Is it worth it?
The gross 2026 price of home solar — a dated cost-per-watt range, a typical total, and where every dollar goes — with the expired 30% federal credit left out of the math.
Updated June 30, 2026 · 8 min read
In 2026, a home solar system costs roughly $2.50 to $3.25 per watt before any incentives — which puts a typical 8–12 kW install somewhere around $20,000 to $36,000 out the door — and for cash or loan buyers there is no longer a federal tax credit to subtract from that number.
That is the whole answer, stated plainly. Now the nuance.
Two reputable, dated benchmarks bracket the range. EnergySage's 2026 marketplace data — real quotes from real installers — puts the national average at about $2.58 per watt before incentives, or $30,505 for a 12 kW system (EnergySage, state cost data updated June 26, 2026). NREL's modeled benchmark for a representative ~8 kW residential system is higher, at $3.25 per watt-DC in 2024 dollars (NREL, Documenting 15 Years of Reductions in U.S. Solar PV System Costs). These are not the same kind of number — one is a live marketplace average, the other a modeled benchmark — but together they frame a fair 2026 range. Anything well above the top of it deserves a hard look.
If you have been searching, you have probably seen prices like "$21,000 after the 30% federal credit." In 2026, that math no longer applies.
The federal residential solar tax credit — Section 25D — will not be allowed for any expenditures made after December 31, 2025 (IRS OBBB FAQ). And the IRS is specific about when an expenditure counts: it is "treated as made when the original installation of the item is completed," not when you pay. In the IRS's own words, "if installation is completed after December 31, 2025, the expenditure will be treated as made after December 31, 2025, which will prevent the taxpayer from claiming the section 25D credit." So if your system is installed in 2026, you get a $0 federal credit — even if you signed the contract or made a deposit in 2025.
The credit is determined by when installation is finished, not when you write the check. A 2026 install = no federal credit for a cash or loan buyer.
That is the single most important thing to understand before you compare a single quote. We cover it in full in Is there a solar tax credit in 2026?, and you can see the whole 2026 incentive picture — including what survived for businesses and farms — in our 2026 solar incentives guide. But the practical takeaway is this: compare every quote on its gross price, before any "credit." Be wary of any offer promising a 30% federal credit for a 2026 installation — the credit ended for systems placed in service after December 31, 2025.
System sizes differ, so total dollars alone tell you nothing. The benchmark that lets you compare is cost per watt: the total system price divided by the system's DC wattage.
A 9.2 kW system quoted at $26,680 is $2.90/W. An 8 kW system quoted at $40,000 is $5.00/W — and that is a red flag, not a premium product. The hardware in those two systems is nearly identical; the difference is almost entirely markup.
Here is where a quote should land in 2026 at three points across the fair range, so you can find your own:
| System size | DC watts | At $2.50/W | At $2.90/W | At $3.25/W |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 kW | 6,000 | $15,000 | $17,400 | $19,500 |
| 8 kW | 8,000 | $20,000 | $23,200 | $26,000 |
| 10 kW | 10,000 | $25,000 | $29,000 | $32,500 |
| 12 kW | 12,000 | $30,000 | $34,800 | $39,000 |
Find your system size, and your gross quote should sit inside that row — unless there is a real, nameable reason it is higher (a complex roof, a panel upgrade, or added battery storage). If it is above the right-hand column with no such reason, ask why.
This is the part installers rarely volunteer, and it is the heart of the matter: more than half of your price is not the equipment.
NREL breaks the representative residential benchmark — modeled on a roughly 7.9 kW system — into components. Here is the modeled split for 2024, in 2024 dollars (NREL, Table A-5):
| Component | Cost ($/W) | Share of total |
|---|---|---|
| Solar panels (modules) | $0.40 | ~12% |
| Inverter (microinverters) | $0.37 | ~11% |
| Racking + electrical (balance of system) | $0.62 | ~19% |
| Hardware subtotal | $1.39 | ~43% |
| Install labor | $0.21 | ~6% |
| Soft costs (sales/marketing, overhead, profit margin, permitting/inspection/interconnection, tax) | $1.64 | ~51% |
| Labor + soft costs subtotal | $1.85 | ~57% |
| Total | $3.25 | 100% |
Read that again. The actual panels on your roof are roughly 12% of the price — about $0.40 per watt. All the physical hardware together is about 43%. The other ~57% is labor plus soft costs, and the soft-cost bucket alone — sales and marketing, customer acquisition, company overhead, profit margin, permitting, and sales tax — is about $1.64 per watt, more than half the total system price.
