Originally published December 11, 2013. Updated September 27, 2026.
Solar was the biggest source of new power on the US grid for the fifth year running in 2025, with 43 gigawatts of new capacity installed, even though that total was 14% below 2024. Installs picked back up in 2026, with 11.4 GW in the second quarter alone, up 45% from a year earlier.
Worldwide, solar grew faster still. Global installations hit a record 647 GW in 2025, and solar generation jumped 30%, the fastest growth rate in eight years. A new US law ended the tax credit for home solar at the end of 2025. Wood Mackenzie has cut its US forecast for 2025 to 2030 by 4%, and its downside case sits 18% below that.
How much solar the US installed in 2025 and 2026
Solar made up 54% of all new generating capacity added to the US grid in 2025. Add battery storage and the two together made up 70% of everything the US built in the first half of 2026, with solar alone at 45%. In the first quarter of 2026, solar and storage were 91% of all new US power capacity.
The US installed 7.8 GW of solar in the first quarter of 2026, then 11.4 GW in the second quarter, a jump of 43% from the first quarter and 45% from the same quarter a year earlier.
Trackers count the 2025 total differently. SEIA’s 43.2 GW covers every segment, from rooftops to power plants, and is measured in direct current. EIA counts utility-scale plants only and found 27.2 GW of utility-scale solar came online in 2025, down from 30.8 GW in 2024. Ember’s provisional data put utility-scale additions 6% below 2024.
Further out, the growth curve levels off. SEIA and Wood Mackenzie expect the US to add 217 GWdc of solar between 2026 and 2031, about 44 GWdc a year, a pace the report calls flat even as the country’s solar fleet nearly doubles.
How much of America’s electricity comes from solar now
Installed capacity and the electricity a panel produces are two different numbers, and capacity factor is what connects them. Utility-scale solar supplied about 9.6% of all US electricity generation in 2025. Generation from utility-scale solar rose 34% from 2024, to 296,000 GWh.
Counting rooftop solar and wind, wind and solar together made up 19% of US electricity generation in 2025.
EIA counts 151 GW of utility-scale solar in 2025, up from 123 GW in 2024, and projects 181 GW in 2026. Rooftop and other small systems add another 59.5 GW in 2025, which puts the US total at about 210 GW. EIA expects solar generation to grow 21% in 2026 and 18% in 2027.
How the 2025 tax law is reshaping the outlook
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed in July 2025, ended the 30% federal tax credit for home solar on December 31, 2025, and tightened the rules for the commercial and utility credits that remain.
Wood Mackenzie has put a number on what that means. In its base case, the firm expects 246 GWdc of US solar between 2025 and 2030, 4% (11 GWdc) less than it projected before the law passed. Its downside case sits 18% (44 GWdc) below its own base case, with 2026 and 2027 alone about 30% below base.
Residential solar takes the direct hit. Wood Mackenzie forecasts US residential installations falling 21% in 2026. The International Energy Agency publishes its own yearly solar forecasts.
How fast the rest of the world is installing solar
The world added a record 647 GW of solar capacity in 2025, up 11% from 582 GW in 2024. Solar generation grew faster, reaching 2,778 TWh in 2025, up 30% from 2,143 TWh in 2024. That same year, solar overtook wind generation worldwide for the first time.
Solar alone met 75% of the increase in global electricity demand in 2025. It supplied 8.8% of global electricity in the first half of 2025, up from 6.9% a year earlier and 3.8% in the first half of 2021.
A solar module cost $2.51 per watt in 2010 and $0.265 in 2024, both in 2025 dollars, a drop of about 89%.
Which country has the most solar power
China installed 67% of the world’s new solar in the first half of 2025, more than twice what every other country added combined. Ember counted 380 GW of new solar worldwide in those six months, with the rest of the world installing an estimated 124 GW.
By the end of 2025, China’s cumulative solar capacity reached 1.2 terawatts, up 35% in a year, China’s National Energy Administration reported.
| Country or region | Installed solar capacity | As of |
|---|---|---|
| China | 1.2 TW (1,200 GW) | End of 2025 |
| United States | About 210 GW (151 GW utility-scale plus 59.5 GW small-scale) | 2025 |
| World total | 1,865 GW | End of 2024 |
Source: China from China’s National Energy Administration. United States from EIA’s Short-Term Energy Outlook, September 2026, and Table 7e. World total from IRENA, Renewables in 2024.
Comparing these numbers exactly is harder than it looks. The world row is a year older than the China and US rows, dating to before the record global additions of 2025. China’s energy agency also counts installations in AC terms, while global trackers like Ember use DC ratings for the same projects.
What would change this outlook
Developers plan to add 43.4 GW of utility-scale solar in 2026, 60% more than in 2025 if it all gets built. That would be about half of the 86 GW of new capacity planned across all sources in 2026.
The tax law’s deadlines come next. Commercial and utility projects keep their federal credits only if they began construction by July 4, 2026 or are in service by the end of 2027, so the number of projects that finish by then is the thing to watch.
Wood Mackenzie’s base case has the US adding 246 GWdc from 2025 to 2030, and its downside case lands 18% lower. SEIA and Wood Mackenzie’s joint outlook of 217 GWdc from 2026 to 2031 already describes annual installs as flat.
