How do I get a BGE rebate?

It depends on the rebate. Heat pump and HVAC rebates come only through a participating contractor, who builds them into the contract price and files them for you. The heat pump water heater (up to $1,600) and smart thermostat (up to $100) rebates are claimed at bgeproducts.sightline-icf.com or taken instantly at Lowe’s or The Home Depot; the dehumidifier discount is taken at the register. Home Performance starts with a $100 audit; moderate-income projects start with an income application. Read October 6, 2026.

Does BGE publish a heat pump rebate amount?

No. BGE’s Heating and Cooling page, read October 6, 2026, says to check with a participating HVAC contractor and that rebates are reflected in the contract price; the amounts sit in a contractor-only midstream portal. BGE does publish 75% of home-preparation costs, up to $3,000, when a heat pump replaces gas, oil or propane heating, and up to $10,000 plus a $5,000 conversion bonus on its moderate-income Tier 3.

Can I get a free Nest or smart thermostat from BGE?

BGE pays up to $100 per ENERGY STAR connected thermostat you buy (limit three), and its free Quick Home Energy Check-up and free HVAC tune-up both list a smart thermostat among the items the contractor can install at no cost. Connected Rewards adds $50 prepaid cards for enrolling an eligible thermostat and letting BGE adjust it during peak events.

What rebates does Maryland offer, and are the $10,000 and $15,000 rebates from MEA?

The $10,000 and $15,000 figures are BGE’s EmPOWER moderate-income tiers (HVAC up to $10,000 plus a $5,000 electric-conversion bonus), paid through BGE, not Maryland Energy Administration grants. Maryland’s federal HEAR and HOMES rebates are not launched; MEA resubmitted its applications to DOE on September 30, 2026. The other EmPOWER utilities — Pepco, Potomac Edison, Delmarva Power, SMECO — run their own versions; see our Maryland page .

Are there energy efficiency tax credits in 2026 to add to a BGE rebate?

Not federal ones. The 25C and 25D credits ended for equipment placed in service after December 31, 2025. Maryland has no state heat pump credit, and MEA’s $3,000 geothermal grant closed to new applications on January 6, 2026, although BGE’s page still mentions it.

How do I check my BGE rebate status?

There is no public status page. Rebates filed online stay in your record at bgeproducts.sightline-icf.com; for a status answer, call BGE Smart Energy Savers at 1-877-685-7377 with your account number and application date. Recycling checks arrive in six to eight weeks; contractor-filed HVAC rebates never come to you — they are on the contract.

What is the BGE instant rebate program?

Two offers are instant at the register: up to $1,600 on an ENERGY STAR heat pump water heater at Lowe’s or The Home Depot (code from getbgerebate.com) and $50 on an ENERGY STAR dehumidifier at Lowe’s, The Home Depot or Ace. Everything else is an online or mail-in claim, a contractor-priced rebate or a pickup reward.

Does BGE pay for insulation?

Only inside Home Performance with ENERGY STAR: after the $100 audit, air sealing and insulation are rebated as part of the project (rebates averaging $3,000, up to $15,000 with equipment), and moderate-income households get air sealing and insulation worth up to $5,000 for about $250. There is no stand-alone BGE insulation rebate.

Rebates by state / Maryland / BGE (Baltimore Gas and Electric)

BGE Rebates 2026: Heat Pump Water Heater $1,600, Home Performance to $15,000, Thermostat $100

By Ionel Glogoveanu, editor. Every figure on this page was checked against the official source on the date shown.

BGE pays its heating-and-cooling rebates through a participating contractor who builds them into the contract price: no dollar amount for a heat pump is published anywhere on BGE’s pages. What BGE does publish: up to $1,600 on a heat pump water heater plus 75% of home preparation to $1,500; 75% of home preparation to $3,000 for a heat pump that replaces gas, oil or propane; Home Performance rebates averaging $3,000 after a $100 audit, and $10,000 to $15,000 on three moderate-income tiers; $100 per smart thermostat (up to three); $50 dehumidifier and recycling rewards; a free check-up and HVAC tune-up. Fourteen pages read in full on October 6, 2026.

Every figure on this page comes from BGE Smart Energy Savers — Rebates and Discounts (EmPOWER Maryland programs, operated for BGE by ICF) and the sources listed below, each dated; this page was last updated on October 6, 2026. Service area: Baltimore and central Maryland (BGE residential electric and gas customers; EmPOWER Maryland programs delivered under the BGE Smart Energy Savers name). Program window: EmPOWER Maryland 2024–2026 program cycle: BGE’s recycling limits run January 1, 2024 to December 31, 2026; the rebate pages themselves publish no end date; appliance pickups scheduled October 1–31, 2026 must be collected by November 28, 2026.

