Today at Bloomberg's Future of Energy Summit in New York, EnergySage released its latest semiannual Solar Marketplace Intel Report™. EnergySage's report is based on millions of transaction-level data points generated within its Solar Marketplace, and serves as one of the country's foremost leading indicators of the future of residential solar shopping.

This sixth and latest report features new datasets and analyses including complete visibility into the specific brands of solar panels most likely to drive sales on EnergySage, and what other energy-related products and services today's solar shoppers are considering, such as the Tesla Powerwall home battery.

Key insights from the latest Solar Marketplace Intel Report include:

Equipment quality, not lowest price, drives buying decisions
EnergySage reviewed the equipment that consumers chose most frequently on the Solar Marketplace. In 2017, the most successful quotes all included higher quality panels such as SunPower, LG and Panasonic. This reflects a broader trend seen throughout the report: prospective solar customers are compelled by offers that include quality products at the right price.

Three in four solar shoppers also considering energy storage
In 2017, 74% of solar shoppers who shared their non-solar energy interests with EnergySage stated they were also considering a home battery like the Tesla Powerwall. While this hasn't yet translated into an equivalent sales volume, batteries present a massive new market opportunity for installers, manufacturers, lenders, and utilities to capitalize on in coming years.

Cost of solar continues to fall, the lowest prices seen to date
When EnergySage first started tracking the cost of solar offered to consumers in 2014, the national average was at $3.86 per watt. By the end of 2017, the national average had fallen to $3.13 per watt. In many parts of the country including Florida, Arizona and Maryland, average costs were below $3.00 per watt on EnergySage and as low as $2.00 per watt in some counties.

"Today's residential solar consumers are opting to own their systems, and as our data shows, they're prioritizing equipment quality and value over whatever is the cheapest option," said EnergySage CEO and founder Vikram Aggarwal. "Our mission to make solar more accessible and affordable for Americans through transparency is allowing today's solar shopper to find the right solutions at the right price."

Additionally, EnergySage analyzed quotes submitted to Solar Marketplace shoppers in five different utility service territories. The report compared the cost of solar energy to today's electricity rates in territories served by Green Mountain Power, Pacific Power, Puget Sound Energy, San Diego Gas & Electric, and Tampa Electric. Remarkably, in every utility service territory except for Puget Sound Energy, the cost of solar was at least 50% below the 2017 residential electricity rate offered by the utility, and often lower.

EnergySage is the most visited website in the U.S. solar industry, and runs the country's leading comparison-shopping marketplace for rooftop solar, community solar, and solar financing. This latest report furthers the company's mission to support the healthy growth of the solar industry via consumer education and empowerment, price transparency, and greater information sharing among all stakeholders. Since early 2017, EnergySage data has been incorporated into Bloomberg New Energy Finance's U.S. Residential PV Tracker – an interactive dashboard that provides solar market intelligence and pricing trends to industry experts.

This report can be downloaded for free at: www.energysage.com/data. EnergySage's CEO and founder, Vikram Aggarwal, will be participating in a panel at Bloomberg's Future of Energy Summit, where he'll be discussing the latest findings from the EnergySage Solar Marketplace. The panel, Solar's Coming of Age: Trade, Jobs and Taxation, takes place in New York City on Tuesday, April 10 at 9:25 A.M.

ABOUT ENERGYSAGE, INC.
EnergySage is the leading online comparison-shopping marketplace for rooftop solar, community solar, and financing. Supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, EnergySage is the trusted source of information for over 6 million consumers across 35+ states. As of early 2018, the company has sent over $3 billion in solar installation requests to its network of more than 500 pre-screened solar installation companies, and serves as a high-quality lead source for solar financing companies and powerful distribution channel for solar equipment manufacturers. EnergySage is unique in that it allows consumers to request and compare competing quotes online, unlike traditional lead-generation websites. For this reason, leading organizations like Environment America, Connecticut Green Bank, Duke University, National Grid, and Staples refer their audiences to EnergySage to empower them as they consider solar. The EnergySage formula of unbiased information, transparency and choice helps consumers go solar with confidence – at a higher rate of adoption, and lower cost. For more information, please visit EnergySage and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.