Is solar worth it in Los Angeles in 2026?
A roof in Los Angeles produces about 1,676 kWh a year per kW of panels. For a home with a $150 monthly bill, a 3.2 kW system costs about $10,659 at California's median price and pays for itself in roughly 11.4 years, with no federal tax credit.
1,676kWh per kW a year
Source: PVGIS, NSRDB data
33.3¢per kWh
Source: EIA, 2026 year to date
$3.30per watt
Source: Berkeley Lab
Calculator · 2026 data, no federal tax credit
How long would solar take to pay for itself?
Simple payback
11.4 years
- System size
- 3.2 kW
- Installed cost
- $10,659
- Savings, year one
- $936
- Net over 25 years
- $11,389
Sized to cover your yearly use at today's price. Panels lose 0.5% a year; prices held flat. Method
How Los Angeles homes get paid for solar
Export rules are set at the state and utility level, not by the city. Los Angeles is under California's net billing: Since April 15, 2023, new solar customers of PG&E, SCE and SDG&E get hourly avoided-cost credits for exports, usually below the retail rate, under the CPUC Net Billing Tariff. The full rules, incentives and sources are on theCalifornia page.
Los Angeles: your utility, incentives and permits
Main utility: Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP, city-owned). Checked 2026-10-27 against the sources below.
Los Angeles electric rates are set by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), the city’s own utility, through a rate ordinance of the City of Los Angeles. That matters for solar: LADWP is not one of the investor-owned utilities covered by the state’s net billing rules.
What LADWP gives you for exported power
California’s Net Billing Tariff, often called NEM 3.0, applies in the territories of PG&E, Southern California Edison and SDG&E. LADWP runs its own Net Energy Metering (NEM) rider instead. Under it, if your solar system delivers more kWh than you take from LADWP in a billing period, the credit for that energy is calculated using the energy pricing of your rate schedule. Credits carry over to later bills, except for taxes and minimum charges, and they only apply to the bill of the meter that measured the excess.
Fixed monthly charges do not go away: in a net-export month, all billing charges except energy charges and charges based on kWh still apply. If you close your account with a credit balance, it is set to zero and LADWP owes you nothing for it. So size the system to what your home uses.
Who qualifies: you must own the system, it must be 1 MW or smaller, and your rate must be Schedule R-1, A-1, A-2 or A-3. A leased system can qualify only if the lease runs at least 10 years, offers an ownership option and is not priced on energy production.
Incentives in 2026
- LADWP rebate is closed. The utility says it has discontinued its Solar Incentive Program.
- Property tax. California’s property tax exclusion for new solar systems becomes inoperative on January 1, 2027. A system already excluded stays excluded until the property changes ownership.
- Low-income storage and solar. The state’s SGIP Residential Solar and Storage Equity budget is for low-income households, and the CPUC page said LADWP would open applications before the end of 2025. Check that page for whether it is open.
- No federal credit. The federal 25D residential credit ended on December 31, 2025; see what ended with the federal credit.
Permits and connection
Every system needs any permits required by the Los Angeles Department of Building and Safety (LADBS). Separately, you apply to LADWP on its Solar Automated Meter Spot website to get an Interconnection Work Request Number. Systems under 10 kW that need no service upgrade or battery backup may qualify for a fast-track process.
After the system is built and the permit is finalized, LADBS releases the project to LADWP for solar inspection and meter installation. The system may not be operated, and may be locked, until all inspections are done, any required interconnection agreement is signed and a net meter is installed. Systems above 10 kW must sign an interconnection agreement.
The state-level picture is on the California page.
Sources
- LADWP electric rate ordinance 180127, as amended by 181181 (includes Service Rider NEM)
- LADWP Net Energy Metering Guidelines (revised 8/28/2019, modified 4/28/2021)
- CPUC: Net Energy Metering and Net Billing (investor-owned utilities)
- California State Board of Equalization: Letter to Assessors 2026/034 (solar exclusion, September 1, 2026)
- CPUC: Self-Generation Incentive Program
Why the city matters
Two things change from one city to another in the same state: the sun, which sets how many panels you need, and the utility, which sets what exported power is worth. Los Angeles gets 1,676 kWh per kW a year on a south-facing roof at a 20° tilt, so covering a year of use for a $150 bill at 33.3¢ takes about 3.2 kW, roughly 9 panels of 400 W. Electricity prices in the calculator are the California residential average; your utility's rate can be higher or lower, so put your own bill in.
Other California cities: San Diego, San Francisco, Sacramento.
Method: how we calculate payback. Compare all states in theranking or size a system with the panel calculator.