Solar energy has become a major source of new electricity capacity and generation worldwide. These statistics cover solar PV scale, regional additions, distributed and off-grid adoption, supply-chain costs, forecasts, and employment, with measurement periods and definitions stated for each figure.
Key Solar Energy Statistics
The most broadly useful figures are:
- In 2024, about 550 GW of new solar PV capacity was added worldwide, an estimated year-over-year increase of almost 30%.
- At the end of 2024, global installed solar PV capacity was estimated at 2.2 TW.
- In 2024, solar PV supplied an estimated 7% of global electricity generation.
- In 2024, solar PV generation increased by about 480 TWh worldwide, the largest annual increase among electricity sources.
- In 2024, Asia added 327.1 GW of solar capacity, according to observed regional capacity data.
- In 2024, China added 278.0 GW of solar capacity, while India added 24.5 GW.
- In 2024, the United States added 38.3 GW of solar capacity, 54.0% more than in 2023.
- In August 2024, the Lower 48 had 107.4 GW of operating solar generating capacity, compared with 81.9 GW in August 2023.
- During August 2024, Lower-48 utility-scale solar averaged 63.1 GWh per day between 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.
- In 2024, U.S. solar generation increased 37%, equivalent to a 55.5-billion-kWh increase from 2023.
- In 2024, solar supplied 90.2% of off-grid renewable capacity expansion, adding 1.6 GW in the covered world regions.
- In 2024, total off-grid solar capacity reached 6.3 GW, excluding Eurasia, Europe and North America.
- By the end of 2024, global solar manufacturing capacity was expected to exceed 1,100 GW, more than twice projected PV demand.
- In the second quarter of 2024, polysilicon prices fell to as low as USD 4–5 per kg, compared with about USD 40 per kg in November 2022.
- Between 2025 and 2030, global renewable power capacity is projected to increase by almost 4,600 GW.
- By 2030, solar PV and wind are projected to supply 27% of global electricity generation.
- In 2023, U.S. solar-energy businesses employed 364,544 workers, up 5.3% from 2022.
- In 2023, women represented 30% of the U.S. solar electric-power-generation workforce.
Contents
- Global solar energy scale and growth
- Where solar capacity was added in 2024
- Solar electricity generation and power-system outcomes
- Distributed, residential and off-grid solar adoption
- Solar manufacturing, supply and cost data
- Solar energy forecasts through 2030
- Solar energy employment and workforce profile
Global Solar Energy Statistics: Scale and Recent Growth
The global picture combines capacity, electricity generation and the contribution of renewables to the power system. IEA figures for 2024 are estimates where stated, so they should not be treated as independently verified observations.
- Global solar PV additions rose almost 30% year over year to about 550 GW in 2024.
- Installed solar PV capacity worldwide reached an estimated 2.2 TW at the end of 2024.
- Solar PV and wind together accounted for 95% of overall renewable capacity growth in 2024.
- Solar PV generation increased by about 480 TWh in 2024, the largest annual increase among electricity sources.
- Global solar PV generation has approximately doubled every three years since 2016.
- Solar PV supplied 7% of global electricity generation in 2024, while renewables supplied one-third.
These capacity and generation measures describe different parts of the system: capacity is the ability to produce electricity, while generation is the electricity actually produced during the period. The source reports both as global estimates for 2024. IEA, “Electricity – Global Energy Review 2025”
The next IEA estimate places solar PV generation growth at about 600 TWh in 2025, its largest-ever annual increase. Wind and solar PV together reached 17% of global electricity generation in 2025, up from 15% in 2024, while renewables reached 34%, up from 32%.
IEA, “Supply – Electricity 2026”
Solar Capacity Additions by Region and Country in 2024
Global renewable capacity additions reached around 700 GW in 2024, a 25% increase from 2023, but this measure covers all renewables rather than solar alone. The IEA says the 2024 value combines actual and estimated additions, and solar PV accounted for more than three-quarters of global renewable capacity additions.
| Geography | Solar capacity added in 2024 | Measurement type |
|---|---|---|
| Asia | 327.1 GW | Observed |
| China | 278.0 GW | Observed |
| United States | 38.3 GW | Observed; 54.0% above 2023 |
| India | 24.5 GW | Observed |
| Brazil | 15.2 GW | Observed |
| Germany | 15.1 GW | Observed |
| South Korea | 3.1 GW | Observed |
The country figures come from IRENA’s 2025 capacity highlights and use that publication’s accounting conventions. Values from IRENA and the IEA should not be added together because the sources differ in scope and treatment of estimated capacity. IRENA, “Renewable Capacity Highlights 2025”
Solar Electricity Generation and Power-System Outcomes
U.S. data provides a detailed view of recent utility-scale solar growth, but the measures below cover the Lower 48 or the United States rather than the world. August daily generation is restricted to 10:00 a.m. through 6:00 p.m., so it is not a full-day total.
- Utility-scale solar averaged 63.1 GWh per day during those hours in the Lower 48 in August 2024, 36% higher than in August 2023.
- Operating solar generating capacity in the Lower 48 was 107.4 GW in August 2024, versus 81.9 GW in August 2023.
- California, Texas and Florida held almost half of the U.S. utility-scale solar fleet in August 2024, with 21.0, 18.8 and 9.7 GW respectively.
- U.S. solar generation increased 37% in 2024, a 55.5-billion-kWh increase from 2023.
- U.S. utility-scale solar capacity added through November 2024 reached about 25 GW, exceeding the 18.4 GW added during all of 2023.
