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Solar payback by state
A 5 kW DIY system at today's typical prices: panels at $0.47/W plus a 5 kW hybrid inverter at $0.08/W, $2,782 in hardware before racking, wiring, permits and installation (an installed system costs several times more). 14% losses, each state's average residential rate (August 2026, EIA) and annual peak sun hours (NASA POWER). Fastest: Hawaii, 0.7 years; slowest: North Dakota, 3.4 years. Pick your state above to run it with your own numbers.
| State | Power $/kWh | Sun h/day | kWh a year | Saved a year | Pays off in |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | $0.472 | 5.68 | 8,915 | $4,206 | 0.7 yr |
| California | $0.297 | 5.35 | 8,397 | $2,498 | 1.1 yr |
| Maine | $0.321 | 3.70 | 5,807 | $1,865 | 1.5 yr |
| Massachusetts | $0.305 | 3.81 | 5,980 | $1,823 | 1.5 yr |
| Rhode Island | $0.282 | 3.99 | 6,262 | $1,765 | 1.6 yr |
| District of Columbia | $0.260 | 4.12 | 6,466 | $1,680 | 1.7 yr |
| New York | $0.286 | 3.66 | 5,744 | $1,646 | 1.7 yr |
| New Hampshire | $0.276 | 3.71 | 5,823 | $1,609 | 1.7 yr |
| New Jersey | $0.246 | 3.92 | 6,152 | $1,514 | 1.8 yr |
| Connecticut | $0.245 | 3.91 | 6,137 | $1,504 | 1.8 yr |
| New Mexico | $0.165 | 5.58 | 8,758 | $1,446 | 1.9 yr |
| Arizona | $0.150 | 5.80 | 9,103 | $1,370 | 2.0 yr |
| Maryland | $0.214 | 4.04 | 6,341 | $1,357 | 2.0 yr |
| Colorado | $0.172 | 5.00 | 7,848 | $1,347 | 2.1 yr |
| Michigan | $0.230 | 3.64 | 5,713 | $1,313 | 2.1 yr |
| Pennsylvania | $0.218 | 3.80 | 5,964 | $1,298 | 2.1 yr |
| Vermont | $0.238 | 3.47 | 5,446 | $1,298 | 2.1 yr |
| Alaska | $0.294 | 2.77 | 4,348 | $1,279 | 2.2 yr |
| Illinois | $0.193 | 4.11 | 6,451 | $1,246 | 2.2 yr |
| Texas | $0.159 | 4.97 | 7,800 | $1,241 | 2.2 yr |
| Delaware | $0.187 | 4.07 | 6,388 | $1,195 | 2.3 yr |
| Virginia | $0.176 | 4.28 | 6,717 | $1,185 | 2.3 yr |
| Alabama | $0.163 | 4.61 | 7,235 | $1,182 | 2.4 yr |
| Ohio | $0.194 | 3.86 | 6,058 | $1,174 | 2.4 yr |
| Florida | $0.150 | 4.96 | 7,785 | $1,167 | 2.4 yr |
| Wisconsin | $0.194 | 3.82 | 5,995 | $1,164 | 2.4 yr |
| Georgia | $0.159 | 4.65 | 7,298 | $1,160 | 2.4 yr |
| South Carolina | $0.158 | 4.64 | 7,282 | $1,148 | 2.4 yr |
| Kansas | $0.155 | 4.66 | 7,314 | $1,131 | 2.5 yr |
| Oklahoma | $0.148 | 4.74 | 7,439 | $1,103 | 2.5 yr |
| Iowa | $0.171 | 4.03 | 6,325 | $1,079 | 2.6 yr |
| Indiana | $0.170 | 4.00 | 6,278 | $1,069 | 2.6 yr |
| Oregon | $0.159 | 4.27 | 6,702 | $1,067 | 2.6 yr |
| Missouri | $0.160 | 4.24 | 6,655 | $1,066 | 2.6 yr |
| Minnesota | $0.172 | 3.88 | 6,090 | $1,047 | 2.7 yr |
| North Carolina | $0.149 | 4.44 | 6,969 | $1,042 | 2.7 yr |
| Mississippi | $0.144 | 4.58 | 7,188 | $1,037 | 2.7 yr |
| Utah | $0.133 | 4.95 | 7,769 | $1,034 | 2.7 yr |
| Wyoming | $0.144 | 4.56 | 7,157 | $1,033 | 2.7 yr |
| Nevada | $0.127 | 5.12 | 8,036 | $1,022 | 2.7 yr |
| Arkansas | $0.144 | 4.44 | 6,969 | $1,001 | 2.8 yr |
| West Virginia | $0.163 | 3.89 | 6,105 | $996 | 2.8 yr |
| South Dakota | $0.151 | 4.18 | 6,561 | $994 | 2.8 yr |
| Montana | $0.156 | 4.05 | 6,356 | $990 | 2.8 yr |
| Louisiana | $0.129 | 4.66 | 7,314 | $941 | 3.0 yr |
| Nebraska | $0.135 | 4.42 | 6,937 | $939 | 3.0 yr |
| Idaho | $0.134 | 4.37 | 6,859 | $917 | 3.0 yr |
| Tennessee | $0.134 | 4.32 | 6,780 | $910 | 3.1 yr |
| Kentucky | $0.138 | 4.15 | 6,513 | $899 | 3.1 yr |
| Washington | $0.146 | 3.76 | 5,901 | $863 | 3.2 yr |
| North Dakota | $0.133 | 3.94 | 6,184 | $823 | 3.4 yr |
How the math works
Power a year = system kW × peak sun hours a day × 365 × (1 − losses). Saved a year = that × your electricity rate. Pays for itself = (kW × 1,000 × panel $/W + other costs) ÷ saved a year.
Panels are only part of a system: add inverters, racking, wiring, permits and installation under "Other costs". The 14% losses default is the system-loss figure NREL's PVWatts calculator uses; peak sun hours run from about 3 in the cloudy north to 6+ in the Southwest, so check yours. It ignores incentives, net-metering rules, panel degradation and rate increases, which can move the answer either way.
Panel price per watt as of 2026-11-05: the middle and lowest of 43 current rigid-panel listings (Amazon, and eBay item + shipping) tracked on our solar panel price page.