Federal solar credit ended Dec 31, 2025
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Solar costs · Sacramento, CA

Solar Panel Cost in Sacramento, California

Fact-checked by Sorted & Saved data desk
Updated Data verified Nov 5, 2026

Sacramento gets about 1,618 kWh per kW per year[1] from a rooftop solar array, according to NREL's PVWatts model at the city's coordinates. SMUD's residential customers paid an average of 17.87¢ per kWh[2] and used 702 kWh a month[2]. A system sized to that use, about 5.2 kW est.[1,2], costs roughly $14,500 to $19,500 est.[1,2,3] before incentives, and pays back in about 14 years est.[1,2,3,4] for a cash buyer.

On this page [ 8 ]

Sacramento solar at a glance

Output per kW of panels1,618 kWh/yr[1]PVWatts, this city
Sunlight on panels5.87 kWh/m²/day[1]Annual average
SMUD avg. price17.87¢/kWh[2]2024 average, bundled customers
SMUD avg. home use702 kWh/mo[2]2024 average
Typical system5.2 kWCovers 100% of use
Typical price$17,200Estimate, before incentives
Year-1 savings$1,160Estimate
Payback14 yearsEstimate, cash purchase
Estimated monthly output of a 5.2 kW system in Sacramento (PVWatts, typical weather year)kWh / month

SMUD credits exports at 9.60¢ per kWh (Solar and Storage Rate (SSR, Rate Schedule SSR; SMUD municipal, not subject to CPUC NEM 3.0)). Assumptions: methodology.

How Sacramento Municipal Utility District treats solar

UtilityExport policyExport creditAvg. residential priceMonthly basic charge
SMUDSolar and Storage Rate (SSR, Rate Schedule SSR; SMUD municipal, not subject to CPUC NEM 3.0)9.60¢ per kWh[4]17.87¢ per kWh[2]$27.00[5]

Sacramento Municipal Utility District: Solar and Storage Rate (SSR, Rate Schedule SSR; SMUD municipal, not subject to CPUC NEM 3.0)

Customers approved to install solar or storage on or after March 1, 2022 are on the Solar and Storage Rate. They stay on the standard Time-of-Day (5-8 p.m.) rate and are paid a flat 9.6 cents per exported kWh at any hour or season. Export credits can offset only electricity usage charges. Leftover credit carries over to later bills, but the fixed charge, fees and taxes must be paid monthly.

  • System Infrastructure Fixed Charge (R-TOD): $27.00/month from January 1, 2026. Scheduled to rise to $27.80 on January 1, 2027. It was $26.20 from May 1, 2025.[5]
  • Legacy NEM through 2030: Customers approved before March 1, 2022 may stay on legacy NEM through December 31, 2030. They must move to SSR if they take SMUD battery incentives or expand the system by more than 10% or 1 kW.[6]

Permits and local programs in Sacramento

  • Permitting: The City of Sacramento accepts SolarAPP+ automated plan review for residential solar (1-2 units and ADUs, licensed contractors only). City permit fees are charged separately from the SolarAPP+ processing fee. A SMUD interconnection letter is part of the submittal.[7]
  • Export credit: Sacramento is served by SMUD, a municipal utility. New solar customers are paid a flat 9.6 cents/kWh for exports (effective June 1, 2026) instead of CPUC Net Billing Tariff hourly values.[4]
  • Battery incentive: SMUD pays $300/kWh, up to $6,000, to enroll a battery in My Energy Optimizer Partner+ (for interconnection applications from Sept. 23, 2026). SMUD has no solar panel rebate.[8]

Sacramento solar cost by system size

SystemPrice before incentives[3]After incentiveskWh in year 1[1]Year-1 savings[2][4]Payback (years)
4 kW$13,200$13,2006,470$89014
6 kW$19,800$19,8009,710$1,33014
8 kW$26,400$26,40012,940$1,78014
10 kW$33,000$33,00016,180$2,22014
12 kW$39,600$39,60019,420$2,56014

Incentives for Sacramento homeowners

Federal · tax creditEnding soon

Business credit for leased and PPA systems (48E)

Claimed by the system owner, not the homeowner; solar must begin construction by July 4, 2026 or be in service by December 31, 2027[9]

If a company owns the panels on your roof (a lease or power purchase agreement), that company may claim the business clean electricity investment credit and can reflect it in your price. You cannot claim it yourself.

