The short answer

Ask for the company's and the salesperson's TDLR registration numbers and look them up on TDLR's license search. Check that the contract names a licensed electrical contractor to install the system. Then read TDLR's two-page disclosure form line by line before you sign anything. If the company is a licensed electrical contractor selling its own installations, it doesn't need a solar registration, so check its electrical license instead.

A registration means the state knows who the seller is and can discipline it. It doesn't tell you whether the price is fair or the savings claims are realistic, so the last steps matter as much as the first.

  1. 1Check the registration
  2. 2Check the electrician
  3. 3Read the disclosure form
  4. 4Watch for red flags
  5. 5Check the contract

1. Check the registration

Texas's residential solar law, Occupations Code chapter 1806, requires anyone paid to sell or lease home solar to be registered as a solar salesperson, and the company they sell for to be registered as a solar retailer. Registration became mandatory on September 1, 2026. TDLR opened online applications on August 10, 2026.

  • Ask. A seller must give you its name and registration number when you ask. TDLR's rules also require them in the contract.
  • Look it up. Search the name or number on TDLR's license search, or download TDLR's list of registered solar retailers and salespeople.
  • Know the exception. A licensed electrical contractor whose own employees sell its solar installs is exempt from registering. If that contractor uses an outside sales representative, the representative must be registered.

The law covers sales and leases of solar for homes. It doesn't cover apartment buildings with four or more units or stories, commercial property, systems for temporary use or a single appliance, or some small systems under 1 kilowatt.

2. Check the electrician

If the deal includes installation, the contract must say a licensed electrical contractor will do it, and name the contractor and license number, or give a short list to choose from. TDLR licenses electrical contractors too. Its consumer brochure suggests two checks:

  • Look up the contractor's license on TDLR's license search.
  • See whether the contractor received an administrative penalty or sanction in the past two years, using TDLR's search of disciplinary actions.
A Texas homeowner at a kitchen table with a laptop open to a blank search page beside a printed solar contract, reading glasses and a pen, warm morning light

3. Read the disclosure form

TDLR created a two-page Consumer Disclosure Statement that sums up the deal in 19 items. Under TDLR's rule, the salesperson must give it to you before you sign the contract, you both sign it, and its terms become part of the contract. If you're 65 or older, or not fluent in English, you get a printed copy.

Texas Residential Solar Retail TransactionConsumer Disclosure Statement
  1. 1Your name
  2. 2Address where the system goes
  3. 3Company name and TDLR registration numberLook this up.
  4. 4Salesperson name and TDLR registration numberLook this up too.
  5. 5Total you'll pay, including every loan paymentThe number to compare quotes on, not the monthly payment.
  6. 6Cash, financed, lease or power purchase agreement
  7. 7Type of contract, and whether installation is included
  8. 8Financing, and whether a lien can be placed on your homeA yes here means your home is at stake if you stop paying.
  9. 9Battery included?
  10. 10Maintenance included?
  11. 11Itemized costs: system, battery, labor, warranty, dealer feesTDLR says all costs must be itemized.
  12. 12Lease or PPA payments, months, and who maintains what
  13. 13Peak power, in kilowatts
  14. 14Estimated monthly production, in kWhCompare with your bills.
  15. 15Connection to the grid, and the buyback rateWhat your extra power earns decides much of your savings.
  16. 16Who gets HOA approval
  17. 17Arbitration clause, and whether you can opt out
  18. 18Can the contract transfer if you sell the house?
  19. 19Who pays to remove and reinstall panels for roof workIn Texas hail country, this can matter.

Items from TDLR's form (August 2026). Highlighted lines are the ones to slow down on; the notes are ours.

TDLR has paused enforcing its disclosure-form rule and its brochure rule until November 1, 2026, to give sellers time to adjust. Until then, some sellers may not offer the form. You can ask for it anyway; the form is on TDLR's website, and the contract terms it summarizes are in your contract either way.

Two lines deserve a second look. Item 15, the buyback rate, decides much of what solar saves in Texas, because no state law makes your provider pay full price for power you send back; our buyback guide explains it. Item 5, the total you'll pay, is what to weigh against your savings.

4. Watch for red flags

These come from TDLR's consumer brochure and from what Texas law and TDLR's rules forbid sellers to do:

"Free" or extremely cheap solar

TDLR's brochure says to beware of anyone who promises free or extremely low-cost panels.

Pressure to decide now

Scarcity claims or a price special ending "soon" are tactics TDLR warns about.

Asking for your Social Security or bank numbers

Never give them to someone offering to check whether you qualify for special financing or to fill out government paperwork for you.

Full payment up front

TDLR says pay only for work that is fully completed, including all required local inspections.

Claiming to work with your utility or the government

It's illegal to falsely state or imply an affiliation with a utility or government agency.

