8.2 How fast does residential solar pay back?

Every contract is different. The benchmarks below use our company's typical configuration and pricing.

California splits into two eras:

• Systems installed before April 2023 are on NEM 2.0 and export at retail. With the federal tax credit, payback was 2–4 years.
• From April 2023 to today, NEM 3.0 requires a battery. With the federal credit, payback is 5–7 years.

Several factors shift the payback period. Every project carries fixed overhead, so a lower pre-solar bill means a smaller system price but also a longer payback. Different consumption patterns and TOU timing translate into different system configurations and prices, so two homes with identical bills can still see very different payback periods.

In other states, even when a battery isn't required and system prices are lower, lower retail rates produce roughly comparable payback periods. The annual yield typically falls between 10% and 20%.