Save money — and more.
Installing ENERGY STAR certified windows, doors, and skylights lowers energy bills and saves you money. With more efficient windows, you also use less energy, which reduces greenhouse gas emissions from power plants and homes.Get comfortable.
Put an end to cold drafts and overheated spaces. ENERGY STAR certified windows, doors, and skylights keep your home’s temperature consistently comfortable. Even your loveseat right by the window can be cozy with ENERGY STAR.Protect your valuables.
Low-emissivity coatings on many ENERGY STAR certified windows, doors, and skylights reduces UV sun damage to floors, carpets, and furniture.
Certified Performance.
All ENERGY STAR windows, doors, and skylights are certified and verified to perform as labeled.
Save Money — and More. Choose ENERGY STAR Certified Products.
Installing ENERGY STAR certified windows, doors, and skylights can shrink energy bills — and carbon footprints — by an average of 12 percent nationwide, compared to non-certified products.
For typical homes, choose ENERGY STAR and save on average*:
$101–$583 which is equivalent to 51 to 317 gallons of gasoline | a year when replacing single-pane windows |
$27–$197 which is equivalent to 13 to 102 | a year when replacing double-pane, clear glass windows |
* Ranges are based on the average savings among homes in modeled cities. Actual savings will vary based on local climate conditions, utility rates, and individual home characteristics.
UPGRADE TO ENERGY STAR
ANNUAL HEATING AND COOLING SAVINGS1
Savings estimates are based on RESFEN 6.0 calculations performed by D&R International in support of ENERGY STAR. View methodology.
Get Comfortable
Comfort. It’s the essential quality of home. ENERGY STAR certified windows, doors and skylights do more than just lower energy bills — they deliver comfort that other products just can’t match.
PROTECTION FROM WINTER CHILLS
On cold winter nights, do you avoid seats near the window? The cold, inside surface of an inefficient window pulls heat away from your body, so you can feel chilly in a sweater with the thermostat at 70 degrees. With ENERGY STAR certified windows, the interior glass stays warmer, so you can enjoy your window seat even when the temperature outside dips well below freezing.
SHIELDING FROM SUMMER HEAT
Do some of your rooms feel like a sauna in the summer? A standard double-pane window allows approximately 75 percent of the sun’s heat into your home.1 With ENERGY STAR certified windows you can stay cool all summer long. Most ENERGY STAR certified windows reduce the “heat gain” into your home more than typical windows do, without reducing the visible light. You get the light you need without the uncomfortable heat.
1 Source: Residential Windows. Carmody, Selkowitz, Arasteh, and Heschong. 2007.
Protect Your Valuables
Drapes, wood floors, a favorite photograph: all these things can fade or discolor after repeated exposure to direct sunlight. Whether their value is monetary or sentimental, you want to protect your belongings from fading and discoloring.
ENERGY STAR certified windows have coatings that keep out the summer heat and act like sunscreen for your house, protecting your valuables from harmful, fading ultraviolet light without noticeably reducing visible light. These special coatings reduce fading by up to 75 percent.1
1 Source: Residential Windows. Carmody, Selkowitz, Arasteh, and Heschong. 2007.
What is a Carbon Footprint?
Your personal carbon footprint measures the carbon dioxide [CO2] emissions caused by your activities. It includes CO2 emissions from such things as driving your car or flying in a plane, the manufacture and distribution of the products you buy, and turning on the lights in your home. A carbon footprint is usually measured in pounds or tons of CO2 per year. You can calculate your carbon footprint using the EPA Carbon Footprint Calculator: //www3.epa.gov/carbon-footprint-calculator/ .
Home energy use accounts for about one-quarter of your carbon footprint, but this can vary depending on the kinds of energy sources available to power your home. ENERGY STAR calculates carbon savings for ENERGY STAR certified windows, doors and skylights based on the mix of fuels in a region and the estimated energy use for a typical home.
Sources:
EPA Power Profiler [fuel mix] www.epa.gov/cleanenergy/energy-and-you/how-clean.html.
You can use the energy performance ratings of windows, doors, and skylights to understand their potential for gaining and losing
heat, as well as bringing sunlight into your home. The National Fenestration Rating Council [NFRC] operates a voluntary program that tests, certifies, and labels windows, doors, and skylights based on their energy performance ratings. The NFRC label provides a reliable way to determine a window's energy properties and to compare products. The NFRC label can be found on all ENERGY STAR®
qualified window, door, and skylight products, but ENERGY STAR bases its qualification only on U-factor and solar heat gain coefficient ratings, which are described below. Windows, doors, skylights can gain and lose heat through: These properties can be measured and rated according to the following energy performance characteristics: Energy Performance Testing, Certification, and Labeling
Heat Gain and Loss
Sunlight Transmittance
The ability of glazing in a window, door, or skylight to transmit sunlight into a home can be measured and rated according to the following energy performance characteristics:
- Visible transmittance [VT] is a fraction of the visible spectrum of sunlight [380 to 720 nanometers], weighted by the sensitivity of the human eye, that is transmitted through the glazing of a window, door, or skylight. A product with a higher VT transmits more visible light. VT is expressed as a number between 0 and 1. The VT you need for a window, door, or skylight should be determined by your home's daylighting requirements and/or whether you need to reduce interior glare in a space.
- Light-to-solar gain [LSG]is the ratio between the VT and SHGC. It provides a gauge of the relative efficiency of different glass or glazing types in transmitting daylight while blocking heat gains. The higher the number, the more light transmitted without adding excessive amounts of heat. This energy performance rating isn't always provided.
Recommended Performance Ratings by Climate Zone
Review the state fact sheets or use the window selection tool for new construction or existing homes from the Efficient Windows Collaborative to determine the desired performance ratings for your climate.
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