Sunprint
At a glance
Solar still pays off for most PG&E homes, but it works differently than it did before April 2023. PG&E bills you each month on the E-ELEC time-of-use rate. Every kWh your panels make and your home uses on the spot saves that hour's E-ELEC price. Every kWh you send to the grid earns an Energy Export Credit set by the CPUC for that hour and month, usually a few cents.
PG&E's own page says Solar Billing Plan customers "can expect to save up to 40% on electric charges." Our calculator's model for a typical PG&E home lands in the same range. PG&E's prices are the reason solar still works: its bundled residential price averaged 39.6 cents per kWh in 2024 in federal EIA data, up from 22.4 cents in 2019.
How the Solar Billing Plan works at PG&E
- A bill every month, plus an annual True-Up statement that adds up the year's charges and credits.
- The E-ELEC rate, automatically. PG&E enrolls new residential solar customers in its Electric Home rate. The tariff says net billing customers don't need an EV, battery or heat pump to be on it.
- Export credits by the hour, in a generation part and a delivery part, locked for nine years for homes that applied by the end of 2027.
- A bonus credit (PG&E calls it the Energy Export Bonus Credit) for homes that start on the plan before 2028: 0.88¢ per kWh sent to the grid for 2026 applications, 0.44¢ for 2027, for nine years. Its value is set when your system gets permission to operate.
- The Base Services Charge, about $24 a month for most customers ($6 on CARE, $12 on FERA), which export credits can't pay.
Our NEM 3.0 guide explains net billing in general; this page sticks to PG&E's numbers.
What PG&E pays for solar you send to the grid
PG&E's 2026 price sheet lists a credit for every hour of every month. On spring days, when solar power is plentiful, the credit falls below one cent from late morning through the afternoon. Summer evenings pay far more, but by then most panels make little power:
- April weekdays
- July weekdays
- December weekdays
Weighted by when real homes send power out, the 2026 credits averaged about 5.2 cents per kWh in our model of 110 PG&E-area homes, about 59% of a typical system's output. That's why a kWh you use yourself is worth roughly six times one you export.
E-ELEC, the rate PG&E solar homes move to (June 1, 2026)
Plus the Base Services Charge, $0.79343 a day (about $24 a month) for customers not on CARE or FERA. No baseline credit.
What solar sends to the grid earns
Sources: PG&E Schedule E-ELEC; PG&E 2026 export credit price sheet; our model of 110 PG&E-area homes.
The E-ELEC rate, and what changes on your bill
PG&E's E-TOU-C time-of-use rate, which our calculator assumes you're on before solar, has a peak from 4 to 9 p.m. and a baseline credit of 8.14 cents on the baseline amount of use. E-ELEC has no baseline credit, but its prices are lower most of the day, and it adds a partial-peak hour on each side of the peak:
| Per kWh, June 1, 2026 | E-TOU-C | E-ELEC (solar homes) |
|---|---|---|
| Summer peak, 4 to 9 p.m. | 52.2¢ | 55.2¢ |
| Summer, other hours | 39.9¢ | 33.4¢ (39.0¢ 3 to 4 p.m. and 9 p.m. to midnight) |
| Winter peak | 39.8¢ | 32.1¢ |
| Winter, other hours | 36.8¢ | 28.5¢ (29.9¢ partial peak) |
| Baseline credit | 8.14¢ on baseline use | None |
Bundled prices for customers who buy their power from PG&E. Sources: PG&E Schedules E-TOU-C and E-ELEC.
For a typical home in our model, moving to E-ELEC by itself lowers the energy charges a little, about 2.8 cents per kWh used, because most of the use sits above the baseline amount. Our savings figures include that change.
Savings and payback for PG&E homes
Three homes with sun like San Jose's, each with a system sized to 85% of its yearly use and no battery. Payback is shown at the price PG&E-area homeowners reported for solar-only systems approved from January to August 2026: a quarter paid $2.71 a watt or less, half paid $4.30 or less, and three quarters paid $6.55 or less.
| Home | Bill before | First-year savings | Per solar kWh | System | At $2.71/W | At $4.30/W | At $6.55/W |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smaller home4,500 kWh a year | $150 | $660 | 17¢ | 2.4 kW | 10 yrs | 14 yrs | 20 yrs |
| Typical home7,000 kWh a year | $233 | $1,110 | 19¢ | 3.8 kW | 9 yrs | 13 yrs | 19 yrs |
| Larger home10,000 kWh a year | $333 | $1,700 | 20¢ | 5.4 kW | 8 yrs | 13 yrs | 18 yrs |
Bills include the Base Services Charge. Savings from our model of 110 PG&E-area homes on E-ELEC with 2026 export credits; rates rise 3% a year, export credits are held flat, panels lose 0.5% a year. Prices: California DG Stats, host-owned solar-only PG&E systems, January to August 2026.