Who
Third-party-owned systems (leases and PPAs). Ask the provider whether the price assumes this credit.
Deadline
December 31, 2027
Checked
November 5, 2026
State · tax exemptionEnding soon

Active solar energy system new-construction property tax exclusion (Rev. & Tax. Code 73)

Adding an active solar energy system (including storage devices that are part of it) is not treated as 'new construction', so it does not raise the assessed value. Ends January 1, 2027. Systems that qualify before then stay excluded until the property changes hands.[10]

Subd. (i)(2): systems that qualify for an exclusion before January 1, 2027 continue to be excluded until there is a subsequent change in ownership. Subd. (g) says the section applies to lien dates for fiscal years 1999-2000 through 2025-26. The leginfo cross-reference list shows no 2026 chaptered bill amending section 73. The BOE analysis of SB 710 (https://boe.ca.gov/legdiv/pdf/0710sb090525ml.pdf) says 'any solar installation post January 1, 2027 would be considered new construction and would…

Who
Owners who add an active solar energy system to property. The system must qualify before January 1, 2027. The exclusion lasts until the next change in ownership.
Deadline
January 1, 2027
Checked
November 5, 2026
State · rebateAvailable

Disadvantaged Communities - Single-family Solar Homes (DAC-SASH)

$3/watt incentive for rooftop solar for income-qualified homeowners in disadvantaged communities[11]

Budget: '$120 million total ($10 million per year 2019 - 2030)'. SDG&E's Solar Billing Plan page still lists DAC-SASH as a current assistance program. I could not confirm current intake on the administrator page (gridalternatives.org returned 403).

Who
Income-qualified (CARE/FERA-eligible) single-family homeowners in CalEnviroScreen disadvantaged communities or San Joaquin Valley pilot communities, in IOU territory. GRID Alternatives administers the program.
Deadline
Program budget is $10 million per year for 2019-2030 ($120 million total).
Checked
November 5, 2026
State · rebateWaitlist

SGIP Residential Solar and Storage Equity (RSSE)

$1.10/Wh for storage plus $3.10/W for solar (current step 6), for low-income households[12]

The CPUC budget table lists RSSE at 'Storage: 1,100' ($/kWh) and 'Solar: 3,100/kW'. Rates and status were confirmed on the SGIP step tracker (https://www.selfgenca.com/home/program_metrics/) as of 11/5/2026, which lists 'Solar $3.10/W' and 'Energy Storage $1.10/Wh' at Step 6. RSSE AB 209: CSE, SCG and LADWP on Waitlist. AB 209 Non-POU: SCE and PG&E on Waitlist. AB 209 POU: SCE 'Open' ($1,000,000 available), PG&E Waitlist. RSSE Ratepayer: Closed in all four IOU territories. The $280M figure is…

Who
Low-income residential customers installing paired solar and storage. The CPUC has authorized $280 million for this budget.
Deadline
Ends when funds run out. As of 11/5/2026 the AB 209 sub-budgets are on waitlist in most administrator territories.
Checked
November 5, 2026
State · rebateAvailable

Solar on Multifamily Affordable Housing (SOMAH)

Up to $3.50 per AC watt for capacity serving tenants and $1.19 per AC watt for common areas[13]

Activity status comes from https://calsomah.org/ ('175+ apps in 2026, on pace for a post-launch record'). The CPUC page says the budget is 'up to $100 Million annually, collected through June 2026'.

