q1 2026

Energy Storage Market Outlook 

February 23, 2026

energy leadership

• Overview

• Executive Summary

• Industry Trends Data

• Press Release

• State by State

The Energy Storage Market Outlook (ESMO) is a quarterly publication produced by the Solar Energy Industries Association and Benchmark Mineral Intelligence. ESMO draws on Benchmark’s proprietary grid and behind the meter data on U.S. energy storage deployment, which when combined with SEIA’s industry leading expertise, provides a detailed analysis of the state of the U.S. energy storage market and forecasts to inform industry leaders, investors, manufacturers, and policymakers. The report includes comprehensive analysis of deployment trends, market sizing, and growth projections for utility scale and behind the meter segments, in addition to an energy storage supply chain analysis, federal and state policy overview, and technology roadmaps and developments.

Key Findings

• In 2025, battery energy stationary storage (BESS) installations surpassed 57 GWh/28 GW, a y-o-y increase of 29% (GWh). The utility-scale market underpinned growth with just under 50 GWh/16GW installed, with California, Texas and Arizona accounting for 74% of installed capacity.  

• Meanwhile, the behind-the-meter (BTM) market saw its share of demand remain consistent with 2024 at 13% of the total market, representing 8 GWh/12 GW. The BTM market saw strong growth in the residential market as the 25D tax credit came to an end.  

• Throughout 2025 the U.S. BESS policy landscape has seen significant change, with the most substantial being the passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). Several states also announced greater commitments to renewables and energy storage. 

• U.S. BESS deployments are set to increase to 70 GWh/35 GW in2026, with the utility-scale market accounting for 62.4 GWh/20.2GW and BTM markets accounting for 7.3 GWh/14.8 GW. This represents an estimated $25.2B in capital investment.  

• By 2030, the market is set to exceed annual installations of 110 GWh/47 GW. By2030 cumulative installed utility-scale BESS is set to reach just under 500 GWh. 

Energy Storage Cheat Sheet

• Storage Capacity:
  163 GWh

• Storage Deployed in 2025:
  57.6 GWh

• Total Storage Jobs:
  78,809

• Number of states with an operational or under construction battery factory:
  24

• Enough Storage Installed in the U.S. to Power:
  5.1 million homes for a year