Bigger homes save more per solar kWh, because more of their use falls above the baseline amount on E-TOU-C, where it costs more. And the price you pay matters as much as anything: the gap between a quarter of PG&E buyers and three quarters is several years of payback.
If a community choice provider supplies your power
If a community choice aggregator (CCA) buys your electricity and PG&E delivers it, the export credit works a little differently. PG&E's price sheet says its generation export credit ("Energy Produced") applies only to customers who buy their power from PG&E; CCA and direct access customers get the generation part of the credit from their provider, and PG&E still pays the delivery part. Ask your CCA what it pays before you size a system.
Getting connected to PG&E
- Your installer applies through PG&E's online interconnection portal. Home systems of 30 kW or less use PG&E's standard interconnection agreement.
- You sign the CPUC's Solar Consumer Protection Guide. PG&E requires it with the application.
- The city or county inspects the finished system, and PG&E reviews the paperwork. In some cases the grid near your home needs an upgrade first; PG&E says your installer will tell you if that adds cost.
- Wait for the permission to operate letter. PG&E says never to turn a system on before it arrives. Your export credits and bonus credit run nine years from that date.
If you already have solar with PG&E
Homes on NEM 2.0 keep it for 20 years from their interconnection date, under CPUC rules. PG&E's interconnection page notes that NEM applications submitted before April 15, 2023 had to be completed before April 15, 2026 to stay on NEM2; unfinished ones moved to the Solar Billing Plan. Since March 2026, NEM customers also pay the Base Services Charge in place of the old minimum charge, and generation credits can't offset it. Our NEM 2.0 vs NEM 3.0 guide compares the two.
What a free quote call gets you
- One verified local installer
- The installed price for your roof
- Your payback years from that price
- Free, with no obligation
See what solar could save you
About a minute, and no phone number needed. If the number looks good, a free quote call gets you the exact price.
Common questions
How much does PG&E pay for solar in 2026?
It depends on the hour and month. For homes that applied in 2026, PG&E's weekday export credit runs from under 1 cent on spring afternoons to near $1 on August evenings. Weighted by when homes actually export, it averaged about 5.2 cents per kWh in our model, including the 0.88-cent bonus credit.
What rate plan do PG&E solar customers have to use?
New residential solar customers on the Solar Billing Plan are enrolled in PG&E's Electric Home rate, E-ELEC. Its peak is 4 to 9 p.m. every day: 55.2 cents per kWh in summer and 32.1 cents in winter as of June 1, 2026, plus the Base Services Charge.
Do PG&E solar customers pay the Base Services Charge?
Yes. Most PG&E customers pay about $24 a month, or about $6 on CARE and $12 on FERA, and solar export credits can't be used to pay it.
How does the PG&E solar true-up work?
Solar Billing Plan customers get a bill every month and a True-Up statement at the end of each 12-month cycle. The True-Up adds up the year's charges for power from the grid, credits for power sent to the grid, bonus credits and any net surplus compensation.
How long until a PG&E solar system pays for itself?
In our estimates for a home using 7,000 kWh a year, about 9 to 19 years at the prices PG&E-area homeowners paid in 2026, $2.71 to $6.55 per watt, without a battery.
Related guides
- California solar calculator
- NEM 3.0 in California, explained
- Is solar worth it in California?
- Why is my PG&E bill so high?
- The Base Services Charge
- Your solar true-up bill
PG&E's rates and export credits change; the figures here are for 2026. Model figures are estimates for typical homes, not a quote for yours. Sources: PG&E: Solar Billing Plan · PG&E Energy Export Credit price sheets · PG&E Schedule E-ELEC · PG&E Schedule E-TOU-C · PG&E Schedule NBT · PG&E: Base Services Charge · PG&E: solar bill · PG&E: interconnection · California DG Stats · EIA Form 861. Reviewed October 2026.
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