On this page: Rebate table · Heat pump rebate · Water heater · Home Performance · Where “$10,000 to $15,000” comes from · Thermostats · Instant discounts and pickups · Free · How to apply and check status · Geothermal · How to apply · Deadlines · FAQ

BGE rebates at a glance

Measure	Home and current heating	Standard rebate	Income-qualified / note
Air-source heat pump, ducted (Tier 1: SEER2 15.2, HSPF2 7.5 split / 6.7 packaged; Tier 2: SEER2 16.9)	BGE residential customer; participating HVAC contractor; rebate “reflected in the contract price”	Not published — “check with a participating HVAC contractor”	Moderate-income Tier 3: HVAC with air sealing and insulation, up to $10,000, plus $5,000 when converting from gas, oil or propane (customer pays about $750)
Cold-climate heat pump (SEER2 15.2, HSPF2 8.1) or ductless heat pump (SEER2 15.5 or 18, HSPF2 7.5)	Same: participating contractor, amount in the contract	Not published	Same moderate-income tiers
Home preparation when a heat pump replaces natural gas, oil or propane heating (electrical and make-ready work)	Participating contractor; fossil-fuel system being replaced by electric	75% of home preparation costs, up to $3,000	Moderate-income Tier 2 and 3: $5,000 electric-conversion bonus
Geothermal heat pump (17.1 EER, 3.6 COP)	Participating contractor	Not published by BGE; BGE’s page points to a Maryland Energy Administration grant “up to $3,000”	MEA’s geothermal program closed to new applications on January 6, 2026 (FY26 was its final year)
Heat pump water heater (ENERGY STAR)	BGE residential customer; one rebate per customer address, purchased after January 2, 2024; instant at Lowe’s / The Home Depot, through the Product Advisor, a participating contractor, or by online/mail application	Up to $1,600	Plus 75% of home preparation up to $1,500 when replacing gas, oil or propane; moderate-income Tier 2: water heater with air sealing and insulation up to $7,500 + $5,000 conversion bonus (about $500 customer cost)
Home Performance with ENERGY STAR (air sealing and insulation first, then equipment)	$100 audit (“a $400 value”) by a participating contractor; project done by a participating contractor	Rebates “averaging $3,000”; up to $15,000 when heating-and-cooling or a heat pump water heater is bundled with air sealing and insulation	Moderate income (one person $74,801–$93,500; four people $106,801–$133,500): free audit; Tier 1 air sealing and insulation up to $5,000 for about $250
Smart thermostat (ENERGY STAR certified connected thermostat)	Must control a system with electric or gas heating and/or central air conditioning; online rebate form	Up to $100 per thermostat, limit three per household	Connected Rewards: $50 prepaid card at enrolment plus $50 per thermostat at season end (by November 30), up to $100 in the first year
Dehumidifier (ENERGY STAR)	Bought at Lowe’s, The Home Depot or Ace	$50 instant discount at the register	—
Appliance recycling pickup	Working refrigerator or freezer of 10–30 cubic feet; three large and four small units per household, January 1, 2024–December 31, 2026	$50 per refrigerator or freezer; $25 dehumidifier; $25 room air conditioner or 3–9 cu ft mini fridge collected with a large unit	Pickups scheduled October 1–31, 2026 must be collected by November 28, 2026; check in 6–8 weeks
Quick Home Energy Check-up and HVAC tune-up	Check-up once every five years per address; tune-up for working systems older than three years, by a contractor on BGE’s certified list	Free — both can install a smart thermostat at no cost	Tune-up only above 35°F (heat pumps) or 60°F (AC and furnace); furnace-only any time

Official page: BGE Smart Energy Savers — Rebates and Discounts (EmPOWER Maryland programs, operated for BGE by ICF) · Application: Water heater and thermostat rebates: online application at bgeproducts.sightline-icf.com (run by ICF) or instant at Lowe’s / The Home Depot; heating and cooling: no customer form — the participating contractor files through BGE’s midstream portal · 1-877-685-7377 (BGE Smart Energy Savers residential line)

Heat pump rebate: BGE publishes no amount, the contractor prices it in, and that is the whole public record

