Sunprint
Your retail plan
Where you choose a provider, the plan decides. Some credit close to their energy charge, some pay wholesale prices, some pay nothing.
Texas homeowners
What's Texas sun worth on your roof?
In Texas, what solar saves depends less on the sun than on who buys the power you don't use. Pick your utility, enter last month's bill, and we'll run your numbers with your utility's real rule.
- Free estimate
- No sign-up
- 84 Texas utilities
- About a minute
Tap your part of Texas
Each mark shows who buys the solar power you send back. Tap one to start your estimate with that utility.
- Your retail plan
- A set buyback rate
- Monthly netting
- Value of solar
- No buyback
The Texas difference
What your solar is worth depends on who buys it
A typical system sends a big share of its output to the grid during the day: about 54% for a system sized to 85% of a home's use, in our model of 200 Texas homes built from NREL data. Texas has no net metering law for homes, so your utility, or your retail plan, decides what that power is worth. There are four main deals.
A set buyback rate
Surplus is credited at a published rate: from the full per-kWh price at GVEC and 10.5 cents at Tri-County down to about 3.3 to 3.9 cents at SWEPCO, BTU and Entergy Texas.
Monthly netting
What you send out is subtracted from what you use each month. Only a month-end surplus is treated differently: 1.65 cents at CPS Energy, carried forward as kWh at NBU, nothing at Magic Valley.
Value of solar
Austin Energy pays 12.89 cents for every kWh your panels make, used at home or not, and bills all your use at its normal rates.
| Area | Utility | Who sets the buyback | Estimate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas-Fort Worth | Oncor | Your retail plan | Estimate → |
| Houston | CenterPoint | Your retail plan | Estimate → |
| Corpus Christi | AEP Texas Central | Your retail plan | Estimate → |
| Abilene | AEP Texas North | Your retail plan | Estimate → |
| League City | TNMP | Your retail plan | Estimate → |
| Fort Stockton | TNMP | Your retail plan | Estimate → |
| Lubbock | Lubbock Power & Light | Your retail plan | Estimate → |
| Hill Country | Pedernales (PEC) | A set buyback rate | Estimate → |
| Beaumont | Entergy Texas | A set buyback rate | Estimate → |
| North of Dallas-Fort Worth | CoServ | A set buyback rate | Estimate → |
| Seguin, Gonzales and Cuero | GVEC | A set buyback rate | Estimate → |
| 14 Central Texas counties | Bluebonnet | A set buyback rate | Estimate → |
| Azle, northwest of Fort Worth | Tri-County Electric | A set buyback rate | Estimate → |
| Longview and Texarkana | SWEPCO | A set buyback rate | Estimate → |
| Bryan and College Station | BTU | A set buyback rate | Estimate → |
| San Antonio | CPS Energy | Monthly netting | Estimate → |
| El Paso | El Paso Electric | Monthly netting | Estimate → |
| New Braunfels | New Braunfels Utilities | Monthly netting | Estimate → |
| Rio Grande Valley | Magic Valley Electric | Monthly netting | Estimate → |
| Austin | Austin Energy | Value of solar | Estimate → |
| Amarillo | Xcel Energy | No buyback on the standard meter | Estimate → |
Your estimate uses your utility's own rule. In the retail-plan areas it shows a range, from a wholesale-level buyback up to the plan's energy charge. Our buyback plans guide explains how to compare plans. Around Amarillo, Xcel Energy doesn't buy solar power sent to the grid on its standard meter, so its estimate counts only the power your home uses as it's made.
Sun by city
Strong sun everywhere, stronger out west
One kW of panels on a south-facing roof makes about 1,857 kWh a year in El Paso and 1,411 in Beaumont, 32% more for the same panels.
That matters, but less than the buyback rule: a kWh used at home or credited at full price is worth several times one credited at a wholesale rate. Your estimate uses the sun nearest your ZIP and takes off another 5% to stay conservative.
Source: NREL PVWatts v8, south-facing roof at a 6/12 pitch, standard losses.
