Xcel Energy · Colorado

Xcel will pay up to $30,000 for solar. Find out in a minute whether that's you.

That's $3.00 per watt on a system up to 10 kW AC — enough, for income-qualified Colorado households, to cover the full cost of the system. The income limits are far higher than most people assume, and there's a second path that qualifies on your address alone, with no income documentation at all.

Four questions, no email required to see your result
Checks the published limits Xcel actually accepts
Tells you which agency to go to, and what they need

Check My Eligibility

Rebate screener

See whether you qualify.

Four questions, no email required. This checks your household against the published income limits Xcel accepts — it's a strong indicator, not a decision. Only an approved agency can verify and sign the form, which is the part we help you through.

Your county

People in your household

Total household income, before taxes

$85,000 / year

$20,000$250,000+

Everyone in the home, added together. Agencies count income slightly differently — an estimate is fine here.

Do you already receive LEAP?

System size you're considering

7 kW AC

3 kW10 kW (rebate cap)

Adding a battery?

You likely qualify

Your income is under the published Denver County limit of $115,200

You're comfortably under the limit. An approved agency still has to verify and sign Xcel's form — that's the step we'd handle with you.

Estimated solar rebate

$21,000

Rebate tier appliedIncome qualified

Solar rate$3.00/W × 7 kW

Estimated total$21,000

Battery rebates are capped at 75% of equipment cost, so your battery figure may come in lower than the rate suggests. We confirm the exact number in your proposal.

Your likely verification path

Energy Outreach Colorado

Households outside the LEAP winter window, and higher earners in Front Range counties where EOC limits are highest.

How it works: Income limits are published by county and household size. Contact EOC directly to begin verification.

Have Us Handle the Paperwork

We'll confirm your DI status, get you to the right agency, and submit the Xcel application before your install. No cost, no obligation.

This screener is an estimate, not a qualification decision. It compares your household against the income limits Xcel accepts — 200% of the 2026 federal poverty guideline, and Energy Outreach Colorado's published county limits for the 2026-27 program year. Only an approved agency can verify your income and sign the form Xcel requires, and only Xcel can approve a rebate. Disproportionately Impacted Community status is set by census block group, which is finer than county or ZIP, so it must be checked by address. Rebate levels are set by the Colorado Public Utilities Commission, funding is limited and first-come first-served, and both can change between program years.

What the rebates are actually worth

Colorado's Public Utilities Commission approved a settlement in April 2026, as part of Xcel's 2026–2027 Renewable Energy Plan, that raised these incentives substantially. Most Colorado homeowners still have no idea they exist.

Program	Income qualified	DI Community	Standard
Solar (per watt)	$3.00/W, up to 10 kW AC	$0.50/W	Production incentive
Battery (per kW AC)	$1,000/kW	$500/kW	$250/kW, max $5,000

Battery rebates on the DI and income-qualified tiers are capped at 75% of equipment cost, and participating homes also receive about $100 a year for 5 years. Full program terms are on Xcel's Solar*Rewards and Renewable Battery Connect pages.

Three ways to qualify. You only need one.

This is the part that surprises people. These are alternatives, not requirements — meeting any single one is enough.

80% AMI — Household income at or below 80% of Area Median Income for your county. This is the most generous of the three tests along the Front Range, and the one most households qualify under.
200% FPL — Household income at or below 200% of the federal poverty guideline for your household size.
LEAP — Already enrolled in Colorado LEAP, the Low-income Energy Assistance Program. If you are, you have the shortest path — the qualification work is already done.

Area Median Income scales with local housing costs, and along the Front Range that pushes the limit well above what "income qualified" sounds like. A lot of teachers, tradespeople, retirees, and single-earner families clear it comfortably.

The fourth path: your address

If your home sits in a Disproportionately Impacted Community, you qualify for the $0.50/W solar rebate and $500/kW battery rebate on address alone — no income documentation of any kind. Colorado maps these through the state's EnviroScreen tool, and the designations cover large parts of the Front Range that homeowners never assume would be on the list.

Because eligibility is set by census block group — finer than county or ZIP — it has to be checked by address. We do that for free, and it takes about a minute.

Who can verify your income, and how each one works

Xcel will not take your word for your income, and neither will we. A signed verification form has to come from one of five approved organizations. Which one fits depends on where you live, what time of year it is, and whether you're already in a program:

Organization	Threshold used	When you can apply	Best fit for
Colorado LEAP	60% of State Median Income	Applications open Nov 1 – Apr 30 each year	Anyone who already receives LEAP, or applies during the winter season. Enrollment doubles as your Xcel income qualification.
Energy Outreach Colorado	County-specific limits, published annually	Year-round	Households outside the LEAP winter window, and higher earners in Front Range counties where EOC limits are highest.
GRID Alternatives Colorado	Set per program	Year-round, subject to capacity	Homeowners in Adams County, Arapahoe County, Brighton, and Thornton, where GRID actively runs its Energy for All program.
Colorado Energy Office	Set per program	Year-round	Households already working with a state weatherization or energy program.
Municipal housing authority	Set per authority	Year-round	Households already in contact with a local housing authority.

The single most useful thing to know: LEAP only accepts applications between November 1 and April 30. If you're reading this outside that window and aren't already enrolled, Energy Outreach Colorado is usually the faster route. If you live in Adams or Arapahoe County, GRID Alternatives runs an active program in your area and is worth trying first.

What we actually do for you

Telling you a rebate exists and leaving you to chase it is not much help. Here's the part we take on:

We confirm which door you go through

Income qualified, DI Community, or both. We check your address against the state's EnviroScreen map ourselves rather than sending you off to interpret it, and we tell you which of the three income tests you're closest to.

We get you to the right agency

Xcel will only accept a signed verification form from one of five approved organizations, and which one fits depends on your county, the time of year, and whether you already receive LEAP. We make the introduction and tell you what to bring.

We submit the Xcel application

This is the step homeowners cannot do themselves. Xcel requires the installer to apply through the contractor portal before any equipment is installed — install first and the rebate is gone. We file it and hold your place in the funding queue.

We design and install

Once approved, we size the system against the 10 kW AC rebate cap and your actual usage, then handle permitting, installation, inspection, and permission to operate.

Let's get you qualified

We'll handle the paperwork.

Tell us where you are and we'll confirm your DI status, point you at the right agency, and file the Xcel application before your install — which is the step that has to happen first, and the one you can't do yourself.

Free address check against the DI Community map
We tell you exactly which agency and what documents
We file with Xcel and hold your place in the funding queue
No cost, no obligation, no pressure

Funding is limited and first-come, first-served. The 2025 solar allocation filled in the first week of January, and the battery program exhausted its budget in February 2026 before reopening in May.

Start your eligibility check

Loading secure form…