BGE’s Heating and Cooling page, read in full on October 6, 2026, is the only one of its program pages without a dollar figure. It says: “Check with a participating HVAC contractor. You may qualify for rebates to help upgrade your system, plus additional incentives for switching from natural gas, oil or propane to electric,” and that the rebate is reflected in the contract price. The amounts live on BGE’s midstream portal, a login page for contractors and distributors run by ICF; nothing on it is public. What is public is the qualifying equipment: air-source heat pumps at SEER2 15.2 and HSPF2 7.5 (Tier 1) or SEER2 16.9 (Tier 2), cold-climate units at HSPF2 8.1, ductless at SEER2 15.5 or 18, geothermal at 17.1 EER and 3.6 COP. So the question “how much is the BGE heat pump rebate” has one honest answer: ask two participating contractors to show BGE’s share as its own line on the quote, and compare. Guides that print a number are not quoting BGE.

Water heater: $1,600 instant or by application, plus $1,500 toward the wiring when you leave gas

The heat pump water heater rebate is BGE’s largest published amount for a single appliance: up to $1,600 on an ENERGY STAR model, one rebate per customer address, for units purchased after January 2, 2024. There are four ways to get it. Buy and install through BGE’s Product Advisor at bgewaterheater.com; use a participating contractor; apply online or by mail at the ICF portal with the receipt, your account number and a photo of the model and serial numbers; or take it instantly at the register at Lowe’s or The Home Depot through getbgerebate.com. The mail-in path is void if the instant discount was already taken, and the rebate cannot exceed the purchase price. When the unit replaces a gas, oil or propane water heater, BGE adds 75% of the home-preparation cost, up to $1,500, for the circuit and other make-ready work. Our water heater guide sets it beside Con Edison, PSE and NorthWestern.

Home Performance: a $100 audit, rebates averaging $3,000, up to $15,000 when the equipment comes with insulation

Home Performance with ENERGY STAR is the audit track. A participating contractor performs the audit for $100, which BGE values at $400, and proposes air sealing, insulation and equipment; BGE says completed projects receive rebates “averaging $3,000” and cut energy costs by up to 20%. The electrification FAQ, read the same day, puts the ceiling at $15,000, and only when a heating-and-cooling replacement or a heat pump water heater is bundled with air sealing and insulation work. The rebate pages do not say whether the $1,600 water heater rebate or a contractor’s heat pump rebate can be stacked on top of a Home Performance rebate for the same measure; the pages are silent, so we do not assume it. The audit is requested through BGE’s scheduler, run by ICF, and the work must be done by a participating contractor. Income-qualified households get the same audit at no cost, on the terms in the next section.

Where “$10,000 to $15,000” comes from: BGE’s three moderate-income tiers, not a statewide MEA rebate

The two numbers most often quoted for Maryland — $10,000 and $15,000 — are on BGE’s income-based page, read October 6, 2026, and they belong to BGE’s EmPOWER program for moderate-income households, not to the Maryland Energy Administration. The income band for one person is $74,801 to $93,500; for four, $106,801 to $133,500; for eight, $141,001 to $222,880 (households below the lower figure are pointed to the limited-income programs). Tier 1 covers air sealing and insulation worth up to $5,000 for about $250 from the customer. Tier 2 adds a heat pump water heater, up to $7,500, plus a $5,000 electric-conversion bonus when gas, oil or propane is replaced: $12,500 for about $500. Tier 3 adds the HVAC system, up to $10,000 plus the same $5,000 bonus: $15,000 for about $750. The audit is free, and income is verified in BGE’s moderate-income application portal before any contractor visit.

Thermostats: $100 each up to three, $50 cards for Connected Rewards, and two ways to get one free

BGE’s smart thermostat rebate is up to $100 per ENERGY STAR certified connected thermostat, limited to three per household, claimed through the online rebate form at the ICF portal; the thermostat must control a system with electric or gas heating and/or central air conditioning, and you must be a BGE residential customer. Connected Rewards is separate: enrol an eligible thermostat and BGE sends a $50 prepaid card after acceptance and another $50 per thermostat at the end of the summer season, by November 30, up to $100 in the first year, in exchange for letting BGE adjust the thermostat during peak events. The cards are emailed and expire after six months. The answer to “can I get a free thermostat from BGE” is yes, in two places: the Quick Home Energy Check-up and the free HVAC tune-up both list a smart thermostat among what the contractor can install at no cost.

