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"Made in USA" on a solar panel can mean three very different things. The glass, frame and junction box were put together in Texas around imported cells. Or the cells were made in Georgia too. Or, in one case, almost nothing in the panel touches a crystalline silicon supply chain at all. For a buyer chasing domestic content credits, avoiding new tariffs, or just wanting supply that will not get stuck at a port, that difference matters more than the brand name. This list ranks the five companies that make the most solar panels on US soil in 2026, and says plainly what each one makes here.

Short answer: the five largest solar panel manufacturers in the USA in 2026 are First Solar (about 14 GW of US capacity, thin-film panels made in Ohio, Alabama and Louisiana), Qcells (8.6 GW in Georgia, including the country's only ingot-to-panel factory), Canadian Solar through CS PowerTech (a 5 GW panel plant in Texas and a new cell plant in Indiana), T1 Energy (the former Trina factory in Dallas, with its own cell plant due in 2027) and Illuminate USA (a roughly 5 GW single-site factory in Ohio). First Solar and Qcells make the most of the panel in the US; the other three still rely partly on imported cells for now.

Last updated: October 2026. Method: we ranked by US module manufacturing capacity, using the US Department of Energy's Solar Manufacturing Map (May 2026) and each company's own 2026 announcements, then weighed how much of the panel is made domestically. Capacity is nameplate, meaning what a factory can make at full speed, not what it actually shipped. ShineTong does not manufacture panels in the US and is not ranked.

The five at a glance

ManufacturerOwner / headquartersUS factoriesUS module capacity (2026)Cell technologyUS-made cells?
First SolarUS, Tempe, ArizonaOhio (3), Alabama, Louisiana, plus a new finishing plant in South CarolinaAbout 14 GWThin-film cadmium telluride (CdTe)Yes, thin film is made in one process
QcellsHanwha, South KoreaDalton and Cartersville, Georgia8.6 GWCrystalline siliconYes, Cartersville since June 2026
Canadian Solar (CS PowerTech)Canadian Solar, CanadaMesquite, Texas (panels); Jeffersonville, Indiana (cells)About 5 GWHeterojunction (HJT) cells in IndianaRamping since July 2026
T1 EnergyUS, New York Stock Exchange listedDallas (panels); Rockdale, Texas (cell fab under construction)About 5 GW nameplateTOPConNot yet; first cells expected Q1 2027
Illuminate USAInvenergy (majority) with LONGiPataskala, OhioAbout 5 GWCrystalline siliconNo, panels assembled from imported cells

The five manufacturers

1. First Solar

First Solar is the largest solar manufacturer in the US by a wide margin, and the only one on this list that does not use crystalline silicon at all. It makes thin-film cadmium telluride panels in a single continuous process: glass goes in one end and a finished module comes out the other, so there is no separate cell supply to import. The company started with a small factory in Perrysburg, Ohio in 1999, now runs three factories in Ohio, one in Alabama and one in Louisiana, and expects more than 14 GW of US capacity in 2026.

The Louisiana plant began production in July 2025 and makes Series 7 modules with American glass and steel. In October 2026 First Solar opened the first phase of a finishing plant in Gaffney, South Carolina, which completes Series 6 Plus panels started at its overseas factories. With that site fully ramped, the company forecasts about 17 GW of US capacity in 2027, none of it dependent on Chinese crystalline silicon supply chains.

Best for: utility-scale and large commercial projects that need high domestic content and low trade risk. The panels are large and lower in efficiency per square metre than the best silicon modules, so they are rarely used on homes.

2. Qcells

Qcells, part of South Korea's Hanwha group, is the biggest crystalline silicon panel maker in the US and a familiar name on residential rooftops. Its Dalton, Georgia factory tripled to 5.1 GW of module capacity in late 2023. Its second site, in Cartersville, Georgia, already assembles 16,700 panels a day and in June 2026 started producing its own solar cells.

Cartersville is the first US factory to make ingots, wafers, cells and finished panels under one roof, at 3.3 GW each for ingots, wafers and cells and 3.5 GW for panels. Together the two sites give Qcells 8.6 GW of US module capacity. On its Q3 2026 earnings call, Hanwha said most Cartersville lines were running at full capacity and the newest cell line was still being tuned for efficiency.

Best for: residential and commercial installers who want a US-made silicon panel with a strong brand, and projects that need a clear path to the domestic content bonus.

3. Canadian Solar (CS PowerTech)

Canadian Solar runs its US manufacturing through CS PowerTech, a subsidiary that describes itself as the largest silicon PV manufacturer in the US. Its panel factory in Mesquite, Texas has about 5 GW of capacity. In July 2026 it opened the first phase of a solar cell plant in Jeffersonville, Indiana, the first US factory built for heterojunction (HJT) cells, which is planned to reach more than 6 GW a year at full capacity.

Once the Indiana plant is fully running, Texas panels can be built with American cells, which is the step most US module factories are still missing. Until then, check which product lines in your quote use domestic cells.

Best for: utility and commercial buyers who already work with Canadian Solar globally and want US-built supply with a credible domestic cell plan.

4. T1 Energy

T1 Energy bought Trina Solar's Texas manufacturing business in December 2024 and now operates the G1_Dallas panel factory. It produced 935 MW of panels in Q2 2026 and guided to the upper end of 3.1 to 4.2 GW for the year, against about 3 GW of firm contracts. T1 calls itself the largest American-owned maker of silicon TOPCon panels.

Its cells are still imported for now. T1 is building the G2_Austin cell fab in Rockdale, Texas, with a 2.1 GW first phase and first cells expected in Q1 2027, and has signed supply deals with Hemlock Semiconductor for polysilicon and Corning for wafers. In October 2026 it received a Commerce Department waiver to keep importing up to 1.725 GW of cells under the new Section 232 polysilicon rules while the fab is built.

