Sunrun’s 70% battery attachment rate shows where residential solar is really headed: storage‑first, AI‑driven, and built for resilience, savings, and grid value.
Most residential solar companies would kill for a 35% year‑over‑year revenue bump while cutting losses by a third. Sunrun just did it—and the quiet hero isn’t more panels. It’s batteries.
In Q3 2025, Sunrun reported US$724.6 million in revenue and a 70% battery storage attachment rate—meaning seven out of ten new rooftop solar systems went in with a home battery. That shift didn’t just look good on a slide deck. It actively softened losses, improved cash generation, and pushed Sunrun’s operations into the black for the quarter.
This matters because residential energy is in the middle of a structural reset. Between volatile grid prices, extreme weather, and tighter climate goals, the old “solar-only” mindset is starting to look dated. Storage—supercharged by smarter software and AI—is where the real value is emerging.
This article breaks down what Sunrun’s numbers actually tell us, why storage‑first strategies are winning, and how homeowners, installers, and green‑tech investors can use this shift to their advantage.
Sunrun’s Q3 2025: The Numbers Behind “Storage‑First”
Sunrun’s Q3 2025 results show how fast the residential energy model is tilting toward storage:
- Revenue: US$724.6 million in Q3 2025
- Growth: 35% year‑over‑year vs. Q3 2024 (US$537.2 million)
- Storage attachment rate: 70% of new solar installs included a battery
- New storage capacity: 412MWh added in Q3 2025, up 23% year‑over‑year
- Net loss: US$277.8 million, down from US$412.2 million a year earlier
- Operations: US$3.7 million profit in Q3 vs. a loss over the first nine months
- Tax credit proceeds: US$1.2 billion in the first nine months of 2025, more than double 2024’s US$557.1 million over the same period
Here’s the key point: Sunrun didn’t shrink its way to better results. It grew revenue aggressively while pushing storage deeper into every sale. That 70% attachment rate is up from 60% in Q3 2024, and way up from just 14.9% in Q1 2023.
The trend line is clear: residential solar without storage is becoming the exception, not the norm.
Why Batteries Are Fixing the Residential Solar Business Model
The residential solar leasing and PPA model has been under pressure for years. Customer acquisition costs rose, net metering policies tightened in several US states, and cheap daytime solar has eroded export value in some markets. Panels alone just don’t print the returns they used to.
Batteries change that equation in three big ways.
1. Higher project value and better margins
Attaching a battery to a rooftop system immediately increases the project’s capital value and, often, its margin. You’re not just selling kilowatts of capacity on the roof. You’re selling:
- Backup power during outages
- Bill savings from time‑of‑use arbitrage
- Participation in virtual power plants (VPPs) or grid services
For a leaser like Sunrun, each system with storage becomes a multi‑revenue‑stream asset, not just a one‑dimensional solar generator.
2. Stronger cash flow through tax credits and financing
Sunrun’s US$1.2 billion in proceeds from tax credit transfers in the first nine months of 2025 is a serious tell.
Solar‑plus‑storage assets in the US qualify for generous incentives under current policy. With transferability, developers and leasers can monetise those tax credits quickly, instead of waiting years to absorb them against their own liabilities.
That improves project payback, lowers the cost of capital, and creates room to offer more attractive terms to customers. Batteries make the stack of eligible credits bigger—and the financing story cleaner.
3. Smarter, AI‑driven energy management
Here’s where green technology and AI really start to matter.
A solar‑plus‑storage home with modern control software isn’t just a little power plant; it’s a responsive energy node. Using AI and predictive analytics, systems can:
- Forecast household demand
- Predict solar production based on weather
- Optimise when to charge and discharge the battery
- Respond to grid price signals or utility events in real time
That optimisation unlocks more value from the same hardware. It’s one reason storage attachment rates are climbing: software and AI make the economics of batteries more compelling every year.
What a 70% Storage Attachment Rate Means for Homeowners
For homeowners, Sunrun’s 70% storage rate is a signal of where the market is heading and what “normal” will look like over the next few years.
Solar‑only is becoming a half‑measure
Solar alone still reduces bills and emissions, but it leaves a lot on the table:
- No backup during blackouts
- Limited benefit in areas where export rates are low
- Less flexibility when utilities introduce time‑of‑use tariffs or demand charges
I’ve seen more and more homeowners regret skipping the battery once they watch neighbours ride through an outage with lights on and fridges running. The incremental cost of adding storage at install is almost always lower than retrofitting later.
