Solar can save you up to $53,037

20 years estimated savings.

Electricity Bill

System Information

Solar Payment

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the average American household uses 10,715 kWh of electricity per year¹, which means a home would need a 7kW system to offset 100% of electricity. As you can see from the table below, a 7kW system includign installation will cost you around $20K before applying any incentives.

System Size Avg. System Cost Avg. System Cost 

(Before Tax Credit) (After Tax Credit)

2 kW

$5,620

$4,159

3 kW

$8,430

$6,238

4 kW

$11,240

$8,318

5 kW

$14,050

$10,397

6 kW

$16,860

$12,476

7 kW

$19,670

$14,556

8 kW

$22,480

$16,635

9 kW

$25,290

$18,715

10 kW

$28,100

$20,794

12 kW

$33,720

$24,953

15 kW

$42,150

$31,191

20 kW

$56,200

$41,588

25 kW

$70,250

$51,985

Now you must be thinking how many solar panels do I need for this 7kW system. This depends on a few key factors, including geographic location, panel efficienty & power, and of course the amount of energy your household uses. An average home would need between 20 and 24 solar panels to fully offset electricity bills with solar. This is assuming you get 340 W solar panels.

System Size

Number of panels needed

Estimated Annual production

4 kW

12

6,400 kWh

6 kW

18

9,600 kWh

8 kW

24

12,800 kWh

10 kW

29

16,000 kWh

12 kW

36

19,200 kWh

14 kW

42

22,400 kWh

Can your roof fit around 20 solar panels? An average house in the US is 2,687 square feet and such a house can fit around 35 solar panels.

Home Size

Estimated Annual Electricity needed

Number of solar panels needed

1,000 sq. feet

4,710 kWh

14

2,000 sq. feet

9,420 kWh

29

2,500 sq. feet

11,775 kWh

35

3,000 sq. feet

14,130 kWh

42

Table below will give you an idea of how many solar panels you need for common electrical appliances. Electric vehicles consume a lot of electricity so plan accordingly if you are thinking of buying one in future.

Product

Average Annual Electricity Needed

Number of solar panels needed

Refrigerator

600 kWh

2

Window air conditioning

215 kWh

1

Central air conditioning

1,000 kWh

3

Electric vehicle

3,000 kWh

9

Heated swimming pool

2,500 kWh

8