ENERGY STAR Roof Products (discontinued)

ENERGY STAR is a US government energy-efficiency labelling program established in 1992 and run by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) with the Department of Energy. For many years it included a Roof Products category that labelled roofing materials with high solar reflectance, intended to lower cooling energy use. The ENERGY STAR Roof Products specification was sunset on June 1, 2022, and products can no longer earn the label.

Former criteria

The roof label rated the reflectance of the exterior surface only, not the full roof assembly. Criteria were split by slope:

• Low-slope roofs – initial solar reflectance of at least 0.65 and weathered (aged) reflectance of at least 0.50.
• Steep-slope roofs – initial solar reflectance of at least 0.25 and aged reflectance of at least 0.15.

Because it ignored insulation and thermal emittance, the label was considered less demanding than ENERGY STAR criteria in other product categories.

Sunset timeline

According to EPA's specification page:

• 5 June 2018 – EPA proposed sunsetting the specification and took public comment until 10 July 2018.
• 28 May 2019 – EPA issued its decision memo to sunset.
• 1 June 2022 – the specification ended.

EPA published a decision memo and comment response explaining its reasoning; the specification page itself does not summarize the reasons.

What replaced it

There is no direct federal replacement label. In practice, the Cool Roof Rating Council (CRRC) product directory is now the main North American source of rated solar reflectance and thermal emittance values. Codes and programs that once referred to ENERGY STAR, such as some utility rebates and green building programs, generally refer to CRRC ratings or SRI instead.

What owners should know

Older product literature, warranties and rebate paperwork may still mention ENERGY STAR roof qualification. Such claims refer to the program as it existed before mid-2022. Current compliance with energy codes such as California Title 24 or ASHRAE 90.1 depends on rated reflectance and emittance values, not on the former label.