Commercial Lighting Rebate Trends for 2022

We are keeping track of commercial lighting rebate trends every year. Click here to read lighting rebate trends for 2023.

For more than 10 years, LED rebates have been an incentive to upgrade to more energy efficient lighting. The same is true in 2022. 

While rebates were initially focused on moving from T12 linear tubes to T8s, they now include nearly all types of LED products and lighting controls.

Thanks to our friends at BriteSwitch, we're taking a look at the biggest rebate trends for 2022.

LED Rebate Amounts for 2022

Typically, rebate amounts tend to decline year over year. Rebates were designed as an incentive to switch to LED products, but as LED becomes the norm in the lighting industry, rebate amounts drop.

LED rebates used to decrease 10 to 20 percent every year to match the falling prices of LED solutions. However, rebate prices in 2021 and 2022 have essentially remained flat, which is a great incentive for consumers. This year, there is only a one percent decrease across all product categories, likely due to supply chain issues and inflation.

Commercial customers in more than 75% of the United States are eligible for a rebate for installing energy-efficient lighting products. The highest on record was nearly 80% in 2017.

But there are several states with little or no rebate coverage — like Alaska, Kansas, Ohio, North Dakota, and West Virginia.

Rebates for LED bulbs and retrofit kits

Replacing LED bulbs is often the easiest way to complete an LED upgrade. In most cases, you simply replace bulbs. However, other upgrades can be more extensive, especially for fluorescent fixtures where ballasts are involved. 

Rebates for LED bulbs will remain overall flat in 2022. Linear tubes saw the largest drop, with a $4 rebate for every qualified product, a six percent change compared to last year. Screw-in HID bulbs saw the largest change, with a 4% overall boost compared to 2021.

Rebates for LED fixtures

If you're considering an LED upgrade, replacing the entire fixture can be the most energy-efficient option and has the most long-term benefits.

The change in rebates varied for LED fixtures in 2022, with rebates for downlights and integrated track lighting down compared to 2021. That's likely because downlights and integrated track lighting were the first fixtures to receive rebates more than 10 years ago, so the rebates are slowly being lowered.

Rebates for all other LED fixtures either remained flat or increased slightly.

Type of LED solution	2022 rebate amount	% change compared to 2021
Downlights	$28	-14%
Troffers / Panels	$33	0%
Accent / Track Lighting	$51	-10%
Outdoor Wall Mount	$94	3%
Parking Garage Fixtures	$96	2%
Outdoor Pole / Arm Mount	$102	3%
High Bay Fixtures	$122	2%

Rebates for Networked Lighting Controls

As we move towards even more energy-efficient environments, Networked Lighting Controls (NLC) are becoming an increasingly popular option and in some cases, may even be required to meet energy code.

With uses including everything from daylighting to scheduling and occupancy controls to operating multiple facilities, Networked Lighting Controls offer customization and personalization not experienced in lighting before.

While rebates for NLC systems have been around for several years, there is a major increase in the number of utilities incentivizing the systems — by 16% this year. However, the average rebate amounts have stayed the same in 2022.

There are plenty of rebate programs out there for Networked Lighting Controls, but there is typically very little knowledge around these systems. That's where our team of experts come in. We can help guide buying decisions and explain the incredible benefits of NLC systems.

Using rebates to upgrade your lighting in 2022

As prices on materials and labor continue to rise, it's critical to find ways to save money where possible. Rebates will be especially important in 2022 to help make lighting upgrades more cost-efficient.

Our team of lighting experts has decades of experience helping our customers find the right rebates to cover upgrade costs. Rebates typically improve a project's payback by 20%.

A lighting rebate is the perfect time to upgrade to LED lighting. Our LED Buying Guide covers everything you need to know about selecting the best products. Click here to download the guide.