Who
Owners of multifamily affordable housing properties. This is not a program for single-family homeowners.
Deadline
Funding was collected through June 2026. The program reports 175+ applications in 2026. Integrated storage incentives are paused (waitlist) in PG&E and SDG&E territories.
Checked
November 5, 2026
Utility · rebateAvailable

SMUD My Energy Optimizer Partner+ battery enrollment incentive

$300 per kWh of battery, up to $6,000 per household, for interconnection applications submitted on or after Sept. 23, 2026. Earlier projects got $500/kWh up to $10,000 if enrolled by Dec. 31, 2026. Tesla owners also receive quarterly payments.[8]

Quarterly incentives are currently Tesla-only: 1 battery $110, 2 batteries $220, 3+ batteries $330. SMUD offers no solar rebates: 'SMUD does not offer rebates for solar installations but battery storage incentives are available.' (https://www.smud.org/Going-Green/Solar-for-Your-Home).

Who
SMUD residential customers with a qualifying battery who are on the Solar and Storage Rate. They must enroll within 90 days of permission to operate. MED Rate customers are not eligible.
Maximum
$6,000
Deadline
No end date stated. The higher $500/kWh tier requires an interconnection application by Sept. 22 and program enrollment by Dec. 31, 2026.
Checked
November 5, 2026

Every California incentive →

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

How much do solar panels cost in Sacramento?

About $17,200 est.[1,2,3] before incentives for a 5.2 kW est.[1,2] system, using California's median installed price of $3.30 per watt est.[3]. Get at least three written quotes; prices for the same system often differ by thousands of dollars.

How does SMUD pay for solar I send to the grid?

Under Solar and Storage Rate (SSR, Rate Schedule SSR; SMUD municipal, not subject to CPUC NEM 3.0), SMUD credits exports at 9.60¢ per kWh[4], well below the retail price, so using your solar power at home is worth more than exporting it.

How long is the payback for solar in Sacramento?

Our model estimates about 14 years est.[1,2,3,4] for a cash purchase, with year-one savings of about $1,160 est.[1,2,4]. Financing, a battery or a different rate plan changes this; the calculator lets you test each.

sources

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Every number on this page links to one of these sources. Dates show when we last checked each one.

  1. NREL/NLR PVWatts v8 (1 kW-DC, fixed roof mount, 20° tilt, south-facing, 14% losses, TMY weather)pvwatts.nlr.gov · checked Nov 5, 2026
  2. EIA Electric Sales, Revenue, and Average Price 2024, Table 6: Utility bundled retail sales, residentialeia.gov · checked Nov 5, 2026
  3. U.S. Distributed Solar and Storage 2026 Data Update (Barbose, Darghouth, O'Shaughnessy, Forrester), Berkeley Labeta-publications.lbl.gov · checked Nov 5, 2026
  4. SMUD: Solar and Storage Rate (SSR, Rate Schedule SSR; SMUD municipal, not subject to CPUC NEM 3.0)smud.org · checked Nov 5, 2026
  5. SMUD residential tariffsmud.org · checked Nov 5, 2026
  6. SMUD: Legacy NEM through 2030smud.org · checked Nov 5, 2026
  7. Sacramento: Permittingcityofsacramento.gov · checked Nov 5, 2026
  8. Sacramento: Battery incentivesmud.org · checked Nov 5, 2026
  9. Public Law 119-21 - Sec. 70513(a) and (g)(5) (48E); Sec. 70512(a) and (l)(4) (45Y)govinfo.gov · checked Nov 5, 2026
  10. California Revenue and Taxation Code section 73 (as amended by Stats. 2025, Ch. 328, SB 710)leginfo.legislature.ca.gov · checked Nov 5, 2026
  11. CPUC - Solar in Disadvantaged Communitiescpuc.ca.gov · checked Nov 5, 2026
  12. CPUC - Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP)cpuc.ca.gov · checked Nov 5, 2026
  13. CPUC - Solar on Multifamily Affordable Housing (SOMAH) Programcpuc.ca.gov · checked Nov 5, 2026

City data last re-checked November 5, 2026.