Texas law and weather
Six Texas facts before you sign
No property tax on itTexas Tax Code 11.27 exempts the value solar adds to your home, so the appraisal district values your house as if the panels weren't there.Property tax exemption →
Your HOA can't ban itProperty Code 202.010 voids HOA rules that ban solar. An HOA can still set limits, like keeping panels below the roofline.Texas HOA rules →
5 business days to cancelOccupations Code 1806.156 lets you cancel a home solar purchase or lease in writing, without penalty, until the fifth business day after you sign.How to cancel →
Sellers must registerSince September 1, 2026, anyone paid to sell you home solar has to be registered with TDLR, the state licensing agency.Check a company →
Hail countryNOAA logged 12,919 hail reports in Texas from 2016 to 2025, more than any other state. How you're insured matters as much as the panel.Panels and hail →
No 30% federal creditThe federal credit doesn't apply to home systems finished after December 31, 2025, and Texas has no state rebate. A few utilities still help.Texas incentives →
How it works
Your Texas number in about a minute
- Pick your utility84 Texas utilities, from Oncor and CenterPoint to Austin Energy, CPS Energy and the co-ops. Typing your city works too.
- Enter last month's billPlus your ZIP code, for the sun where you live. No name or phone number needed.
- See your savings rangeA yearly range built on your utility's buyback rule. Want exact pricing? Request a quote call and Sunprint matches you with one licensed local installer who serves your area.
Questions
Texas solar, answered
Is the estimate a quote?
It's an estimate built from your bill, your utility's rates and the sun where you live. For exact pricing, request a free quote call: a local installer looks at your actual roof, shading and panel layout.
Does this work anywhere in Texas?
Yes, from El Paso to Beaumont. Pick your utility, or in Dallas, Houston and the other areas where you choose an electricity plan, the company that delivers your power. The estimate uses its rule for solar power you send back and the sun nearest your ZIP.
Will I get spam calls after I check my number?
No. Checking your estimate doesn't share your information with anyone. You only get contacted if you choose to request a quote.
What do you do with my information if I request a quote?
It's used to connect you with a solar installer once one is confirmed for your area. Sunprint doesn't sell your contact information to multiple companies at once.
Is there a solar tax credit in Texas in 2026?
No. The 30% federal credit doesn't apply to home systems finished after December 31, 2025, and Texas has no state rebate. Texas does exempt the value solar adds to your home from property tax, and some utilities, such as Austin Energy, run their own incentives.
What financing options do I have in Texas?
Most homeowners pay cash, take out a solar loan, or lease. Texas PACE financing doesn't cover single-family homes. A loan can cost more than it looks because dealer fees are often built into the price.
Does Texas have net metering for homes?
No. Texas requires net metering only for public school buildings. For homes, the law lets a utility or electricity provider buy your surplus but doesn't require it or set a price, so city utilities and co-ops set their own rules, and where you shop for electricity, your plan decides.
Can my HOA stop me from going solar in Texas?
It can't ban it. Property Code 202.010 voids HOA rules that ban solar. An HOA can require approval, keep panels below the roofline and in line with the roof, and steer you to a preferred part of the roof unless your spot would make more than 10% more power. In a development with fewer than 51 planned homes, the developer can block solar during its development period.
Texas solar guides
Read up before you decide
Short guides built from Texas law, utility tariffs and federal data.
Is solar worth it in Texas?Payback by utility now that the federal credit is gone, sun by city, and the buyback rule that matters most.
How much solar panels cost in TexasReal Texas prices per watt, system size by home size, cost by city, and what a battery adds.
How many solar panels do I need in Texas?Panels by monthly use and city, a quick estimator, roof space and why systems stop short of 100% of use.
Paying for solar in Texas: cash, loan or lease?Cash versus loan-financed prices, the hidden loan fees federal regulators found, and what leases must disclose.
Texas solar buyback plans and net meteringWhy Texas has no statewide net metering, the three kinds of retail buyback plan, and what each does to a year of savings.
Texas solar incentives in 2026What is left after the federal credit: the property tax exemption, Austin Energy's rebate and the utility programs paid through installers.
How to check a solar company in TexasLook up a seller's state registration, read TDLR's 19-item disclosure form and spot the red flags.
How to cancel a solar contract in TexasYour five business days, a deadline calculator, a sample notice and the other cancellation rights that may apply.
Solar batteries and Texas power outagesHow long outages last by utility, what a battery runs, what it costs and which utilities pay battery owners.
Solar panels and hail in TexasTen years of Texas hail reports, what size hail panels survive, and how Texas home insurance handles a claim.
Average electric bill in TexasWhat Texas homes pay each month and by season, ten years of bills, and the averages by utility.
Why is my electric bill so high in Texas?Summer use, expired plans, delivery charges and the fact sheet to check, with what to do about each.
Run your Texas numbers
Your utility, your bill and your city's sun, in about a minute. Free, and nothing is shared unless you ask for a quote.