The whole application rests on one receipt, one account number and one serial number printed on the underside of the unit. With those in hand, filing takes a single sitting, and the money arrives weeks later as a mailed check or not at all. Before you start, know that each utility runs its own program with its own door, and a PG&E customer this fall may find that door already shut.

Three documents and a model number

  • An itemized receipt

    SDG&E's checklist is the most exact of the three: purchase date, retailer, model or SKU, retail price, the price you paid, and confirmation that the purchase was made in California. A receipt with all six will meet the other utilities' requirements too.

  • Proof of delivery

    PG&E asks for it and only accepts applications after the product has been delivered.

  • Your utility account number

    Copy it from a bill exactly as printed.

  • The unit's serial and model number

    Read it from the label on the unit, not from the box.

  • A model your utility accepts

    PG&E accepts portable batteries from 290 to 1,000 Wh and specifically excludes 1,024 Wh models. SDG&E pays only for models on its Qualified Product List.

  • CARE or FERA enrollment, if you are claiming the higher amount

    At PG&E this takes the rebate from $300 to $500. At SDG&E it takes a power station rebate from $150 to $200.

Filing it, one action at a time

  1. Confirm your utility is taking applications

    A retailer's blog reported on August 27, 2026 that PG&E's 2026 program was full and that customers should check back in January 2027. The same source described SCE's program as "available subject to funding and program rules." SDG&E lists its 2026 program as open. It has worked when your utility's page says it is accepting requests.

  2. Photograph the receipt and the serial label

    Shoot both flat and in good light. It has worked when you can read every digit on your phone at full zoom.

  3. Open the right portal

    SDG&E customers go to the CLEAResult portal and create an account. PG&E customers apply through PG&E's online energy portal. SCE customers start from the SCE Marketplace on SCE's backup power page. It has worked when you are logged in and can see an application form.

  4. Run the eligibility check

    SDG&E's portal requires this before it will let you apply. It has worked when the check confirms your address. If it does not, stop here and work through the questions in the next section.

  5. Enter the account and serial numbers

    Type them from your photos, not from memory. It has worked when the form accepts both without an error.

  6. Upload the receipt and the delivery proof

    It has worked when both files show as attached.

  7. Submit and save the confirmation

    Keep the confirmation email in a folder alongside the receipt. It has worked when you have a dated confirmation in writing.

    6 to 8 weeks processing at PG&E; check 4 to 6 weeks after approval at SDG&E

Two details are less clear than a reader would like. SCE's own page says power station rebates go "up to $200," while a retailer summary puts the figure at $150 per unit, up to five per address. And none of the program sources available for this piece says how long to keep your paperwork or when a paid rebate can be taken back. Until a program says otherwise, keep the receipt, the delivery proof and the approval email well after the check clears.

When the check does not come

The [GAP help center](https://sdgegap.clearesult.com/help-center) tells customers to submit an inquiry once six weeks have passed without a check. You can also call 1-866-258-4937, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Pacific, Monday through Friday.

The likely reason is money, not your paperwork. [PG&E's 2026 rebate is full](/pge-generator-and-battery-rebate-is-full-for-2026/), and PG&E stops accepting applications once funding is gone. For questions, email GeneratorBatteryRebateProgram@pge.com or call 1-800-743-5000.

Check the product first. PG&E rejects 1,024 Wh models, refurbished or resale units, USB power stations and power banks. At SCE, eligibility depends on whether your address sits in a [Tier 2 or Tier 3](/sce-portable-power-station-rebate-by-fire-risk-tier/) area.

SDG&E does not pay customers who received a rebate for the same product type in an earlier program year. PG&E excludes customers who received a rebate under its earlier Portable Battery Program.

Portable power stations do not qualify for SGIP in 2026. That program pays for permanently installed batteries, and a registered installer must file on your behalf. Its General Market, Equity and Equity Resiliency budgets closed to new applicants on December 31, 2025.

Once you file, the receipt stops being a slip from a checkout line and becomes the record of a claim the utility has agreed to pay. Keep it somewhere you will find it. If you have not bought the unit yet, the order matters: confirm the model first, then buy, then file.

Will the model you want be accepted?

Each utility pays only for models on its own approved list, and this page shows which portable power stations qualify.

See the qualifying models