ENERGY STAR Score for Single-Family Homes in the United States

The 1 – 100 ENERGY STAR score for Single-Family Homes applies to single-family detached and attached homes. The objective of the ENERGY STAR score is to provide a fair assessment of the energy performance of a property relative to its peers, taking into account the climate, weather, and activities at the property. To identify the aspects of building activity that are significant drivers of energy use and then normalize for those factors, a statistical analysis of the peer building population is performed. The result of this analysis is an equation that will predict the energy use of a property, based on its experienced operations. The energy use prediction for a building is compared to its actual energy use to yield a 1 to 100 percentile ranking of performance, relative to the national population.

• Property Types. The ENERGY STAR score for Single-Family Homes applies to standalone buildings, or an individual structure that shares one or more exterior vertical wall with other buildings, such as a duplex or townhome. Single-Family Homes have their own lot and provide living space for one household or family. The score applies to individual buildings only and is not available for neighborhoods.
• Reference Data. The analysis for single-family detached and attached homes is based on data obtained from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE’s) 2015 Residential Energy Consumption Survey (RECS).
• Adjustments for Weather and Business Activity. The analysis includes adjustments for:
  • Gross Floor Area
  • Number of Household Members
  • Weather and Climate (using Heating and Cooling Degree Days, retrieved based on ZIP code)
• Release Date. The ENERGY STAR score for Single-Family Homes1 is updated periodically as more recent data becomes available:
• Original Release: September 2022