Best for: utility-scale developers who want an American-owned supplier and are willing to plan around a cell plant that is still ramping.

5. Illuminate USA

Illuminate USA runs the largest single-site solar panel factory in North America: a 1.1 million square foot plant in Pataskala, Ohio with about 5 GW of capacity. It is a joint venture between Invenergy, the largest privately held US power developer and the majority owner, and LONGi, which provides manufacturing technology. Production began in February 2024; by April 2026 it had made more than 13 million panels on eight lines with over 1,600 staff.

The factory assembles panels from imported cells. Because of the LONGi link, buyers who must meet the foreign entity of concern (FEOC) rules for tax credits should ask for current ownership and supply-chain documents before signing.

Best for: utility-scale buyers, especially in the Midwest, who want large volumes of US-assembled panels with short inland delivery.

Also worth a look

The DOE map lists dozens of smaller module plants. A few names come up often in US tenders: Boviet Solar (North Carolina, about 3 GW), SEG Solar (Texas, about 2 GW), Mission Solar (San Antonio, about 1 GW), Heliene (Minnesota) and Silfab Solar (Washington). On the cell side, ES Foundry in South Carolina and Suniva in Georgia supply domestic cells to other panel makers, which is worth asking about when a smaller brand claims high domestic content.

What "made in USA" really means for a solar panel

A crystalline silicon panel is built in five steps: polysilicon, ingot, wafer, cell and module (see our guide to how solar panels are manufactured). In 2026 the US has plenty of the first and last steps and very little in between. SEIA puts domestic module capacity at roughly 66 GW after Q2 2026, while Wood Mackenzie counted only about 3 GW of cell capacity in mid-2026, just as the new Qcells and Canadian Solar cell lines were starting up. So most "American-made" silicon panels still contain imported cells.

That matters for three reasons:

  • Domestic content bonus. Projects claiming the extra tax credit must show that enough of the panel's value was made in the US. Domestic cells make that far easier.
  • FEOC rules. Under the 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act, projects using components tied to a "foreign entity of concern" can lose tax credits. Ownership and supply-chain records now matter as much as the factory address.
  • New tariffs. A Section 232 proclamation signed on 6 August 2026 adds tariffs on imported polysilicon and products made from it, effective 4 December 2026. Panels assembled from imported cells may cost more after that date unless the maker holds a waiver.

How to choose a US solar panel manufacturer

  1. Ask where the cells were made, by product line. One brand can sell both domestic-cell and imported-cell panels.
  2. Get domestic content paperwork up front. Ask for the manufacturer's cost breakdown or attestation for the exact model and factory.
  3. Check ownership for FEOC. Ask for a written statement and have your tax adviser review it.
  4. Match technology to the job. Thin-film CdTe suits large ground-mount sites; TOPCon and HJT silicon panels suit rooftops where space is tight.
  5. Look at independent test results. The annual PVEL PV Module Reliability Scorecard and RETC PV Module Index report which factories' panels passed extended stress tests.
  6. Confirm delivery from the named factory. Contracts should name the US plant, not just the brand, if domestic origin is part of the deal.

Where ShineTong fits

ShineTong does not make solar panels in the United States, which is why it is not on this list. What we do supply is the rest of the DC side that every panel connects to: MC4-compatible connectors, combiner boxes, DC circuit breakers, DC isolator switches and surge protective devices, packed for distributors and EPC contractors.

For buyers outside the US, or US projects that do not need domestic content, our sourcing service can also match you with panel factories and combine panels and balance-of-system parts in one shipment. If your project claims the domestic content bonus, check with your tax adviser how imported components such as connectors and combiner boxes are counted before you place the order. Comparing Asian suppliers instead? See our top 10 solar panel manufacturers in China.

Need connectors, combiner boxes or DC protection for your next solar project?

Related reading

Choosing inverters for a US project? See our US microinverter brands guide. For the connectors between panels, read what an MC4 connector is and our top 5 solar connector manufacturers.

Frequently asked questions

Who is the largest solar panel manufacturer in the USA?

First Solar, with more than 14 GW of US manufacturing capacity expected in 2026 across factories in Ohio, Alabama and Louisiana, and about 17 GW forecast for 2027 once its South Carolina plant is fully running. Qcells is the largest crystalline silicon panel maker, with 8.6 GW in Georgia.

Are any solar panels 100% made in the USA?

First Solar's thin-film panels come closest, because the semiconductor layer is made in the same US factory as the module and Series 7 uses American glass and steel. For silicon panels, Qcells' Cartersville plant makes the ingot, wafer, cell and module in Georgia, though the polysilicon and some materials may still come from elsewhere.

Which US solar panels use American-made cells?

In 2026, Qcells (Cartersville, Georgia) and Canadian Solar's CS PowerTech (cells from Jeffersonville, Indiana, ramping since July 2026) make their own cells in the US. First Solar's thin-film process has no separate cell step. T1 Energy expects its first US cells in Q1 2027. Several other brands buy cells from ES Foundry or Suniva.

Is Qcells an American company?

Qcells is owned by Hanwha Solutions of South Korea, with its North American headquarters in Irvine, California and its factories in Dalton and Cartersville, Georgia. Its US-made panels are built in those Georgia plants.

Are American-made solar panels more expensive?

They usually cost more per watt than imported panels, but the gap can be offset by the domestic content tax credit bonus, lower tariff exposure and shorter delivery. The Section 232 tariffs on polysilicon products taking effect in December 2026 could narrow the gap further.

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