Solar Panel Cost in Arizona (2026): Prices, Export Rates and Payback

The biggest change is federal. The Federal Residential Clean Energy Credit (25D)^[4] no longer applies to systems whose installation is completed after December 31, 2025, so a 2026 cash purchase gets no federal credit. Arizona's own Arizona Residential Solar Energy Devices Tax Credit (A.R.S. 43-1083)^[5] still applies: 25% of the cost of the device, up to $1,000 (lifetime cap per residence); unused credit carries forward up to 5 years^[5]. It is small next to the old federal credit, which is why the gap between your retail price and your utility's export rate now matters more than ever.

The second change is the export rate. APS customers who apply in the current tranche lock in 5.55¢ per kWh^[6], and TEP customers lock in 4.62¢ per kWh^[7]. Both rates are set under the Resource Comparison Proxy and step down each year, so the application date matters.

Arizona ended retail net metering for new APS and TEP customers in 2017 (ACC Decision 75859). Today:

• APS credits exports at the RCP rate above, locked for 10 years^[6] from your application. Solar customers must choose a time-of-use plan, and APS adds a grid access charge per kW of panels: $0.242 per kW-dc of solar nameplate capacity added to the monthly bill on TOU-E ($0.215/kW-dc on R-3).^[8]
• TEP works the same way with its own RCP rate, and requires a time-of-use plan for solar customers: Customers on the RCP export rider must be on a residential time-of-use rate.^[9]
• SRP, which serves much of the Phoenix metro and is not regulated by the Arizona Corporation Commission, now pays 1.87¢ per kWh^[10] on its newer plans. That is far below what you pay for power, so SRP customers save mostly on the energy they use as it is produced.

Because exports are worth a fraction of retail everywhere in Arizona, size your system to what you use during the day and early evening rather than to your total yearly use, and look hard at shifting pool pumps, pre-cooling and EV charging into sunny hours. A battery can make sense for SRP and APS customers on demand-charge plans, but price it against the export gap, not against a generic promise of independence.

Berkeley Lab's latest data put Arizona's median installed price at $3.10 per watt est.^[2], below the U.S. median of $3.60 per watt est.^[2]. Cash buyers nationally paid a median of $3.00 per watt est.^[2] while loan-financed systems came in at $4.50 per watt est.^[2], which mostly reflects financing fees built into the price. If you finance, ask every installer for the cash price of the same system in writing.

Arizona law gives solar buyers specific protections. Solar sale or lease agreements must let the buyer or lessee cancel for at least three business days after signing and before installation, and must include bold disclosures that utility rates and tax incentives can change.^[13] Leases cannot start charging early either: Recurring solar lease payments cannot start until the utility grants permission to operate and the system is energized and interconnected.^[13] HOAs cannot ban solar: Planned-community associations cannot prohibit installing or using a solar energy device; they may adopt reasonable placement rules only if those rules don't prevent installation, impair function, or adversely affect cost or efficiency. Courts award attorney fees to a party that substantially prevails against the board.^[14] Our Arizona installer guide shows how to check a contractor's license with the Registrar of Contractors before you sign.