Michigan solar rebates and incentives: 2026 guide

Going solar in Michigan is more affordable than most people realize. While your state may not have the flashiest incentive programs in the country, there are still meaningful ways to reduce your system costs—and more importantly, solar's real value comes from decades of electricity savings, not just upfront rebates.

Michigan homeowners have access to some incentives that can help offset installation costs. But the biggest financial advantage of going solar? Dramatically lowering your electric bills for 25-30 years, especially as utility rates keep climbing. Here's what you need to know about solar incentives in Michigan.

Michigan offers some solar incentives, which can help lower the price. Here are the ones to know about:

Lansing Board of Water & Light rebate

The local utility company, Lansing Board of Water & Light, offers rebates to customers who make energy-efficient home upgrades. You can earn rebates for appliance recycling, installing Energy Star appliances, electric vehicle charging and installing solar panels. The solar rebate offers $500 per kW and maxes out at $2,000 or 4 kW.

Michigan Saves Home Improvement Loan

Michigan Saves Home Improvement Loans offers homeowners the chance to upgrade their home’s energy efficiency with favorable loans. With current rates between 4.44% and 7.90%, Michigan Saves negotiates competitive APR with residential lenders. Eligible loan amounts range from $1,000 to $50,000 with terms up to 15 years.

Bonus: HOAs can no longer stop you from going solar

This one isn't an incentive, but it's worth mentioning. Thanks to a state law in July 2024, homeowners' associations (HOA) are prohibited from banning solar panel installations. This change paves the way for increased solar adoption in the Great Lakes State.

Utility companies in Michigan—including Xcel Michigan, DTE, Consumer's Energy, Great Lakes Energy Coop, other electric co-ops, and municipal providers—do offer solar buyback programs through the state’s Distributed Generation Program. 

While the sun is shining, your solar panels might produce more electricity than your home needs at any given moment. Under the net billing solar buyback programs in Michigan, you can sell that excess power back to the grid for credits on your electricity bill. 

The catch is that the utility companies only offer partial credit for every kWh—you’re selling the electricity to them at a significant discount, compared to what they’ll charge you to buy that electricity back later. 

The exact rates depend on the utility company, but it’s generally about half of the retail rate. Great Lakes Energy Coop, for example, pays about $0.06 per kwh sent to the grid —less than half of the retail rate. 

If you want to squeeze the most possible value out of your solar panels under net billing, consider installing a solar battery.

(Michigan previously offered a net metering program, which was more consumer-friendly in several important ways. But as of 2016, utility companies in the state are no longer required to offer true net metering for new solar installations.)

Michigan doesn't offer any state-specific battery incentives, but you can also use your battery to use more of your solar production and for backup power during outages.

If you're looking for solar installers in Michigan, here are some popular suggestions: