Equity has become central in the academic and regulatory discourse shaping the future of residential-scale clean energy technologies in the United States, particularly rooftop solar and electric vehicles. Here, we develop a holistic perspective on these issues by analyzing adoption trends in a broader context, what is known by forecasters as taking an outside view. We show how other emerging consumer technologies have become more equitably adopted over time. Using rooftop solar data as a case study, we show that solar adoption patterns are largely consistent with those of other technologies. An outside view suggests that clean energy technologies should be expected to become more equitably adopted over time. Targeted policies can accelerate this process.