Sunprint
What Texas law says about selling solar back
Texas requires net metering only for public school buildings (Utilities Code 39.914). For homes, section 39.916 says an electric utility or retail electric provider "may" contract to buy your surplus. In the parts of Texas where you shop for electricity, it adds that your surplus goes to the retail provider that serves you, "at a value agreed to" between you. The law offers two examples: a price based on the wholesale clearing price at the time you export, or a bill credit that carries over to later bills.
So nothing obliges your provider to offer a buyback plan, and nothing sets its price. The Public Utility Commission's consumer page says the buyback rate "is part of your contract with your electric provider" and "is usually lower than the retail price that you pay." City-owned utilities and co-ops set their own rates.
How a buyback plan works
- Connect first. Your installer gets an interconnection agreement with the wires company (Oncor, CenterPoint, AEP Texas, TNMP or Lubbock Power & Light). Retail plans that pay for exports require it.
- The meter counts both directions. The wires company sets your meter to record power flowing in and power flowing out. Reliant notes a second, dual-register meter may be needed.
- Switch to a solar plan. Nothing requires a regular plan to pay for exports. Buyback plans are separate products, and their Electricity Facts Label sets the credit.
- Credits arrive on your bill. TXU and Reliant both say the first credits can take up to three billing cycles after you get permission to operate.
TXU points customers to smartmetertexas.com, which shows your use and the surplus you send out in 15-minute intervals.
What the right plan is worth
Take a home that uses the 2025 Texas average, 1,118 kWh a month or 13,416 kWh a year (federal EIA data), with solar sized to cover 85% of that: about 11,400 kWh a year. In our model of 200 Texas homes built from NREL's home energy data, a system that size sends about 54% of its output to the grid in 15-minute intervals. That leaves about 5,250 kWh used at home and 6,160 kWh exported.
At the average Texas retail plan price of 16.7¢ per kWh, the solar used at home is worth about $870 a year on any plan. The exports are where plans differ:
Yearly savings, Oncor area, for a home using 1,118 kWh a month with solar covering 85% of its use. Used-at-home share from our NREL-based model; 16.7¢ is the 2024 average Texas retail plan price (EIA); 2.1¢ is the 2025 average wholesale value of solar output (ERCOT's market monitor); the energy charge is that price minus Oncor's 6.03¢ delivery charge. Your plan's prices will differ.
The gap between a wholesale-linked credit and one equal to the energy charge is about $530 a year for this home, before the base charge and other plan terms. That's why the plan matters as much as the panels.
Three kinds of buyback plan
Credit at the market price
Exports earn the wholesale price when you send them. Reliant's Solar Payback Match, for example, pays "at the wholesale electricity price." Solar output was worth an average of 2.1¢ per kWh on ERCOT's wholesale market in 2025, with much higher prices in some hours.
A set rate per kWh
The plan pays a fixed number of cents for each kWh exported for the length of the contract. Reliant says its Solar Payback Plus credit is listed on the plan's Electricity Facts Label and differs from the price you pay per kWh.
A credit tied to what you pay
Exports are credited against the plan's energy charge. TXU's terms say credits can offset up to 100% of your energy charges but not the base charge, delivery (TDU) charges, taxes or fees. That cap matters: delivery charges run from 5.6¢ to 7.8¢ per kWh in the shopping areas, depending on the wires company.
Two other details show up in plan terms. Some plans bank unused credits and roll them to later bills; TXU says it banks them in dollars, up to a limit on the Electricity Facts Label. And the price you pay for the power you still buy matters as much as the buyback: a high buyback on a plan with a high energy charge or base charge can still lose.
How to compare buyback plans
- The buyback rate and how it's set: a fixed number of cents, the wholesale price, or the energy charge.
- What the credit can pay for: energy charges only, or delivery and base charges too.
- The price you'll pay for grid power, including the base charge and any minimum-use fee, at the lower monthly use you'll have after solar.
- Rollover: whether unused credits carry over, how much can bank, and whether they expire when you switch.
- Contract length and early termination fee, since you may want to switch as plans change.
Every Texas retail plan has an Electricity Facts Label; the buyback terms are on it or in the plan's terms of service. The state's official shopping site is Power to Choose (powertochoose.org).
