The State of Clean Energy – 2024
Total U.S. Clean Energy Jobs
Avg. State Energy Efficiency Score
National Renewable Generation (% of demand)
U.S. Renewable Energy Capacity Added (GW)
Clean energy industries have represented the growth sectors of the U.S. energy economy over the past decade, providing good-paying jobs while supporting a cleaner, healthier future for communities across the nation. Major federal infrastructure investments and a diverse suite of clean energy tax incentives contributed to a massive influx of both public and private investment and capital into the clean energy economy.
The Clean Energy Business Network and the Business Council for Sustainable Energy are pleased to release the fifth annual State of Clean Energy, with interactive infographics documenting the clean energy economies across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The 2024 edition has been updated with a fresh look, providing a snapshot of state-level energy economies and the growth of the clean energy ecosystem according to the latest data from 2023.
The map below depicts state CO2 emissions rates for the electricity sector. Click on a state to access the full infographic for a snapshot of clean energy deployment, jobs, CO2 emissions, energy efficiency, federal grants for energy R&D, and private-sector investment.
How does your state stack up in the clean energy economy?
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The State of Clean Energy This Year
On a nationwide scale, the 2024 Sustainable Energy in America Factbook, produced by BloombergNEF and the Business Council for Sustainable Energy, documents the macro-level trends in the transformation of the U.S. energy economy. Here are some key takeaways on the trends in clean energy in 2023.
- America’s position in the global clean energy economy is strong. In 2023, the U.S. energy transition demonstrated its resiliency, with investment and deployment bolstered by a suite of federal policies. With the clean energy transition already hard-wired into the U.S. economy, investments surged in the first full year after the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) in August 2022. In 2023, the U.S. saw market growth both in more mature clean energy technologies and in previously slow-growing, emerging decarbonization solutions. Global investment in the energy transition once again shattered records in 2023, soaring to $1.7 trillion, with the U.S. attracting $303 billion of investment, second to China’s $676 billion.
- In 2023, energy efficiency, natural gas and renewable energy proved foundational to the U.S. energy economy and its advancements, providing the majority of U.S. electricity. In 2023, natural gas and renewable energy met 66 percent of U.S. electricity demand, up from 41 percent in 2013. The contribution of all renewables – including biomass, geothermal, hydropower, solar, waste-to-energy and wind – rose 1 percent, producing 972 TWh in 2023. A drop in hydropower and wind output was offset by strong solar generation.
- In 2023, U.S. greenhouse gas emissions returned to a much-needed downward trajectory, falling 1.8%, and led by reductions in the power sector. In 2023, the U.S. experienced 28 climate-related disasters, the highest number recorded, causing $92.9 billion in damages. Nineteen of these were severe storms that accounted for 58 percent of total financial damages. Since 2012, roughly 2.8 GW of microgrids, 5,000 megawatt-hours of energy storage, have been brought online. Microgrids are powered by solar, energy storage and diesel generation sets.
Check out our top ten lists to find out which states are leading the clean energy transition.
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The State of Clean Energy Archives
View previous years’ map and infographics.
2023
2022
2021
2020
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About: The State of Clean Energy is a project of the Clean Energy Business Network with assistance from the Business Council for Sustainable Energy. This project is a complement to the Sustainable Energy in America Factbook, produced annually for the Business Council for Sustainable Energy by BloombergNEF. Data sources include BloombergNEF, ARPA-E, ACEEE, the Bipartisan Policy Center, Energy Information Administration, U.S. Energy and Employment Report (USEER), USASpending.gov, U.S. Small Business Administration, and Clean Investment Monitor from Rhodium Group and MIT’s Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research. See full methodology.
Graphic Design: Red Chalk Studios
