When a major storm makes landfall and outages dominate the news, homeowners and businesses that have delayed investing in backup power suddenly decide they can’t afford to wait.
Storms may trigger buying decisions, but they don’t tell the whole story.
ServiceTitan's recent same-store analysis of contractors reveals that installed generator demand remained remarkably steady across the study period. The major exception came during 2024, when installs surged 25.8% during the year when Hurricanes Helene and Milton occurred. In 2025, demand settled back near 2022 and 2023 levels rather than dropping below the longer-term trend.
This pattern suggests that severe weather accelerates purchasing decisions, but longer-term changes in grid reliability, electrification, and the growing cost of downtime are sustaining demand across both residential and commercial markets.
An aging grid is increasing the value of backup power
Much of the U.S. electric grid was built decades ago and for a very different level of demand. Today, that same infrastructure is supporting growing electricity consumption from electric vehicles, AI data centers, connected homes, and increasingly electrified businesses.
Utilities continue to invest in grid modernization, but replacing infrastructure takes years. At the same time, many regions have experienced more frequent or longer-lasting outages, while Public Safety Power Shutoff programs have become increasingly common in wildfire-prone areas.
As reliability challenges persist, the consequences of losing power have grown.
For homeowners, an outage may interrupt remote work, disable security systems, disrupt medical devices, or leave an all-electric home without heating, cooling, or hot water.
For businesses, the stakes can be even higher. Restaurants risk spoiled inventory, medical and dental offices may need to cancel appointments, and retail stores lose sales. Likewise, manufacturers and warehouses can experience production delays, while offices and professional service firms face costly downtime.
Whether residential or commercial, customers increasingly view backup power as protection against operational disruption rather than simply insurance against the next storm.
Storms accelerate demand, but they do not create it
The 2024 hurricane season may have contributed to the largest increase in generator demand according to our study period. Significant storms can accelerate purchasing decisions, but the broader trend began well before they arrived. Demand stayed relatively stable in the surrounding years, suggesting many customers had already recognized the growing importance of reliable backup power. Major weather events may simply shorten the decision-making process.
That distinction matters for contractors.
Businesses built entirely around storm-driven demand are inherently more volatile than those that generate consistent opportunities throughout the year. Contractors that remain visible in their markets, educate customers before outages occur, offer financing, and build long-term maintenance relationships are often better positioned to capitalize when major weather events increase demand.
The pattern in 2025 reinforces that point. Same-store demand declined 17.8% from the extraordinary 2024 peak but finished near 2022 and 2023 levels. Rather than signaling a cooling market, the data suggests demand returned to its longer-term trajectory after a particularly severe storm season.
The role of backup power is expanding
Backup generators have traditionally been associated with emergency preparedness; however, they’re increasingly becoming part of broader investments in resilience.
Homes rely on electricity in more ways than they did just a decade ago. Remote work, home offices, connected security systems, electric vehicle chargers, medical equipment, smart home technology, and all-electric appliances have increased both the likelihood and the cost of disruption when power is lost.
Commercial customers are experiencing a similar shift. Many businesses depend on cloud-based software, connected equipment, automated building systems, refrigeration, or uninterrupted customer service to operate effectively. Even relatively short outages can result in lost productivity, damaged inventory, missed revenue, or dissatisfied customers—all of which can damage a business’ reputation.
As dependence on reliable electricity grows across both residential and commercial markets, generator purchases are often driven by day-to-day operational needs rather than weather events alone.
A growing opportunity for contractors
ServiceTitan's analysis points to a generator market that’s remained resilient despite year-to-year weather variability. Major storms may create temporary demand spikes, but the data suggests underlying demand has remained consistently strong before and after those events.
For contractors, that creates an opportunity to think beyond storm response.
Educating customers about backup power before outages occur, offering financing to reduce upfront cost barriers, and building recurring maintenance relationships can create a steadier business throughout the year. When major storms inevitably increase demand, those contractors are often better positioned to respond because they’ve already invested in customer awareness, operational capacity, and long-term service relationships.
As the electric grid continues to evolve and homes and businesses become increasingly dependent on uninterrupted power, backup generators are becoming less of an emergency purchase and more of a long-term resilience investment.
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Based on ServiceTitan platform data from a same-store cohort of generator contractors continuously active from 2020 through 2025. Index reflects jobs per contractor relative to the 6-year cohort average. Customers who opted out of industry publications are excluded. The 2024 demand spike appears to coincide with elevated severe weather activity in the U.S.; this analysis does not establish a causal relationship. Individual contractor results may vary. Data reflects ServiceTitan platform activity and may not represent broader market conditions.
