How much does a home battery cost?
A battery costs about as much as a small solar system and does a different job. Here are the prices and the job.
The average home battery quote on the EnergySage marketplace is $1,159 per kWh of storage, or about $15,647 installed for a 13.5 kWh battery before incentives (EnergySage, updated Aug 26, 2026). By state it runs from $815/kWh in Arizona to $1,300/kWh in Colorado. The 30% federal credit that used to cover batteries is not available for property placed in service after December 31, 2025 (IRS).
Battery cost by state
Installed, before incentives, for a 13 kWh system, from EnergySage state data as of September 2026:
| State | Price per kWh | Typical 13 kWh system | Range |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona | $815/kWh | $10,593 | $9,004–$12,182 |
| Florida | $932/kWh | $12,121 | $10,303–$13,939 |
| Texas | $1,000/kWh | $13,000 | $11,050–$14,950 |
| California | $1,074/kWh | $13,958 | $11,864–$16,052 |
| New Jersey | $1,074/kWh | $13,963 | $11,869–$16,057 |
| New York | $1,148/kWh | $14,926 | $12,687–$17,165 |
| Massachusetts | $1,200/kWh | $15,600 | $13,260–$17,940 |
| Colorado | $1,300/kWh | $16,900 | $14,365–$19,435 |
Marketplace quotes, not a survey of every installer. A second reference point: NREL publishes bottom-up cost benchmarks for residential PV and storage (NREL, Q1 2024).
What a battery does for your bill
- Stores daytime solar for the evening. That matters when your utility pays little for exported power, as under California's Net Billing or Arizona's net billing rates: using your own kWh at the retail price beats exporting it for a few cents. Net metering vs net billing.
- Shifts use away from peak hours on time-of-use plans.
- Does not make the panels produce more. With full net metering, where exports earn the retail rate, a battery adds cost but little savings.
What it does in an outage
A standard grid-tied solar system shuts off when the grid goes down. A battery with backup wiring keeps selected circuits running; how long depends on its size and what you run. Solar in a power outage.
How many homes add one
In the utility records I collected, the share of home solar systems installed with a battery runs from 0% in Toms River to 19% in Austin. Cities with low export credits and frequent outages are where it's common.
Before you buy
- Get the battery quoted separately from the panels: price, kWh, kW of power, and whether backup wiring is included.
- Ask for the savings math for your rate plan, not a national figure. If exports earn near-retail, the battery may not pay back.
- Check the warranty in years and in cycles or throughput, and who services it if the installer closes. How to check a solar quote.
Run your own numbers
Enter your ZIP and bill to see what solar alone would save; choose solar + battery in the quote form if you want storage priced too.
Keep reading
- How much solar panels cost in 2026 — Average price per watt by state and city, and what a 5, 7 or 10 kW system costs before incentives.
- Net metering vs net billing — How each utility credits the power you send to the grid, and what it does to savings.
- Do solar panels work in a power outage? — Why a standard system switches off with the grid, and what it takes to keep the lights on.
Installer records by city: solar companies in Phoenix, solar companies in Tucson, solar companies in San Antonio, solar companies in Austin, solar companies in San Diego, solar companies in Fresno, solar companies in Chandler, solar companies in Scottsdale, solar companies in Gilbert, solar companies in Glendale, solar companies in Tempe, solar companies in Peoria, solar companies in Surprise, solar companies in San Jose, solar companies in Bakersfield, solar companies in Clovis, solar companies in Chula Vista, solar companies in Oceanside, solar companies in Carlsbad, solar companies in Toms River, solar companies in New York, solar companies in Elizabeth, solar companies in Yonkers.
Updated 2026-09-21.