EIA, “Utility-scale U.S. solar electricity generation continues to grow in 2024”
EIA, “U.S. wholesale electricity prices were lower and less volatile in 2024”
Distributed, Residential and Off-Grid Solar Adoption
Distributed solar includes residential, commercial, industrial and off-grid projects in the IEA forecast definition. It is therefore broader than household rooftop solar alone.
- Distributed solar PV is forecast to account for 42% of overall PV expansion during 2025–2030 in the IEA main case.
- Off-grid renewable capacity increased by 1.7 GW in 2024 to reach 14.3 GW in the covered world regions, excluding Eurasia, Europe and North America.
- Solar supplied 90.2% of off-grid capacity expansion in 2024, adding 1.6 GW in those regions.
- Total off-grid solar capacity reached 6.3 GW in 2024, using the same geographic exclusion.
China illustrates how residential participation can change over time. Residential PV additions averaged approximately one-fifth of annual PV additions from 2019 onward, but residential PV was about 30 GW and under 10% of additions in 2024; these are IEA estimates and residential PV is a subset of China’s total PV additions.
IEA, “Renewable electricity – Renewables 2025”
IRENA, “Renewable Capacity Highlights 2025”
IEA, “Electricity – Global Energy Review 2025”
Solar Manufacturing, Supply and Cost Statistics
Manufacturing capacity and material prices help explain supply conditions, but they are not the same as household installed costs or retail electricity prices. The available cost measures here are global polysilicon prices and manufacturing-supply indicators.
| Indicator | Period | Reported figure |
|---|---|---|
| Global polysilicon production capacity | 2023 | 800 GW-equivalent |
| Polysilicon price | November 2022 | About USD 40/kg |
| Polysilicon price | Q2 2024 | As low as USD 4–5/kg |
| Expected global solar manufacturing capacity | End of 2024 | More than 1,100 GW |
| Planned polysilicon capacity cancelled | 2024 | About 300 GW |
| Planned wafer capacity cancelled | 2024 | About 200 GW |
| Planned investment represented by cancellations | 2024 | Approximately USD 25 billion |
The IEA expected global solar manufacturing capacity to exceed 1,100 GW by the end of 2024, more than twice projected PV demand. Manufacturing capacity is not equivalent to operating output, and the cancelled projects were estimates linked to the 2024 supply glut.
IEA, “Electricity – Renewables 2024”
IEA, “Global overview – Renewables 2024”
Solar PV and wind are forecast to represent 95% of renewable capacity additions through 2030 because their generation costs are lower than many alternatives in most countries. That comparison concerns generation-cost competitiveness across technologies and countries, not household retail prices. IEA, “Electricity – Renewables 2024”
Solar Energy Forecasts and Trends Through 2030
Forecasts describe a main-case outlook rather than installed capacity already observed. They also cover different denominators: some figures concern all renewables, some concern solar PV, and others concern total electricity generation.
- Global renewable power capacity is projected to increase by almost 4,600 GW between 2025 and 2030.
- The 2025–2030 renewable-capacity forecast is about two times the deployment achieved during 2019–2024.
- The IEA reduced its global renewable-capacity forecast for 2025–2030 by 5%, or 248 GW, from the prior year.
- Solar PV alone is expected to account for more than half of the increase in global renewable electricity generation from 2024 to 2030.
- Solar PV generation is expected to increase by more than 600 TWh on average each year through 2030.
- Renewables are forecast to meet more than 90% of global electricity-demand growth during 2025–2030.
- Solar PV and wind are projected to supply 27% of global electricity generation by 2030.
Renewable electricity generation is projected to rise from 9,900 TWh in 2024 to 16,200 TWh in 2030, a 60% increase, but this measure covers all renewable generation rather than solar alone. Low-emissions sources consisting of renewables and nuclear are forecast to reach 50% of global electricity generation by 2030, up from 42% in 2025.
Coal’s share of global electricity generation is forecast to fall from 34% in 2025 to 27% in 2030. The IEA also forecasts that variable renewable energy’s share will nearly double; the combined solar-and-wind measure should not be read as solar PV alone.
IEA, “Renewable electricity – Renewables 2025”
IEA, “Supply – Electricity 2026”
Solar Energy Employment and Workforce Statistics
The U.S. Department of Energy’s USEER figures are survey-based estimates covering defined solar businesses and the solar electric-power-generation workforce. Total solar-business employment includes part-time and full-time workers across the solar value chain, while the narrower 50%-time measure identifies workers spending at least half their time on solar.
- U.S. solar-energy businesses employed 364,544 workers in 2023, up 18,401 workers or 5.3% from 2022.
- U.S. solar businesses employed 276,136 workers who spent at least 50% of their time on solar in 2023.
- Construction was the largest U.S. solar-employment industry in 2023, with 180,620 workers within the solar electric-power-generation workforce.
- U.S. solar utilities added 5,142 jobs in 2023, a 50.5% increase from 2022.
The workforce profile also includes demographic and labor-coverage measures for U.S. solar electric-power-generation workers in 2023:
- Women represented 30% of the workforce.
- Hispanic or Latino workers represented 23% of the workforce.
- Workers younger than 30 represented 31% of the workforce.
- Union-represented or collectively covered workers made up 11%, totaling 41,563 workers.
These percentages follow DOE USEER’s table definitions and are workforce-composition statistics, not employment-rate measures. Union coverage includes collective-bargaining and project-labor coverage as defined by the report, and the high utility growth rate applies only to that subsector.
DOE, “2024 United States Energy & Employment Report”