If you can't pick a provider
About 5.4 million Texas residential customers are served by a city utility, a co-op or one of the four big utilities outside the shopping areas (federal EIA data, 2024). There you get your utility's own buyback rule, whatever plan you'd prefer. The large ones, as of October 2026:
| Utility | What solar sent back earns |
|---|---|
| Austin Energy | Credits every kWh the panels make at its Value of Solar rate, 12.89¢, and bills all your use at normal rates. |
| CPS Energy | Nets solar against your use each month at the full rate; only the month-end leftover earns 1.65¢ (2.02¢ June to September). |
| Pedernales (PEC) | Pays 7.19¢ per kWh sent to the grid, as a credit against its base power charge that expires at year end. |
| CoServ | Buys every exported kWh at its avoided wholesale cost: 8.53¢ in October 2026, reset monthly. |
| Entergy Texas | Credits exports at its avoided cost: 3.866¢ in summer and 3.587¢ the rest of 2026. |
| El Paso Electric | Nets each month; any leftover is credited at its Rate 48 purchase rate, about 1.6¢ in early 2026. |
| GVEC | Buys exports at its Delivery Charge plus its Generation and Transmission charge, the same per-kWh price you pay. |
| Tri-County Electric | Credits exports at its avoided cost (base power cost plus PCRF), 10.5¢ for October to December 2026; credits can't pay the $30 monthly minimum. |
| Bluebonnet | Credits every exported kWh at its 2026 member production credit, 6.6962¢. |
| New Braunfels Utilities | Nets each month; extra production becomes a 1:1 kWh credit carried forward. Adds a per-kW monthly solar charge. |
| Bryan Texas Utilities | Since 2026, credits exports at its Power Cost Recovery Charge, 3.76¢ in Bryan; older systems get a transition period. |
| SWEPCO | Credits exports at its avoided cost of energy from two months earlier, a wholesale-level price, plus a $9.42 monthly solar fee. |
| Magic Valley Electric | Nets each month at the full rate; surplus beyond the month's use goes to the co-op unpaid. |
| Xcel Energy (SPS) | Doesn't buy exports on its standard one-meter hookup. A second meter earns its monthly fuel and purchased power cost, about 1.7¢ in 2025, for $20 a month. |
Getting more from a low buyback
- Size for your use, not your roof. Each extra panel past your yearly use mostly makes exports. Texas law's safe harbor, Utilities Code 39.916(k), also assumes the system makes no more than you use in a year.
- Use power while the sun is up. Run the dishwasher, laundry and pool pump midday, and pre-cool the house in the afternoon. Every kWh you use as it's made saves your full rate instead of earning a buyback.
- A battery shifts exports to evening use. It costs money, and it's worth the most where exports earn the least.
Your estimate in three steps
- Enter your billYour ZIP code, your utility and last month's bill.
- See your estimateA yearly savings range based on your utility's rates and the sun where you live.
- 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.
Common questions
Does Texas have net metering?
Not for homes. State law requires net metering only for public school buildings. For homes, your retail electric provider or utility decides whether to buy your extra solar power and at what price.
What is a solar buyback plan in Texas?
A retail electricity plan that credits you for solar power your home sends to the grid. The credit can follow the wholesale price, be a fixed rate per kWh, or match the plan's energy charge. Nothing requires a regular plan to pay for exports.
Do Texas buyback plans pay the full retail rate?
Rarely. The Public Utility Commission of Texas says buyback rates are usually lower than the retail price you pay. Even plans that credit exports against the energy charge don't cover delivery charges, which run from 5.6 to 7.8 cents per kWh in the shopping areas.
How long until buyback credits show up?
You need an interconnection agreement and a meter set up to measure power going out. TXU and Reliant both say the first credits can take up to three billing cycles after you get permission to operate.
What if my utility is Austin Energy, CPS Energy or a co-op?
You can't shop for a plan there, so the utility's own rule applies. Austin Energy credits every kWh your panels make at 12.89 cents. CPS Energy nets your use each month and pays 1.65 cents (2.02 cents in summer) for leftovers. PEC pays 7.19 cents and CoServ 8.53 cents per kWh sent to the grid.
Should I make my system bigger to sell more power?
Usually not in Texas. Extra panels mostly make exports, which earn less than the power you use. Texas law's safe harbor also assumes your system makes no more than your home uses in a year.
Related guides
- Is solar worth it in Texas?
- Texas solar incentives in 2026
- Paying for solar in Texas
- How to check a solar company in Texas
- Texas solar laws
Plan names and terms change often; the Electricity Facts Label for a plan is the final word. Example figures are estimates built from the sources listed. Sources: Utilities Code 39.914 and 39.916 · PUCT: Thinking about solar panels for your home? · TXU Energy: solar buyback · Reliant: Solar Payback Match · Reliant: Solar Payback Plus · Potomac Economics: 2025 ERCOT State of the Market · PUCT: TDU rates · 16 TAC 25.475 (Electricity Facts Label) · EIA-861 · EIA-861M. Reviewed October 2026.
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