Instant discounts and pickups: $50 on a dehumidifier, $50 for an old refrigerator, and an October 2026 pickup window

Two BGE offers need no application. An ENERGY STAR dehumidifier bought at Lowe’s, The Home Depot or Ace carries a $50 instant discount already taken off the shelf price. Appliance recycling pays a $50 reward for a working refrigerator or freezer of 10 to 30 cubic feet collected from your home, $25 for a dehumidifier, and $25 for a room air conditioner or a 3-to-9-cubic-foot mini refrigerator picked up together with a large unit; appliances must be emptied, defrosted and disconnected. The limits run for the whole 2024–2026 cycle: three large units and four small ones per household between January 1, 2024 and December 31, 2026. The page also carries a dated offer: pickups scheduled between October 1 and October 31, 2026 must be collected by November 28, 2026. The reward check arrives within six to eight weeks. Both dates are on our deadlines page, with the calendar file.

Free: the Quick Home Energy Check-up every five years and an HVAC tune-up for systems older than three years

Two services cost nothing. The Quick Home Energy Check-up is an hour-long walk-through by a BGE contractor who may install LED bulbs, a smart thermostat, faucet aerators, efficient showerheads, water-heater pipe insulation, door sweeps and weatherstripping on the spot; each address qualifies once every five years, and a customer who moves qualifies again at the new address. The HVAC tune-up is free for working systems older than three years and must be done by a contractor on BGE’s certified list: performance checks, coil cleaning, electrical and refrigerant checks and condensate-drain cleaning for air conditioners and heat pumps, heating-sequence and carbon-monoxide tests for furnaces. Heat pump tune-ups need outdoor temperatures above 35°F, furnace-and-AC tune-ups above 60°F, furnace-only visits any time. Neither service is a rebate, but both are the cheapest way into BGE’s contractor network before a replacement, and both can leave a smart thermostat behind.

How to apply and check status: the ICF portal, the contractor path, and the status page that does not exist

People search for “BGE rebate status”; there is no public status page. Water heater and thermostat rebates are filed at bgeproducts.sightline-icf.com, the application portal ICF runs for BGE, with your BGE account number, the dated receipt showing model and price, and a photo of the model and serial numbers; the same portal holds your application record, and the program line, 1-877-685-7377, answers status questions. Heating-and-cooling rebates never reach you as a claim: the participating contractor files them through BGE’s midstream portal and the amount is on the contract. Home Performance and moderate-income projects start with the audit request or the income application, and the contractor carries the rebate from there. Insulation and air sealing on their own are not a separate BGE rebate; they are paid inside Home Performance, so an insulation-only job begins with the $100 audit. The portals are BGE’s; bge.com’s own “ways to save” page loads only in a browser.

Geothermal: BGE still points to a $3,000 MEA grant that closed to new applications in January

BGE’s Heating and Cooling page says customers can “access grants up to $3,000 for installing new geothermal systems” from the Maryland Energy Administration, limited and first-come, first-served, and links to MEA’s Clean Energy Grants page. We read both MEA pages the same day. The grants page is the FY25 Residential Clean Energy Rebate Program, which stopped taking applications on November 30, 2024. MEA’s Geothermal Rebate Program page says the FY26 program — described as the program’s final year — closed to new applications on January 6, 2026, with a $150,000 budget 88% reserved as of May 11, 2026, and an application window that ended February 27, 2026. BGE itself publishes no geothermal rebate of its own; the equipment standard on its page is 17.1 EER and 3.6 COP, and whatever a participating contractor offers is, again, in the contract price. A geothermal buyer in BGE territory should plan on no state grant in 2026 unless MEA announces a new one.

How to apply, step by step

Decide the track first: a straight replacement through a participating HVAC contractor (amount in the contract price), Home Performance (start with the $100 audit), or the moderate-income program (check the income table and apply at the moderate-income portal before any contractor visit).
For a heat pump, get written quotes from two participating contractors on BGE’s list with BGE’s rebate shown as its own line; if you are replacing gas, oil or propane, ask for the 75% / $3,000 home-preparation incentive on the same quote.
For a heat pump water heater, choose one path: instant at Lowe’s or The Home Depot (getbgerebate.com), the Product Advisor, a participating contractor, or the online application at bgeproducts.sightline-icf.com with receipt, account number and serial-number photo — one rebate per address.
For a thermostat, buy an ENERGY STAR connected model, install it on a system with electric or gas heat and/or central air, file the online form (up to three), then consider Connected Rewards for the $50 cards.
Book the free Quick Home Energy Check-up or the free tune-up before a replacement: both bring a certified contractor to the house and both can install a smart thermostat at no cost.
For recycling, schedule the pickup online; if you book in October 2026, make sure the unit is collected by November 28, 2026. Keep every receipt and application confirmation — the program line (1-877-685-7377) is the only way to check status.

