Check your quote

You'll find these numbers on TDLR's Consumer Disclosure Statement, which Texas solar sellers must give you before you sign, or on the quote itself. Use the cash price, or the itemized cost of the system, for the price: the "total you'll pay" on a loan includes interest and isn't comparable.

Benchmarks: Berkeley Lab's 2024 U.S. installed prices, Austin Energy's 2025 average for its customers without batteries, and CPS Energy's 2023 average. Production: NREL PVWatts v8 for a south-facing roof at a 6/12 pitch. Nothing you type leaves your browser.

Price per watt: what Texans paid

Price per watt is the total price before incentives divided by the system size in watts. It's the fairest way to compare quotes for different system sizes. Austin Energy's customers paid $3.27 a watt on average in 2025 for systems without batteries, and the average in CPS Energy territory in 2023 was $3.80. Nationally, Berkeley Lab put the 2024 median at $3.50 a watt for cash purchases and $4.70 for loan-financed systems, "due partly to the loan fees rolled into the up-front price"; a fifth of systems cost $3.00 or less. Batteries add to the price.

Don't count on the 30% federal tax credit to bring the price down: it ended for home systems finished after December 31, 2025, according to the IRS. A quote or a savings estimate that still includes it is out of date. Our cost guide has prices by home size and city.

Two printed solar quotes laid side by side on a kitchen counter with a calculator and a pen, a sunny Texas backyard visible through the window behind

Is the production estimate realistic?

The production estimate drives every savings number in a quote, so check it. Here's what 1 kW of panels makes in a year on an ideal south-facing roof in NREL's model, and what an 8 kW system would make a month on average:

CitykWh a year from 1 kW8 kW system, kWh a month
El Paso1,8571,238
Midland1,7711,181
Lubbock1,7701,180
Amarillo1,7511,167
Abilene1,6711,114
Laredo1,5911,061
Fort Worth1,5551,037
McAllen1,5501,033
Waco1,5341,023
Corpus Christi1,5241,016
Dallas1,5231,015
San Antonio1,5061,004
Austin1,492995
Tyler1,483989
Houston1,430953
Beaumont1,411941

NREL PVWatts v8, south-facing panels at a 6/12 pitch, standard losses. Real roofs facing other ways, or with shade, make less.

A quote that promises more than an ideal roof in your city deserves a question. One that's much lower may be honest about shade or roof direction; our direction and angle guide shows how much each direction loses. Then check item 15, the buyback rate: in most of Texas, what you're paid for power you send to the grid decides much of what the system saves, and our buyback guide explains it.

If it's financed: where the extra cost hides

  • Dealer fees. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau found hidden fees typically add 10% to 30% to the cash price of a solar loan, and sometimes more than 50%. Ask for the cash price and compare.
  • A low APR. Stated rates of 1% to 7% often leave those fees out, the CFPB says. Compare the total you'll pay, item 5 on TDLR's form.
  • A payment that jumps. The CFPB says it's commonplace for solar loans to raise the payment around the 19th month unless you pay down a lump sum, often 30% of the loan, the size of the old federal credit. With the credit gone for 2026 systems, ask exactly what happens if you can't make that payment.
  • Itemized costs. TDLR's form, item 11, lists the system, battery, labor, warranty and any dealer fees. If it's blank, ask why.

Our guide to paying for solar in Texas compares cash, loans and leases in more detail.

Comparing two quotes

Line them up on the same numbers: price per watt from the cash price, production per kW (estimated yearly kWh divided by kW), the panel and inverter warranties, the buyback assumption the seller used, and the total you'll pay. A cheaper quote that assumes the same production and the same buyback is genuinely cheaper; one that looks cheaper only because it assumes more sun or a better buyback isn't. If a seller won't give you a cash price, an itemized cost or the production estimate in writing, that's an answer too. Our guide to checking a Texas solar company covers registration and the rest of the disclosure form.

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

Is my solar quote fair?

Check the price per watt (cash price divided by system watts) against what Texans paid: $3.27 a watt on average for Austin Energy customers in 2025, $3.80 in CPS Energy territory in 2023, and a $3.50 U.S. median for cash purchases in 2024. Then check the production estimate against NREL data for your city, and the loan for built-in fees.

What is a good price per watt for solar in Texas?

Austin Energy customers paid $3.27 a watt on average in 2025 for systems without batteries. Nationally, Berkeley Lab put the 2024 median at $3.50 for cash purchases and $4.70 for loan-financed systems, and a fifth of systems cost $3.00 or less.

How do I know if a solar production estimate is realistic?

Compare it with NREL's PVWatts model for your city. An ideal south-facing roof makes about 1,430 kWh a year per kW in Houston, 1,523 in Dallas and 1,857 in El Paso. An estimate well above that for your city deserves a question.

What is a dealer fee on a solar loan?

A fee built into the loan amount that the lender keeps. In the CFPB's example, a $30,000 cash price became a $39,000 loan, and the lender kept the $9,000 difference. The CFPB found such hidden fees typically add 10% to 30% to the cash price, sometimes more than 50%, and stated APRs often leave them out.

Why would my solar loan payment go up?

The CFPB says many solar loans raise the payment around the 19th month unless you pay down a lump sum, often 30% of the loan, the size of the old federal tax credit. That credit ended for home systems finished after 2025.

The checker compares your numbers with public benchmarks; it can't see your roof. A quote can be fair and still be the wrong system for your home. Sources: Berkeley Lab: U.S. Distributed Solar and Storage, 2025 data update (PDF) · Austin Energy: solar programs presentation (October 20, 2025) · CPS Energy: residential solar · CFPB Issue Spotlight: Solar Financing, August 2024 (PDF) · IRS FAQs on the 2025 credit changes · TDLR Consumer Disclosure Statement (PDF) · NREL PVWatts v8. Reviewed October 2026.

Next guidePaying for solar in Texas: cash, loan or lease? →