Most utility rebate guides tell you what a program pays. This one has to start with what it no longer pays, because ComEd’s own numbers show the standard tier of its 2026 EV charger rebate ran dry less than two months into the year — and if you’re reading this in the second half of 2026 assuming a $1,000 check is waiting, that assumption is wrong for most applicants.
What actually happened to the $1,000 tier
ComEd, the Exelon-owned utility serving roughly 4 million electric customers across Northern Illinois including Chicago, announced $70 million in EV rebates for 2026 back in February — more than $4 million of it earmarked specifically for residential Level 2 home chargers. The residential program split into two tiers from the start: a $1,000 standard rebate open to any ComEd residential customer, and a $2,500 Select Customer rebate for households that qualify by income or by living in a designated equity community.
The standard $1,000 tier is allocated first-come, first-served by completed application date — and according to ComEd’s own program terms, it closed to new applications on February 28, 2026, with no waitlist for the rest of the program year. In practice, that means a non-qualifying ComEd customer applying today has no residential charger rebate to apply for at all, regardless of how much of ComEd’s original $70 million headline figure sounds like it should still be available.
The $2,500 tier is still open — here’s who qualifies
The Select Customer rebate, worth $2,500, is reserved for Low-Income or Equity Investment Eligible Community (LI/EIEC) households, and unlike the standard tier it’s still accepting applications through December 31, 2026 (or until its own separate funding runs out). You qualify one of two ways:
- By income. ComEd’s threshold tracks roughly 80% of area median income. Using 2024 figures as a reference point, that’s about $57,650 for a single-person household or $65,850 for a two-person household, scaling upward for larger households.
- By address. If your home sits inside a designated Equity Investment Eligible Community — regardless of income — you qualify on location alone. Your installer can confirm EIEC status during the application.
| Tier | Rebate | 2026 status | Who qualifies |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | $1,000 | Closed since Feb 28, 2026, no waitlist | Any ComEd residential customer |
| Select Customer (LI/EIEC) | $2,500 | Open through Dec 31, 2026 or until funds exhausted | Income ≤80% AMI, or home in a designated equity community |
Two requirements that apply to both tiers
Even the still-open $2,500 tier isn’t a simple buy-a-charger-and-submit-a-receipt process — two requirements apply regardless of which tier you’re in:
Rate plan enrollment. You have to enroll in ComEd’s Hourly Pricing plan (Rate BESH — Basic Electric Service Hourly Pricing) for a minimum of three years. This isn’t a loyalty checkbox — your electricity billing actually switches from a flat residential rate to an hourly, wholesale-linked structure, so it’s worth pulling BESH’s historical hourly rates against your current plan before committing to three years on it.
Approved installer. Installation has to be performed by a ComEd-approved EV Service Provider (EVSP), not just any licensed electrician. The EVSP typically files the rebate application as part of the job. The charger itself has to be ENERGY STAR-certified and NRTL-listed — a “smart,” Wi-Fi- or hardwired-connected unit, not a dumb charger.
ChargePoint Home Flex
- ENERGY STAR certification and app-based scheduling clear ComEd's "smart charger" requirement outright — useful to confirm with your EVSP before they file the Select Customer application.
- Adjustable 16–50A output lets your EVSP size the circuit to whatever your existing panel supports, which matters if you're trying to avoid a separate panel-upgrade line item.
- Read our full ChargePoint Home Flex review for the six SKU variants and how it compares to the competition.
Waiting on your EVSP to confirm Select Customer eligibility before you commit to a specific charger? Try Prime free for 30 days for free two-day delivery, so ordering doesn’t add days to a rebate application that’s already running against a first-come, first-served clock.
Emporia Classic Level 2 EV Charger
- The lowest-priced ENERGY STAR-certified option in our lineup — a real advantage against the $1,000 standard rebate's now-closed status, since a lower sticker price matters more when you're not counting on a rebate to cover the gap.
- Wi-Fi app scheduling satisfies the "smart charger" documentation your EVSP needs for the Select Customer application.
- See our full Emporia Classic review for the PowerSmart load-management tradeoffs.
The bottom line
ComEd’s EV charger rebate is a tale of two tiers in 2026: the $1,000 standard rebate that most Northern Illinois homeowners would have qualified for closed on February 28, and there’s no waitlist to get back in this year. The $2,500 Select Customer tier is still open, but only for households that qualify by income (roughly $57,650 single / $65,850 two-person, per 2024 figures) or by living in a designated equity community — and both tiers require a three-year commitment to ComEd’s Hourly Pricing rate plan plus a ComEd-approved installer. If you don’t qualify for the $2,500 tier, budget for the full sticker price and check back at the start of 2027, when the standard tier’s funding is expected to reset. Our EV charger rebate guide covers other utilities nationally if ComEd isn’t paying out for your household, and our EV charger installation cost guide shows what the underlying wiring project runs with or without a rebate.