Eighty per cent of US homeowners worry that data centres will drive up their electricity costs, whilst widespread power outages and extreme weather are deepening anxiety about energy reliability and affordability across the country.
A national survey by Sunrun of 1,000 US homeowners found that Americans are increasingly sceptical that traditional utilities can meet rising power needs, with most fearing higher costs, more frequent power outages, and limited preparedness for an energy system under mounting strain.
Homeowners are losing confidence that utilities can handle America’s surging energy demands. Sixty-eight per cent are concerned that their utility provider cannot keep up with growing energy demand in their area, whilst 89 per cent believe that going 24 hours without electricity would be worse than not having petrol in the car.
“Americans are worried about energy reliability and affordability,” said Sunrun CEO Mary Powell. “They want solutions that give them independence, control, and peace of mind.”
Not prepared for power outages
The survey revealed that 81 per cent of respondents experienced at least one power outage in the past year, with 60 per cent facing up to three outages in that period. Seventy-one per cent are concerned that their home will experience an outage in the next year due to high electricity demand or extreme weather, yet only 11 per cent said they felt “very prepared” for their most recent outage.
Nearly nine in 10 respondents reported experiencing real consequences during power outages, including spoiled food, lost income, and interrupted access to medical equipment. More than one in four have turned to a neighbour with backup power just to charge a phone or access necessities.
Homeowners are increasingly viewing distributed energy resources as a solution that provides both personal resilience and public benefits. Sixty-two per cent have considered installing a home battery storage system and are equally motivated by saving money (71 per cent) and maintaining power during outages (71 per cent).
Ninety-one per cent believe that home solar and batteries strengthen the grid, and 92 per cent said they would be willing to share excess energy with their neighbours and community during peak demand.
“The fastest way to strengthen the grid is by putting more generation and storage where people live and consume it,” said Powell. “Home storage and solar don’t just keep the lights on — they deliver dispatchable power our grid desperately needs, and the majority of Americans recognise that’s good for the entire country.”
Sunrun’s growing fleet of home storage and solar systems is already delivering hundreds of megawatts of dispatchable power during times of peak demand by networking together customer systems into distributed power plants, helping to stabilise the grid while giving families more control over their energy.
The Sunrun Survey was conducted among 1,000 US homeowners between 12 September and 25 September 2025. The survey was prepared and administered by Wakefield Research using an email invitation and an online survey.
