How Much Does It Cost to Switch to Solar? Zero, With Community Solar

The cost of solar panels can be a major outlay for homeowners, but there’s an alternative — one with which solar energy doesn’t have to cost a cent and can even save customers money.

By participating in Community Solar, customers pay nothing up front, and they save money through utility bill discounts. Community solar is thus a viable option for households that can’t afford solar panels or — in the case of renters and condo owners — can’t install them. In fact, 77% of U.S. residential households are likely ineligible for rooftop solar systems, according to GTM.

Community Solar projects provide electricity to a local power grid, and subscribers are granted shares of the electricity output. Because Community Solar projects are remote, customers don’t need any equipment installed locally. Tapping into the benefits of solar remotely can be a boon for people who can’t afford the upfront cost of residential solar, those whose residences can’t support solar panels or whose residences don’t get enough sunlight, and those who rent their residences or live in multi-unit buildings.

Here’s how it works: Utilities track the electricity provided by the Community Solar projects and the resulting “solar credits” offset a subscriber’s monthly electricity bill from their utility company. Customers often pay a monthly bill for the Community Solar project, too, but the total for the electricity supply is less annually than what the subscriber would pay without Community Solar.

At Altus Power, the savings that a customer receives from the Community Solar program depend on their location. But if a customer’s Altus contract includes a 20% discount, that means that for every $1.00 that the customer’s utility company takes off their monthly bill for solar credits, the customer only owes Altus $0.80. For example, a customer contracted at a 20% discount who uses $150 of electricity in a month and receives $100 in solar credits will owe their utility company $50 and Altus $80, resulting in a total charge of $130 and thus a discount of $20.

Signing up is simple. Enter your zip code and utility here to see if Community Solar is available near you.

Community Solar has “become almost as easy as signing up for Netflix," Matt Hargarten, vice president of campaigns for the Coalition for Community Solar Access, told CNET recently. “It used to be onerous contracts, credit checks, and all these other things. But as financiers have become more comfortable with these products, it's become month-to-month, cancel whenever you want, no credit checks, and a really easy energy tech product for people to sign up for.”