Mass Save Explained
It's the largest energy efficiency program in the state, it's funded by your own utility bill, and the first visit costs you nothing. Here's how to use it without getting sold something you don't need.
Quick Facts
- First step Book the no-cost home energy assessment
- Cost to you Nothing, since you already pay for it on your bill
- Bring Two years of utility bills, if you have them
- Order of work Insulation and air sealing, then heating, then the small stuff
- Financing 0% HEAT Loan for qualifying work
- Check before you sign Current rebate amounts
Mass Save is a state-mandated energy efficiency program sponsored by the utilities and energy providers and paid for through a charge on your gas and electric bill. Which means you have already paid into it, whether or not you've ever used it. There's no means test to get the free assessment, and no obligation to buy anything afterward.
Start With the No-Cost Home Energy Assessment
You book it through Mass Save or your own utility, and a certified inspector comes to the house, typically one to two hours, and goes through the following.
- Insulation and air sealing in the attic, walls and basement
- Heating and cooling equipment, and its age and efficiency
- Ductwork, water heating, windows and doors
- Lighting, appliances, and any obvious air leaks or moisture problems
You leave with a written report and a Mass Save ID number. That report is the whole point. It tells you what your house actually needs, in order of payback, and it's the document every rebate is processed against.
Get the Assessment Before You Sign Anything
If a contractor offers to “handle the Mass Save paperwork” before you've had an assessment, that's backwards. The assessment comes first, it sets your incentives, and it's free. Contractors who want to skip it are usually selling a price, not a plan.
What the Rebates Actually Cover
Incentive amounts in this program change, sometimes more than once a year, so treat any number you read, including in this guide, as a starting point, and check the current figure with Mass Save or your utility before you commit. The shape of the offers is stable, though.
- Air sealing and insulation. The most common work, with the rebate covering a percentage of the cost up to a cap. Income-eligible households get a substantially better deal, up to no-cost weatherization.
- Heating and cooling. Rebates for qualifying heat pumps, paid per ton of capacity and capped per project. To qualify you generally have to be replacing natural gas, oil, propane or electric-resistance heat. Income-based enhanced incentives are much larger.
- Water heating and appliances. Rebates on qualifying heat pump water heaters, and on appliances bought through the program.
- The little things. Low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators, efficient light bulbs, and, at some appointments, a smart thermostat.
- Financing. The HEAT Loan offers a 0% interest loan for qualifying improvements, with a set maximum and term, currently up to $25,000 over seven years, confirmed by your utility. Insulation paid for at 0% interest is usually the cheapest money you'll ever borrow.
There are also enhanced offers for households in certain designated equity communities and for small businesses, worth a phone call if your town or income band qualifies.
The Order That Saves the Most Money
Air Sealing and Insulation First
It's the least glamorous item on the list and almost always the best return. A well-sealed, well-insulated house holds whatever heat you buy it.
Then Your Heating System
Size the new system for the house you've just insulated. If you insulate after you install, you'll have paid for capacity you don't need.
Then the Extras
Appliances, water heating, thermostats, the smaller rebates. Do them as they come up.
The Heat-Pump Question, Answered Honestly
Rebates for heat pumps are the largest on the menu, which is why you'll be offered one at nearly every assessment. Whether it saves you money depends on three things.
- What you're replacing. If you heat with oil, propane or electric resistance, the case is usually strong. If you're already on natural gas, the same money buys less comfort.
- Your house's insulation and air sealing. A heat pump is sized for a tight house. In a leaky one, it will run hard and disappoint.
- Your electricity delivery charges. Massachusetts has some of the highest residential electric rates in the country, and delivery, the part you can't shop, is the fastest-growing slice of your bill. A more efficient heat pump still runs on that electricity, and winter is the expensive season.
None of that means don't. It means do the insulation first, get two or three quotes, and ask each installer what the estimate assumes about your current insulation. An honest installer will ask about your assessment report before quoting.
And keep the water-heating and appliance rebates in view, that's free money for items you'd have to replace eventually anyway.
Where This Came From
- Mass Save, on the residential no-cost home energy assessment, current rebate and incentive offers, and the HEAT Loan. masssave.com
- Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities, on the three-year energy efficiency plans the utility sponsors file, and the energy efficiency charge on residential bills. mass.gov
- Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources, Green Communities Act, the statutory basis for ratepayer-funded energy efficiency. mass.gov
- Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources, on energy programs and rebates for individuals. mass.gov
This is what we'd tell a neighbor, not professional advice. Incentive amounts are set and revised by the program sponsors, not by us. Confirm current figures with Mass Save or your utility before you sign a contract.
Do the Cheap Thing First.
Members get the practical version of this every month, one thing to do about the cost of owning a home here, with the numbers behind it.