Storage protects against volatile grid conditions
Between extreme weather events, heat waves, and ageing grid infrastructure, outages are getting more common and more expensive.
A home battery paired with solar can:
- Keep critical loads powered (refrigeration, medical devices, internet, lighting)
- Reduce exposure to sudden price spikes in dynamic tariffs
- Support electric vehicle charging during grid interruptions
When 70% of new installs include batteries, what you’re really seeing is a behavioural shift in risk perception. Homeowners are treating energy resilience as a household necessity, not a luxury.
How to evaluate a solar‑plus‑storage offer
If you’re considering a system, your decision shouldn’t just be about panel wattage or battery brand. Focus on:
- Use case: Backup only, bill savings, or participation in grid services?
- Control software: Does it use forecasts, price signals, or AI to optimise?
- Ownership model: Lease, PPA, loan, or cash purchase—how does the battery value flow back to you?
- Tariff structure: Are you on time‑of‑use or net billing where storage gains more value?
The companies that explain these clearly—and show real data—are the ones you should take seriously.
For Installers and Developers: Lessons from Sunrun’s Strategy
Most companies in residential solar still underestimate how central storage is becoming to their survival. Sunrun’s trajectory offers some blunt lessons for the rest of the market.
Make storage the default, not the upsell
A 70% attachment rate doesn’t happen by treating batteries as optional accessories. It comes from designing the whole customer journey around solar‑plus‑storage:
- Quoting: Present systems with and without storage, but lead with combined value
- Sales scripts: Start from resilience and bill control, not just “cheap solar power”
- Training: Make sure sales and support teams understand tariffs, incentives, and backup design
The reality? It’s simpler than you think. When storage is framed as the standard modern system, most customers follow.
Use software and AI as a differentiator
Green technology isn’t just hardware anymore. If you’re not talking about software, you’re probably missing half the value proposition.
Practical ways to stand out:
- Offer smart controls that optimise for bill savings and carbon intensity
- Use AI‑driven tools to size systems more accurately from smart meter data
- Provide clear, app‑based dashboards showing avoided costs and emissions
Customers love seeing proof their system is working hard for them. That proof is nearly always software‑driven.
Build a financing and incentive engine, not just a sales team
Sunrun’s doubling of tax credit proceeds year‑over‑year isn’t an accident. They’ve built serious muscle around monetising incentives.
If you’re a smaller installer or developer, you don’t need a Wall Street‑grade structure, but you do need:
- Up‑to‑date knowledge of federal, state, and utility incentives
- Partnerships with financiers comfortable with solar‑plus‑storage assets
- A clean process to pass value from incentives back to customers
The companies that master this back‑office piece will outcompete on price and profitability.
How This Fits into the Bigger Green Technology Shift
Sunrun’s Q3 isn’t just a company milestone. It’s part of a wider pattern across the green technology space:
- Utilities are integrating massive grid‑scale batteries.
- Countries are building multi‑gigawatt solar‑plus‑storage complexes.
- AI is being deployed to orchestrate everything from home batteries to utility‑scale assets as a connected fleet.
Residential systems are the “edge” of this new energy network. When 412MWh of home storage is added in a single quarter—and most of it is connected, controllable, and software‑driven—you’re not just installing appliances. You’re building distributed infrastructure.
This is exactly where AI shines in green technology:
- Predictive maintenance for batteries
- Intelligent dispatch across thousands of homes
- Carbon‑aware scheduling of loads like EV charging and heat pumps
The more storage that’s attached to solar, the smarter and more flexible the whole system becomes.
What to Do Next if You’re Serious About Clean Energy
If you’re a homeowner, the message from Sunrun’s results is straightforward: treat storage as part of going solar, not a later upgrade. Ask installers specifically how their systems use software and automation to improve savings and resilience.
If you’re an installer, developer, or investor, it’s time to stop thinking in silos. Solar, storage, AI‑driven controls, and creative financing now live in one stack. The companies growing fastest are the ones that design around that full stack, not just the hardware on the roof.
And if you’re watching the broader green technology transition, Sunrun’s 70% storage attachment rate is a clear signal: the future of clean energy is not just about generating electrons—it’s about storing them intelligently and using them strategically.
The next wave of winners in this space won’t be the ones selling the cheapest panels. They’ll be the ones turning homes into smart, flexible energy assets that support both the grid and the people living under those roofs.