SMART 3.0: What Massachusetts' Solar Incentive Pays Homeowners

What is SMART 3.0?

SMART stands for Solar Massachusetts Renewable Target. It's the state's production incentive for solar: instead of a one-time rebate, it pays the owner of a solar system a set amount for the electricity the system produces, month after month. The Department of Energy Resources (DOER) runs it under the regulation 225 CMR 28.00.

SMART 3.0 is the third version of the program. DOER issued the rules on an emergency basis in June 2025, filed the final regulations on August 28, 2025, and opened SMART 3.0 to applications on October 15, 2025. To qualify, a system can't have started construction on site before June 20, 2025, and it can't have received a SMART or other renewable incentive before.

SMART is the largest incentive available to a Massachusetts homeowner who owns their system. Our overview of every 2026 solar incentive shows how it fits with the rest.

How much does SMART 3.0 pay a home solar owner?

For home systems of 25 kW AC or less, SMART 3.0 replaced the old base rate and adders with one flat rate. For systems that enroll in Program Year 2026, the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (MassCEC) lists that rate as:

• $0.03 per kilowatt-hour for most households
• $0.06 per kilowatt-hour for income-qualified households

The rate locks in for the program year you enroll, and the utility pays it for up to 20 years, either as a monthly check or as a credit on your bill. It's paid on every kilowatt-hour the system produces, not just the power you send back to the grid.

That's a modest number next to what net metering saves on your bill, which is where most of a Massachusetts system's value comes from. SMART is a steady extra, not the main event.

What changed from SMART 2.0?

SMART 2.0 worked in declining blocks: the earlier your system got in, the higher the rate, and home systems earned a base rate plus adders for things like batteries. SMART 3.0 simplifies that for small systems and resets the rules every year.

Each year, DOER publishes a draft program year report by October 1, takes public comment, and issues a final report by December 1. That final report sets the capacity, rates and adders for the next year. For 2026, the program has 600 MW of capacity statewide. DOER's draft report for 2027 proposes 300 MW, and the small-system rate for 2027 enrollments will be set in the final report expected by December 1, 2026.

How does SMART 3.0 work with net metering?

They are two separate payments, and most home systems get both. Net metering handles the power you don't use right away: when your panels produce more than your home needs, the extra goes to the grid and your utility credits your bill for it. SMART then pays its flat rate on everything the system produces.

Under the state's net metering rules, small systems (10 kW or less on a single-phase connection, which covers most homes) keep full-value credits. Our guide to net metering in Massachusetts explains how those credits show up on your bill, and the pages on Eversource and National Grid cover each utility.

One timing note: SMART payments start once your utility's SMART 3.0 tariff is approved and DOER qualifies your system. The Department of Public Utilities approved the model tariff on May 19, 2026, and each utility then files its own. A system that starts running before that still earns net metering credits in the meantime.

Does a battery earn more under SMART 3.0?

Not for most homes. Under SMART 3.0, systems of 25 kW or less are no longer eligible for the energy storage adder that SMART 2.0 paid. Some websites still advertise a battery bonus for home systems, so if a quote counts one, ask the installer to show where it comes from.

A battery can still pay you in other ways. The ConnectedSolutions program pays battery owners for sharing stored power with the grid on peak summer days, and the battery keeps your essentials running in an outage. Whether that's worth it depends on how often you lose power and what you want to keep on.

How do you sign up, and how does SMART benefit you?

You don't apply yourself. Your installer submits the SMART 3.0 application for you and must give you a Customer Disclosure Form explaining the incentive. To qualify, your home must be served by Eversource, National Grid or Unitil. Homes served by a municipal light plant aren't eligible.

SMART works for you whichever way you pay:

• If you buy with cash or a loan, the SMART payments come to you.
• If you lease or sign a power purchase agreement (PPA), SMART's value comes to you as a lower lease payment or PPA rate, since the payments go to the system owner. Ask how it's reflected in your price.

For the full side-by-side, read how to pay for solar in 2026. Leases and PPAs can also benefit from a federal bonus in some areas, covered in our energy community guide. For the other state programs, see Massachusetts solar incentives or go back to the 2026 incentive guide.

What should you ask an installer about SMART 3.0?

SMART is easy to overstate in a sales pitch, because a small rate paid for 20 years adds up to a large-sounding total. These questions keep the number honest:

1. Which program year rate did you use? A quote written in late 2026 for a system that enrolls in 2027 should say whether it assumes the 2026 rate or waits for DOER's final 2027 rate.
2. How much production is the SMART estimate based on? The payment is only as large as the kilowatt-hours your roof actually produces, so the estimate should match the production figure elsewhere in the proposal.
3. Does the quote count a battery adder? For a home system of 25 kW or less, it shouldn't.
4. How does SMART show up for you? If you own the system, as payments to you. If you're leasing or signing a PPA, ask how its value lowers your monthly payment or rate.
5. Do I qualify for the income-qualified rate? If your household might, ask before you sign, because it doubles the payment.

A good proposal shows SMART as its own line, separate from your bill savings, so you can see what the system is worth with and without it.

Frequently asked questions