These are NREL's modeled benchmark shares for a representative system, not a guaranteed line-item split on your invoice. But the lesson holds on any quote: the single biggest lever a salesperson can pull to inflate your price is the soft-cost and margin bucket — not the panels. The hardware costs roughly what it costs. The padding hides everywhere else.
You may have heard that solar got dramatically cheaper. That is true for the equipment. NREL data show PV module prices dropped by roughly 90% from 2010 to 2024 (NREL), and total residential PV costs fell 65% over the same period, from $9.23/W to $3.25/W.
But soft costs barely moved. Residential solar has the highest soft-cost share of any sector, peaking at 68% of total system cost in 2017. So the savings landed on the hardware line — which is less than half your bill — while the sales, overhead, and margin lines stayed sticky.
This is exactly why aggressive door-to-door operations can get away with charging $4–$5 per watt: cheaper panels do not automatically lower your installed price, and the markup hides in the soft-cost line where you cannot see it. Falling panel prices are not a guarantee of a falling quote.
A higher-than-average quote is not automatically a rip-off. Real factors push price up:
See where your state lands in best states for solar before you judge a local quote against the national average.
In 2026, your payback rides on your electricity rate, not a tax credit.
The U.S. average residential electricity price was 18.83 cents per kWh in April 2026, up from 17.55 cents a year earlier (EIA, Electric Power Monthly). Rising power prices are the main thing that still makes home solar worth considering with no federal credit to subtract — and the higher your local rate, the faster solar pays back.
A specific payback number depends on your rate, usage, system size, and how you finance it. For the full analysis, read Is home solar worth it in 2026?.
Cash, loan, lease, and PPA each change your real cost and who — if anyone — can still monetize an incentive. A cash purchase has the lowest lifetime cost; a loan spreads it but adds interest (sometimes hidden in a marked-up "dealer fee"); leases and PPAs mean you do not own the system and the third-party owner keeps any benefits. We break down all four in How to pay for home solar in 2026: cash, loan, lease, or PPA.
Run any 2026 quote through this:
A fair price holds up to comparison on gross cost per watt. For the wider set of warning signs — phantom utility partnerships, fake deadlines, and the "free solar" pitch — see our 2026 solar scam red flags.
The fastest way to know whether a quote is fair is to benchmark it against a gross cost-per-watt estimate built for 2026 — priced on gross cost, with the expired credit left out. Get a free residential estimate and compare it, line by line, against whatever a door-knocker hands you.
Educational content, not tax, financial, or legal advice. Figures are current as of the update date above; verify with a qualified professional before acting.
Expect a gross installed price of roughly $2.50–$3.25 per watt before any incentives in 2026, which puts a typical 8–12 kW home system around $20,000–$36,000 out the door. EnergySage's 2026 marketplace average is about $2.58 per watt, or $30,505 for a 12 kW system, before incentives; NREL's modeled benchmark for a representative ~8 kW system is $3.25 per watt. For cash or loan buyers there is no federal tax credit to subtract from that number anymore, so this gross figure is what you actually pay.
Cost per watt — total system price divided by DC watts — is the only apples-to-apples way to compare quotes. In 2026, roughly $2.50–$3.25 per watt (gross, before incentives) is a fair range for a standard install, and EnergySage's national marketplace average is about $2.58/W. A quote much above ~$3.25/W with no special reason — a complex roof, a panel upgrade, or added battery storage — is a sign of an inflated price, especially from a high-pressure door-to-door sales operation.
Because the credit changed for 2026. The federal residential solar tax credit (Section 25D) is not allowed for expenditures made after December 31, 2025, so a 2026 price quoted 'after the 30% credit' no longer applies for a cash or loan buyer. The IRS treats the cost as made when installation is completed, not when you pay, so a 2026 install gets a $0 federal credit. Compare quotes on gross price only.
No — more than half is not the equipment. In NREL's benchmark for a representative ~8 kW system, hardware (panels, inverter, racking and wiring) is only about 43% of the price. The other ~57% is labor plus soft costs: sales and marketing, company overhead, profit margin, permitting and inspection, and tax. The panels alone are roughly $0.40 of the per-watt price. That soft-cost bucket is the biggest place an aggressive installer can pad a quote.
Because the savings are in the hardware, and hardware is less than half the price. NREL data show PV module prices fell about 90% since 2010, but soft costs — sales, overhead, margin, permitting — barely moved, and residential solar has the highest soft-cost share of any sector (peaking at 68% in 2017). So cheaper panels don't automatically mean a cheaper installed price; the markup tends to hide in the soft-cost line, not the equipment.
Free, no obligation, and sourced from the IRS, USDA, and EIA.