Three installers in high-visibility gear lifting and setting solar panels along the ridge of a metal barn roof.

Our Work

Solar & Storage Installations

No-cost solar and battery storage for those that need it most.

Including rooftop solar, battery storage, multifamily and commercial systems, and community solar projects for income-qualified households and Tribal Nations.

Our Solar & Storage Installations Impact

  • Rows of solar panels covering the flat roofs of a colorful multi-unit housing complex.

    25,515

    systems installed

  • An installer in sunglasses and a yellow safety vest carries a solar panel into position.

    3,426,560,298.91

    kW installed

  • A woman with pink hair rides a bicycle past a bed of orange flowers.

    $891M+

    lifetime energy savings

  • A woman helps a child into the back seat of a car in a driveway.

    2.4M+

    tons of greenhouse gas emissions prevented

Our Impact

  • A father carries two children on his shoulders in a backyard.

    Family Savings

    Energy cost savings that help struggling households put food on the table or pay for medical care.

  • A group of trainees in hard hats and safety glasses gather around solar equipment in a workshop.

    Workforce Training

    A classroom in the field for solar aspirants, supporting local jobs and a growing industry.

  • A group of installers cheers together on a rooftop lined with solar panels.

    Cleaner Air

    Greenhouse gas reductions that help local governments hit emissions targets and clean the air for everyone.

Solar Projects

We install solar for income-qualified households, communities, and affordable housing providers — populations too often overlooked by private solar companies.

  • A man in a GRID hoodie stands beside solar equipment staged for a residential install.

    Single-Family Solar

    GRID works with income-qualified homeowners to install no-cost rooftop solar panels and help lower household electricity costs. Each installation is also an opportunity for community members and job trainees to get hands-on experience with solar power. In California, GRID Alternatives is a statewide program administrator for the Single-Family Affordable Solar Homes (SASH) program, the Disadvantaged Communities — Single-family Solar Homes (DAC-SASH) program, and the solar portion of the Low-Income Weatherization Program (LIWP).

  • Solar panels cover the roof of a church building under a clear blue sky.

    Community Solar

    Community solar makes clean energy possible for people who can’t put panels on their own roof — renters, homeowners with shaded or aging roofs, and nonprofits without a rooftop to spare. GRID partners with utilities, Tribes, local governments, and affordable housing providers to build shared solar arrays that lower electricity costs for the community members and organizations who need it most.

  • A team of installers gathers on a hillside multifamily rooftop during a solar install.

    Commercial and Multifamily Solar & Storage

    Multifamily solar can lower and stabilize energy costs for affordable housing providers, and reduce bills for the residents who live there. GRID provides no-cost technical assistance and low-cost design and installation services for affordable housing owners and developers serving income-qualified renters. The model also includes energy efficiency partnerships, community education, and job training opportunities for residents.

  • A man carries a battery storage unit across a yard toward a home.

    Battery Storage

    Pairing solar with battery storage lets households use more of the clean energy their panels produce and keep the power on during an outage. GRID works with utilities and state programs, including California’s Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP), to bring battery storage within reach for income-qualified households, with a focus on communities most affected by wildfires and public safety power shutoffs.

Solar Installation Milestones

A GRID crew in safety harnesses poses together on a rooftop under construction.

GRID is founded.

Amid the 2001 California energy crisis, engineers Erica Mackie and Tim Sears found GRID Alternatives on a simple idea: free, clean electricity from the sun should be available to everyone. They set out to build a model that made solar practical and accessible for income-qualified communities, while opening pathways to clean energy jobs.

A man in a GRID hoodie stands beside solar equipment staged for a residential install.

First single-family installation.

GRID completes its first single-family solar installation, for the Murphy family in San Carlos

Solar panels cover the roof of a church building under a clear blue sky.

First-of-its-kind solar incentive program.

GRID leads implementation of the nation’s first low-income solar incentive program for single-family homeowners under the California Solar Initiative, bringing solar to more than 5,200 households in the program’s initial seven-year run.

A team of installers gathers on a hillside multifamily rooftop during a solar install.

No-cost solar expands.

The success of GRID’s original solar incentive program led to its renewal, extending no-cost solar access to more income-qualified households across California.

A man carries a battery storage unit across a yard toward a home.

Weatherization partnership.

GRID receives funding to launch a parallel program with the California Department of Community Services and Development’s Low-Income Weatherization Program (LIWP), pairing rooftop solar with home weatherization upgrades for income-qualified households through 2018.

A ground-mounted solar carport shades parked trucks beside palm trees at an installation site.

Named DAC-SASH administrator.

GRID is named administrator of California’s Disadvantaged Communities — Single-family Solar Homes (DAC-SASH) program, extending no-cost solar to environmental justice communities with job training built into every project.

Two installers pass a ladder up the side of a building from a low, dramatic angle.

$249 million SANAH award.

The EPA awards GRID’s Solar Access for Nationwide Affordable Housing (SANAH) coalition over $249 million on Earth Day 2024, to bring solar to an estimated 40,000 households living in rented and owned affordable housing nationwide.

Two installers pass a ladder up the side of a building from a low, dramatic angle.
Aerial view of a large community building with solar panels covering its rooftop.

Where capital fills the gap

The Energy Resilience Fund

For larger community and multifamily projects, government incentives don’t always cover the full cost. GRID’s loan fund bridges that gap, providing affordable project financing where traditional lenders won’t.

Visit the fund(this link opens in new window)