Energy Saver NC is North Carolina’s federally funded home energy rebate program, run by the State Energy Office at NC DEQ and available in all 100 counties since February 2026; for income-eligible households it pays up to $8,000 toward an ENERGY STAR heat pump at point of sale through the HEAR track (up to $14,000 per dwelling across all HEAR measures), or up to $16,000 for whole-home efficiency upgrades through the HOMES track. Households at or below 80% of area median income can have up to 100% of project cost covered within those caps; households between 80% and 150% of AMI get up to 50%; households above 150% of AMI are not eligible and rely on utility rebates instead.
The two tracks
HEAR (Home Electrification and Appliance Rebates) is the appliance track. It rebates specific ENERGY STAR equipment installed by a registered contractor: up to $8,000 for a heat pump for space heating and cooling, up to $4,000 for an electrical panel, up to $2,500 for wiring, up to $1,750 for a heat pump water heater, up to $1,600 for insulation, air sealing and ventilation, and $840 each for a heat pump dryer or electric range, within a $14,000 per-dwelling cap. HEAR does not require a home assessment, which makes it the track for a failed system that needs replacing quickly. HEAR rebates are not retroactive.
HOMES (Homeowners Managing Efficiency Savings) is the whole-home track. It starts with a free home assessment, models the energy savings from a package of upgrades (insulation, air sealing, HVAC), and pays up to $16,000 based on the modeled savings and your income tier; projects must achieve at least 20% modeled energy savings. HOMES can apply retroactively to qualifying projects started on or after August 16, 2022 that meet all federal requirements.
Who qualifies
Single-family homeowners, multifamily building owners, and tenants with landlord permission. Eligibility is by household income relative to area median income (AMI) for your county and household size: below 80% AMI, up to 100% of project cost covered within the caps; 80–150% AMI, up to 50%; above 150%, not eligible. Enrollment in LIEAP or Medicaid can qualify you for the higher tier without separate income verification. Program funds are first come, first served, expected to last until 2031 or until depleted, and the state’s income eligibility application can be started online at energysavernc.org even before you’ve chosen a contractor.
How to apply
Confirm eligibility on the program portal (or by paper application), then for HEAR use the registered contractor finder to get quotes from participating contractors, who apply the rebate at point of sale; for HOMES schedule the free assessment first. All installation must be done by an Energy Saver NC registered contractor; ask any contractor you’re considering whether they are registered before you accept a quote. Contractors who aren’t can’t deliver the rebate.
Rebate levels at a glance
| Measure | HEAR rebate (up to) |
|---|---|
| Heat pump for space heating and cooling | $8,000 |
| Electrical panel (load service center) | $4,000 |
| Electrical wiring | $2,500 |
| Heat pump water heater | $1,750 |
| Insulation, air sealing, ventilation | $1,600 |
| Heat pump clothes dryer | $840 |
| Electric range or cooktop | $840 |
| Per-dwelling cap (HEAR) | $14,000 |
| HOMES whole-home cap | $16,000 |
Rebates cannot exceed actual project cost. Combining Energy Saver NC with utility incentives on the same equipment is allowed as long as the total doesn’t exceed the purchase price. Double-counting with other federal grants (for example WAP) for the same measure is not.
Rollout and status
The program launched in January 2025 in Cleveland and Halifax counties and expanded in phases; Wake and Mecklenburg came online in January 2026 and the state announced statewide availability in February 2026. Program guidance from the U.S. Department of Energy is subject to updates (a change was scheduled for late August 2026), so check the portal for the current notice; this page’s update date is shown at the top.
What it means for your HVAC decision
For eligible households, Energy Saver NC changes the answer to “AC or heat pump?” decisively toward heat pump, since AC-only systems don’t qualify and heat pumps do; the NC heat pump cost page has worked examples. Duke Energy and other utility rebates stack on top; how the incentives stack shows the order. And because only registered contractors can deliver the rebate, contractor choice comes first: every contractor on the North Carolina registry shows the license status we found, and their profile notes program registration where they’ve told us.