part that really is PGE rather than Energy Trust. A two-way meter measures the difference between what you draw from the grid and what your panels send back, and the excess is credited to your account as kilowatt-hours at full retail rate rather than as cash. Summer surplus carries forward against winter use, which matters more here than in most climates given how lopsided production is between July and December.
There is an annual reset. Unused credits are cleared every March, when your annual billing cycle wraps up, and are donated to customers in low-income bill assistance programs rather than being paid out to you. That is why we size a system to what you actually use across a year rather than to how much roof you have. Surplus you bank in July is worth full value in January. Anything left at the reset is gone, and you paid for the panels that made it. Our post on Oregon net metering covers the mechanics.
The PGE Smart Battery pilot
Separately from Energy Trust, PGE runs a battery pilot that pays $1.70 per kWh in bill credits for energy drawn from your battery during a Peak Time Event. There is no upfront enrollment rebate. If someone quotes you a monthly payment or a signing bonus for connecting a battery to PGE, ask them to show you where it says so.
Business, farm and non-profit customers
Energy Trust runs a separate commercial offer for PGE customers: $0.10 per watt up to $9,500 for solar, and $300 per kWh up to $9,000 for battery storage. Projects are capped at 360 kW-AC with the same 2 kW-DC minimum. Development assistance of up to $2,000 toward a solar feasibility study and up to $3,000 toward a battery study is also available.
PGE also runs its own Renewable Development Fund, which gives preference to projects hosted by or partnered with a non-profit. It covers part of a project cost, not all of it, since award amounts vary by request and available funding, and it runs on an application cycle rather than being open continuously. Worth a look if you are a school, fire district or community organization, but check the current window before planning around it.
Commercial projects can also still claim the federal investment tax credit, which the residential credit no longer offers. Talk to your tax adviser about the timing and sourcing rules, because both changed in 2025.
What is no longer available
These come up constantly, and older pages across the internet still list them as live. They are not.
The federal residential tax credit has ended. The 30% residential credit (Section 25D) is not available for any property placed in service after December 31, 2025. The trigger is when the system is placed in service, not when you sign. Anyone still showing you a step-down table running to 2032 or 2034 is quoting a schedule that was repealed. If you are holding a quote that shows 30% coming back from the IRS, the real net cost is higher than it says. See what changed.
Oregon has no state solar tax credit. The Residential Energy Tax Credit ended on December 31, 2017 and was never replaced.
The Oregon Department of Energy rebate is closed. It reopened on June 15, 2026 with $1.1 million in repurposed funding and was reserved almost immediately. It opens episodically when the legislature funds it, and we will tell you if a window appears.
USDA REAP grants are paused. The program is not accepting Renewable Energy Systems applications for the 2026 fiscal year. Guaranteed loans continue. See the REAP page for where it stands.
What if I rent, or cannot put panels on my roof?
PGE runs several options that do not need a roof: Green Source and Clean Wind let you buy renewable power blocks on your existing bill, and the Oregon Community Solar Program lets you subscribe to a share of a larger array without owning anything. Terms and availability change, so check with PGE directly rather than taking a figure from a blog post.
What to ask any installer quoting you
- Ask whether they are an Energy Trust trade ally. If not, there is no Energy Trust incentive on your project at all: not a smaller one, none.
- Ask for the incentive shown as a specific figure with the date it was quoted, as its own line rather than folded into a total.
- Treat any quote showing a 30% federal residential credit as out of date, and ask for it to be redone.
- If a battery is in scope, ask for the storage incentive separately. It is a different offer with its own amount.
Want your PGE numbers checked against what is actually available?
We will confirm which utility serves your meter, look at your roof and a year of your bills, and put a written quote in front of you with the Energy Trust incentive on its own line. Free, and no obligation.
Call 360-313-7190 or request a written quote.
Comparing offers? Our Energy Trust incentive comparison tool puts every offer side by side, residential through commercial, for both utilities.
PGE solar FAQs
Does Oregon have a state solar tax credit?
No. Oregon’s Residential Energy Tax Credit ended on December 31, 2017 and has not been replaced. What Oregon does have is the Energy Trust of Oregon cash incentive for PGE and Pacific Power customers, plus net metering. The state rebate run by the Oregon Department of Energy is a separate program and is currently closed.
How much is the PGE solar incentive in 2026?
$3,500 per home for Portland General Electric customers, on systems of at least 2 kW-DC. It is a flat amount per home rather than a rate per watt. Energy Trust adjusts these levels over time, at quarter boundaries, so confirm the amount before you sign. Income-qualified households can claim $1.25 per watt up to $7,500 through Solar Within Reach. Checked September 18, 2026.
Does the incentive come from PGE or Energy Trust?
Energy Trust of Oregon. It is funded by a charge on PGE and Pacific Power bills, which is why only customers of those two utilities are eligible. It is paid to your trade ally contractor and deducted from your project price.
Do I have to apply for the incentive myself?
No. Your trade ally contractor reserves it before installation and deducts it from your price. That is why the contractor has to be on the Energy Trust list. It is not a form you can file yourself afterwards.
What happens to my extra power in summer?
It is banked as kilowatt-hour credits at full retail rate and carried against your winter use. Unused credits are cleared every March, when your annual billing cycle wraps up, and are donated to customers in low-income bill assistance programs. That is why we size a system to your actual annual usage rather than to your roof.
Can you still get the 30% federal tax credit?
Not for a home. The residential credit is not available for any property placed in service after December 31, 2025. Commercial projects are governed by a different section of the code and may still qualify, so ask your tax adviser.