Promising tax breaks

A seller can't say you'll qualify for tax incentives without telling you to get independent tax advice. The 30% federal credit ended for home systems finished after 2025.

Since September 1, 2026, a seller also can't knock at a home with a posted no-soliciting sign unless someone living there tells them to, and false, misleading or deceptive statements are illegal.

5. Check the contract

TDLR's rules list what a Texas home solar contract must include. Check for each:

  • Names, business address, registration number, email and phone for both the company and the salesperson
  • Any production guarantee, the warranty terms and what happens if either side defaults, in plain language
  • That a Texas-licensed electrical contractor installs it, with the contractor's name and license number
  • That the company or installer gets the permits and your utility's approval to connect
  • Your right to cancel within five business days, with the last date and an address or email for the notice
  • If the company arranged or referred your loan: the lender must cancel it if you cancel, and the company must pay off the loan if TDLR orders the contract canceled

You should get a printed copy when you sign. If you sign electronically, a PDF by email is allowed only if you agree to it. If anything on this list is missing, or the form and the contract don't match, ask before you sign. Our cancellation guide covers the five days after.

A Texas front porch in late afternoon with a clipboard holding a blank form and a pen resting on a wooden bench, potted plants and a screen door
At the door

Ask for the registration number first; a seller must give it when you ask. Once TDLR starts enforcing its brochure rule on November 1, 2026, you get TDLR's consumer brochure at least 24 hours before you can sign.

If something goes wrong

Within five business daysCancel

You can cancel a home solar purchase or lease in writing, without penalty, until the end of the fifth business day after you sign. See how to cancel.

Any timeComplain to TDLR

TDLR takes complaints against solar companies, salespeople and electrical contractors. After a hearing, it can order a contract canceled and your money refunded. In court, civil penalties can reach $2,500 per violation, or $10,000 if someone over 65 was harmed.

If the company shuts downAsk TDLR who's responsible

Before a registered company stops operating in Texas, TDLR's rules require it to name a record keeper and someone responsible for its warranty obligations. TDLR will give you their contact details on request. More in if your solar company goes out of business.

Companies also have to keep your signed disclosure form and contract for the length of the contract and warranty, plus five years. That record helps if a dispute comes up years later.

How it works

Your estimate in three steps

  1. Enter your billYour ZIP code, your utility and last month's bill.
  2. See your estimateA yearly savings range based on your utility's rates and the sun where you live.
  3. Choose what's nextAsk for a quote call if you want real pricing, or just keep the number.

See what solar could save you

It takes about a minute. You don't need a site visit, a commitment or a sales call to see your number.

Check my savings →

Common questions

How do I check if a solar company is registered in Texas?

Ask for the company's and salesperson's names and TDLR registration numbers, which they must give you on request, then search them on TDLR's license search or in TDLR's downloadable list. A licensed electrical contractor whose own employees sell its installations is exempt, so check its electrical contractor license instead.

Do solar companies need a license in Texas?

Since September 1, 2026, companies that sell or lease home solar and their salespeople must be registered with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation. The installation must be done by a licensed electrical contractor.

What is the Texas solar disclosure form?

TDLR's two-page Consumer Disclosure Statement, which sums up a home solar deal in 19 items, including the total you'll pay, any lien on your home, itemized costs and the buyback rate. Under TDLR's rule, you get it and both sides sign it before the contract, and its terms become part of the contract. TDLR paused enforcing that rule until November 1, 2026.

Who regulates solar companies in Texas?

The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, under Occupations Code chapter 1806. It registers solar retailers and salespeople, licenses the electrical contractors who install systems, and takes complaints about both.

What happens if a Texas solar company goes out of business?

TDLR's rules require a registered solar retailer, before it stops operating in Texas, to name a record keeper and someone responsible for its warranty obligations and to give their contact information to TDLR. TDLR will give that information to the public on request.

Can a solar salesperson promise me a tax credit?

Not without a caveat. TDLR's rules bar a seller from saying you'll be eligible for tax incentives without also advising you to get tax advice from a qualified independent professional. The 30% federal credit no longer applies to home systems finished after December 31, 2025.

Registration counts change daily; TDLR's search is the live record. Not legal advice. Sources: Occupations Code chapter 1806 · TDLR: Residential Solar Retailers · TDLR: what's in effect when · TDLR: what it regulates · TDLR knowledge base · TDLR update, August 21, 2026 · TDLR Consumer Disclosure Statement (PDF) · Form instructions (PDF) · TDLR consumer brochure (PDF) · TDLR license search · TDLR license files, downloaded October 8, 2026 · TDLR disciplinary actions search · Texas Register, June 26, 2026: adopted 16 TAC chapter 71 · Texas Register, March 13, 2026: rule text adopted without changes · TDLR complaints · IRS FAQs on the 2025 changes to section 25D. Reviewed October 2026.

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