Is solar worth it in Vermont in 2026?

How Vermont pays for your solar power

Net billing (exports credited below retail). Vermont's PUC sets a statewide net-metering credit of 20.71 cents/kWh minus a 5-cent siting adjustor on every kWh a new home system produces, about 15.7 cents/kWh net, for systems applied for on or after August 1, 2026.

In the calculator, 40% of your solar output is used at home at the retail price and the rest is exported at about 66% of retail, so each solar kWh is worth 80% of the retail price on average. Change it if your utility pays more or less. Method

State or utility incentive	What it is worth
Sales tax exemption for net-metering system equipment	6% sales tax not charged on property incorporated into a net metering system
Property tax exemption for solar under 50 kW	Net-metered solar plants under 50 kW exempt from property tax (equipment, not land)
Green Mountain Power Bring Your Own Device (home battery)	$850/kW for 3-hour or $950/kW for 4-hour discharge, up to 10 kW; $100/kW more in constrained areas

How exports are credited

Vermont’s net-metering compensation is set by the Public Utility Commission (PUC) under 30 V.S.A. § 8010 and Commission Rule 5.100, and it applies across the state’s utilities, including Green Mountain Power (GMP). The PUC resets it every two years in a “biennial update.” The latest order, dated May 29, 2026, applies to new systems whose complete certificate of public good application is filed on or after August 1, 2026.

The credit has three parts:

• Blended residential rate: $0.2071/kWh from August 1, 2026 (up from $0.18398). It is the base value of the bill credit for excess generation. For customers of a utility with a lower standard residential rate, the credit follows that lower rate.
• Siting adjustor: negative $0.05/kWh for new Category I systems (up to 15 kW, the typical home size), cut from negative $0.04. It is charged on every kWh the system produces, including power used on site.
• REC adjustor: $0.00 if you transfer the renewable energy credits to your utility, negative $0.04/kWh if you keep them.

With RECs transferred, the PUC’s own table puts a new Category I system at $0.1571/kWh, against $0.14398 before the order. Against the EIA’s 23.95 cents/kWh Vermont residential average, that is about 66%. Treat it as a ceiling for the credit: the PUC says the exact result depends on your utility, system size and location.

Excess generation is credited at the end of each month, and GMP says surplus is recorded as a credit toward your next bill. GMP also says excess credits more than one year old expire. Customers who applied earlier keep their own, older terms, and the order does not change existing siting adjustors. Vermont’s electric co-ops and municipal utilities file their own tariffs, so ask yours.

State incentives in 2026

• Sales tax: 32 V.S.A. § 9741(46) exempts property incorporated into a net metering system from the state sales tax. No end date appears in the statute text.
• Property tax: 32 V.S.A. § 3802(17) exempts real and personal property, except land, of a net-metered solar plant under 50 kW.
• GMP Bring Your Own Device (batteries): the tariff pays $850/kW for a 3-hour discharge or $950/kW for 4 hours, up to 10 kW, plus $100/kW in constrained areas. It is available until September 30, 2028, subject to annual megawatt limits, and you give GMP control of the battery at peak times.

Vermont’s Solar For All residential program is paused. The Department of Public Service says its federal grant was terminated in August 2025. The federal residential credit ended for systems installed after December 31, 2025 (see what happened to the credit).

What it means for payback

Vermont rates are high, so every kWh you use directly saves close to the full retail price. That makes self-consumption the best use of the output. Exports are worth less. After the siting adjustor, the credit sits well below the retail rate, and the adjustor also reduces the value of power you use at home. Size the array to your own annual use rather than to exceed it, since surplus carries only a year.

A battery can shift midday output to the evening, and the GMP program offsets part of its cost. Whether that beats exporting at about 15.7 cents/kWh depends on installed price and on how often you use the battery for backup. Read are solar batteries worth it before deciding. Vermont’s sunlight is below the national average, which matters more here than in most states; the site’s payback method shows how the numbers combine.

Other rules worth knowing

Interconnection is handled by your utility under PUC Rule 5.500. GMP lists a simplified registration for systems up to 15 kW, and says utilities must respond within 15 days for systems of 25 kW or less. A net-metering system also needs a certificate of public good from the PUC, which transfers automatically when you sell the property, provided the new owner files a transfer form within 30 days (GMP’s tariff for older systems states this).

Vermont law at 27 V.S.A. § 544 bars deed restrictions and covenants from prohibiting solar collectors on buildings. A homeowners association can still choose the roof location, within 45 degrees of due south, as long as that does not impair performance.

Because the PUC revisits the credit every two years, a system applied for today keeps the adjustors in force on its filing date, but the base blended rate moves with each update. The next one covers August 2028 onward.

Berkeley Lab does not publish a Vermont median from enough systems, so the calculator starts from the U.S. median of $3.60/W. Put your own quote in.