Rain gardens and stormwater projects · Washington

RainWise Rain Garden and Cistern Rebate

Run by Seattle Public Utilities and King County

OpenPlan requiredLast checked October 17, 2026
What you get
Up to $13.12 per sq ft of roof area for rain gardens; up to $9.91 per sq ft of roof area for cisterns; rebates cover 90-100% of installation cost
Who qualifies
Property in a RainWise-eligible area connected to the combined sewer system; complete the RainWise Eligibility Form. Also open to churches, apartments, businesses.
Where
Properties connected to the combined sewer in RainWise-eligible areas of Seattle and King County.
Status
Open. No deadline or funding cap published on the overview pages.
Type of payment
Rebate
Official program page

What you do

Have a RainWise-trained contractor install a rain garden and/or cistern that captures roof runoff at your home in an eligible combined-sewer area.

Requirements

  • Check property eligibility and complete eligibility form
  • Use a RainWise-trained contractor
  • Pre-inspection, construction, and post-inspection with contractor
  • System should manage at least 50% of roof water; full rebate needs all roof runoff controlled, smaller systems earn less
  • Homeowner maintains the system for 5 years
  • Costs not covered (e.g. gutter repairs) paid by owner

The plan or design it asks for

Contractor designs the system and does a pre-inspection before construction; details set by RainWise program, not fully published on overview page.

Native plant lists for the area: Seattle

Make the plan in Sow

Draw the layout and build the plant list

Sow places plants on a photo of your yard and keeps a list of everything you add. Check RainWise's rules for exactly what to submit.

Start a plan in Sow

How to apply

  1. 1Check eligibility on seattlerainwise.org
  2. 2Complete the RainWise Eligibility Form
  3. 3Hire a RainWise-trained contractor (find one on the site; Vendor Payment Option contractors front costs)
  4. 4Pre-inspection, construction, post-inspection
  5. 5Submit rebate paperwork (contractor can do this under VPO)
  6. 6Payment arrives in 4-8 weeks

Timing and deadlines

Payment within 4-8 weeks of paperwork

Combining it with other programs

RainWise Access Grant (Stewardship Partners) available to income-qualified households for out-of-pocket costs

Sources

Last checked October 17, 2026. See something out of date? Tell us.

Sow is not affiliated with any of these agencies or utilities. Amounts and rules change, often at the start of a fiscal year, so confirm the details on the official page before you start a project. How we research these programs

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