Deadlines for BGE

By November 28, 2026 — BGE appliance recycling: pickups scheduled October 1–31, 2026 must be collected by November 28, 2026
December 31, 2026 — BGE’s appliance recycling limits run through December 31, 2026, the end of the EmPOWER 2024–2026 cycle; its rebate pages publish no other end date
No amount, no end date published — BGE publishes no heat pump rebate amount and no end date: the rebate is priced into the participating contractor’s contract

What others get wrong about BGE

Sources and method

Each source below carries the date it was read in full, the latest on October 6, 2026; the amounts on this page are the utility’s own unless marked reported, in which case they come from the utility’s participating contractors and are flagged for confirmation. The official page is re-read automatically every day; a change reaches this page, the Maryland page, the deadlines and the news feed together, after it is read again by hand. Data for this page are in utilities.json (CC BY 4.0).

Frequently asked questions

How do I get a BGE rebate?: It depends on the rebate. Heat pump and HVAC rebates come only through a participating contractor, who builds them into the contract price and files them for you. The heat pump water heater (up to $1,600) and smart thermostat (up to $100) rebates are claimed at bgeproducts.sightline-icf.com or taken instantly at Lowe’s or The Home Depot; the dehumidifier discount is taken at the register. Home Performance starts with a $100 audit; moderate-income projects start with an income application. Read October 6, 2026.
Does BGE publish a heat pump rebate amount?: No. BGE’s Heating and Cooling page, read October 6, 2026, says to check with a participating HVAC contractor and that rebates are reflected in the contract price; the amounts sit in a contractor-only midstream portal. BGE does publish 75% of home-preparation costs, up to $3,000, when a heat pump replaces gas, oil or propane heating, and up to $10,000 plus a $5,000 conversion bonus on its moderate-income Tier 3.
Can I get a free Nest or smart thermostat from BGE?: BGE pays up to $100 per ENERGY STAR connected thermostat you buy (limit three), and its free Quick Home Energy Check-up and free HVAC tune-up both list a smart thermostat among the items the contractor can install at no cost. Connected Rewards adds $50 prepaid cards for enrolling an eligible thermostat and letting BGE adjust it during peak events.
What rebates does Maryland offer, and are the $10,000 and $15,000 rebates from MEA?: The $10,000 and $15,000 figures are BGE’s EmPOWER moderate-income tiers (HVAC up to $10,000 plus a $5,000 electric-conversion bonus), paid through BGE, not Maryland Energy Administration grants. Maryland’s federal HEAR and HOMES rebates are not launched; MEA resubmitted its applications to DOE on September 30, 2026. The other EmPOWER utilities — Pepco, Potomac Edison, Delmarva Power, SMECO — run their own versions; see our <a href="/rebates/maryland">Maryland page</a>.
Are there energy efficiency tax credits in 2026 to add to a BGE rebate?: Not federal ones. The 25C and 25D credits ended for equipment placed in service after December 31, 2025. Maryland has no state heat pump credit, and MEA’s $3,000 geothermal grant closed to new applications on January 6, 2026, although BGE’s page still mentions it.
How do I check my BGE rebate status?: There is no public status page. Rebates filed online stay in your record at bgeproducts.sightline-icf.com; for a status answer, call BGE Smart Energy Savers at 1-877-685-7377 with your account number and application date. Recycling checks arrive in six to eight weeks; contractor-filed HVAC rebates never come to you — they are on the contract.
What is the BGE instant rebate program?: Two offers are instant at the register: up to $1,600 on an ENERGY STAR heat pump water heater at Lowe’s or The Home Depot (code from getbgerebate.com) and $50 on an ENERGY STAR dehumidifier at Lowe’s, The Home Depot or Ace. Everything else is an online or mail-in claim, a contractor-priced rebate or a pickup reward.
Does BGE pay for insulation?: Only inside Home Performance with ENERGY STAR: after the $100 audit, air sealing and insulation are rebated as part of the project (rebates averaging $3,000, up to $15,000 with equipment), and moderate-income households get air sealing and insulation worth up to $5,000 for about $250. There is no stand-alone BGE insulation rebate.

The full picture for the state — every program, the federal status and the corrections log — is on Maryland heat pump rebates. All utilities we cover: utility rebate pages.