Apply to Compete in the 2020 Design Challenge Today!

Ready to test your creativity, ingenuity, and passion for designing highly efficient and innovative buildings powered by renewable energy? The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon® 2020 Design Challenge is ready for you! 

With the release of the Solar Decathlon 2020 Competition Guide, interested collegiate institutions can find detailed information on how to apply for the 2020 Design Challenge. 2020 Design Challenge teams that are selected as finalist teams will present their projects at an expert-juried event, April 17–19, 2020, at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, Colorado. 

The U.S. Department of Energy Solar Decathlon offers two tracks: (1) an annual “Design Challenge” and (2) a biennial “Build Challenge.” The latest Competition Guide includes the 2020 Design Challenge rules and updates to the 2020 Build Challenge rules. 

Note that applications for the 2020 Build Challenge closed December 10, 2018. Participating Build Challenge teams will build and showcase their homes June 24–July 5, 2020, in partnership with the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C., during which winners will be announced.