PlugPayback

Plug-in solar in Massachusetts: is it worth it for you?

Payback, savings and what is allowed in Massachusetts. With your own power price, no email and no sign-up.

What applies in Massachusetts

Law signed, not yet in force
  • Up to 1,200 W inverter output
  • Plug type: NEMA 5-15 (standard 120 V outlet)

Registration steps

  1. Bill H5175 (with H5151/H4744) would allow systems up to 1,200 W on a standard outlet without utility approval, permits or an electrician. ↗
  • H5175 passed the House and is in the Senate (2026 session).
  • Caps and certification terms not confirmed from bill text.

Rules checked November 5, 2026. Sources

Find the right size for your home

1. Where is the kit going?
2. How many people live in your home?

Typical for this household in Massachusetts: 9,000 kWh a year.

kWh
3. Is someone home during the day?

A balcony railing is near-vertical; a flat roof or garden can be tilted.

$ / kWh

From your bill. Leave blank to use the Massachusetts average of $0.30 per kWh.

How much power?

Suggested for your home 1,150 W (2 panels)

Going bigger pays off up to this size, where you would use about 86% of the power yourself. The next size up (1,200 W) costs $1,799 more and would need more than 25 years to earn that back, because most of its extra power would go to the grid unpaid. Based on a typical 9,000 kWh a year.

Used at homeSent to the grid

1,150 W · from $899

Cheapest kit we found with at least 1,150 W: US Solar Supplier 1180 W Plug-In Solar Kit, 2 panels, 1,180 W. Mount and delivery are extra.

Saves about $276 a year and pays for itself in 3–3.6 years.

Nothing you enter is stored. Results are estimates, shown as a range.

Typical payback by mounting spot

Standard kit (2 panels), about $2,160 at the average Massachusetts power price of $0.30 per kWh, with someone home part of the day.

Mounting spotGenerated per yearSaved per yearPayback
Balcony railing, facing south 832 kWh $226 8–11 years
Balcony railing, facing east 689 kWh $192 10–13 years
Balcony railing, facing west 689 kWh $192 10–13 years
Tilted, facing south 1,188 kWh $306 6–8 years
Tilted, facing east 1,010 kWh $267 7–9 years
Tilted, facing west 1,010 kWh $267 7–9 years
Flat (roof or garden) 1,069 kWh $280 7–9 years

Kits allowed in Massachusetts

Filtered by the local limit, not by commission. We earn a fee on affiliate links; your price does not change.

EcoFlow STREAM Ultra

1,600 W / 1,200 W · 1.92 kWh battery · 10 y

$1,399

View offer

Bright Saver Balcony Solar Kit 180 W

180 W / 360 W · 12 y

$328

View offer

Bright Saver Balcony Solar Kit 360 W

360 W / 360 W · 12 y

$461

View offer

Craftstrom 800 Watt Plug&Play Solar

800 W / 800 W · 10 y

$2,158

View offer

US Solar Supplier 1180 W Plug-In Solar Kit

1,180 W / 900 W · 10 y

$899

View offer

Mango Power S Plug-In Solar Kit

1,200 W / 1,120 W

$2,698

View offer

Common questions

Tenants and flat owners

Not addressed in available summaries.

Grid operator

Proposed: none. Currently utilities may require interconnection review, permits and fees.

Still being confirmed

Still being confirmed

We could not yet confirm the following from an official source. Treat them as provisional.

  • inverterCapW: Proposed 1,200 W per Bright Saver only; malegislature.gov text not read.
  • status: Senate progress not confirmed on an official page.

Sources