In New York the name on your electric bill moves solar payback more than anything on your roof. The same typical system pays back in about 7.3 years before incentives when Con Edison sends the bill, and about 12.1 when National Grid does, because a kWh costs far more downstate; about 8.9 years statewide. The $5,000 state tax credit cuts those to 5.9 and 9.8 years, but only if you owe enough New York income tax to use it.
Con Edison, simple payback before incentivesAbout 7.3 years
StatewideAbout 8.9 years
Typical owned 8.98 kW system at $27,120 (Cost Index, September 2026). Our per-utility figures of October 19, 2026: each utility’s own 12-month EIA price with its fixed monthly charge set aside, one kWh of credit for each kWh sent out, less its solar charge. After the $5,000 state credit: 5.9 years at Con Edison, 9.8 at National Grid. No upkeep and no future price rises are counted. See the math.
- Utility: Con Edison at 38.17¢ per kWh, National Grid at 22.81¢. The other five sit in between.
- State credit: 25% of the cost, capped at $5,000. It lowers New York income tax you owe; it is not a check.
- Solar charge: a monthly fee per kW for homes connected since January 1, 2022. The quote should include it.
2026 rules: new home systems get no 30% federal homeowner credit (IRS), and the NY-Sun rebate is closed for standard-income homes. Homes connected since January 1, 2022 pay a monthly solar charge per kW.
How we checked this guide
Utility prices come from U.S. Energy Information Administration data, solar charges from NYSERDA, tax rules from the New York Tax Department, and solar output from PVWatts. Where we assume a number, the page says so.
The writer and checker shown above are EcoGen staff. EcoGen is paid when homeowners request quotes, as explained beside the quote form. Read our editorial standards.
Which New York homes come out ahead?
New York is still a good state for home solar, but not for the old reasons. The federal credit and the NY-Sun rebate are gone. Expensive power and a surviving state credit now carry the math, and they help some homes far more than others.
Your utility
Worth a closer look
Con Edison, Central Hudson or another utility where a kWh averages 27.76¢ or more.
Pause and check
National Grid or RG&E, nearer 22.81¢ to 23.68¢. Solar still pays, more slowly.
Check next: the utility named on the quote and the price per kWh it used.
The state credit
Worth a closer look
You owe close to $5,000 a year in New York income tax, so the credit gets used fast.
Pause and check
Your state tax bill is small. Unused credit carries forward 5 years, then expires.
Check next: the New York tax on last year’s return.
Roof and shade
Worth a closer look
A sound, mostly unshaded roof that will outlast the panels.
Pause and check
A roof due for replacement, or heavy tree shade.
Check next: the roof’s age and a shade report.
Price and time in home
Worth a closer look
A cash price near the Index’s $27,120 for 8.98 kW ($3.02 per watt), and a plan to stay past payback.
Pause and check
A quote that counts expired money, a dealer fee, or a likely move.
Check next: the cash price beside the financed total.
Same panels, two New Yorks: Con Edison and National Grid
Simple payback is the years your savings take to cover what you paid: net cost divided by yearly savings. A kWh (kilowatt-hour) is the unit your bill counts. Here is the typical New York system in Con Edison territory, where power costs the most.
- Cash price
- $27,120
- Incentives counted
- $0
- Year-one production
- 11,836 kWh
- Credit rule
- 1 kWh of credit per kWh sent out
- Con Edison price after its $21 customer charge
- $0.3273/kWh
- Solar charge (CBC) in our figures
- $152/yr
- Upkeep counted
- None
- Value of the output
11,836 × $0.3273$3,874/yr - Yearly savings after the solar charge
$3,874 − $152$3,722/yr - Simple payback before incentives
$27,120 ÷ $3,722about 7.3 years - After the $5,000 state credit
($27,120 − $5,000) ÷ $3,722about 5.9 years
Inputs: the EcoGen Solar Cost Index typical New York system (8.98 kW, $27,120 cash, September 2026) and our per-utility figures for Con Edison: 1,318 kWh per kW a year, and Con Edison’s 12-month average price of 38.17¢ (EIA, August 2025 to July 2026) less its $21 monthly customer charge, which leaves 32.73¢. Every kWh earns that price whether you use it at home or send it out, because exports earn one kWh of credit per kWh, so how much you use as it is made does not move the result. The solar charge is the Customer Benefit Contribution used in our figures, $1.41 per kW a month. The after-credit figure assumes you can use the whole $5,000 credit. No upkeep and no future price rises are counted.
Now move the same system upstate to National Grid, which serves much of the state from Buffalo to Albany. Only the utility changes: its price per kWh after its fixed charge, and its small solar charge.
| Scenario | Price per kWh | Savings before the solar charge | Yearly savings | Simple payback before incentives |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Con Edison | $0.3273 | $3,874 | $3,722 | about 7.3 years (5.9 after the credit) |
| National Grid (upstate) | $0.1989 | $2,354 | $2,250 | about 12.1 years (9.8 after the credit) |
Solar still pays upstate, just more slowly, because each kWh it makes replaces a cheaper one. Our per-utility figures use the same output, 1,318 kWh per kW a year, for every New York utility. PVWatts puts New York City at 1,291 and Albany at 1,225, so check the output your quote gives for your address.
Try it with your own quote
Put in your quote and your utility’s price, then press Calculate. Nothing you enter is sent anywhere.
Example result
about 7.3 years
simple payback before incentives
- Used-at-home value
- $1,550/yr
- Export value
- $2,324/yr
- Owner costs
- −$152/yr
- Yearly savings
- $3,722/yr
- Net cost
- $27,120
Starts with the Con Edison case, with its solar charge in the owner-costs box. For another utility, enter its price per kWh after its fixed charge in both rate boxes and its solar charge as owner costs. Put 5,000 in incentives to see the payback after the state credit. Flat first-year values; rates and panel wear will change the result.
How each New York utility changes the payback
Same system and price for every utility. Its price per kWh and its solar charge are what change your payback. The table gives each utility’s simple payback before incentives and after the $5,000 state credit, from our per-utility figures of October 19, 2026.
| Utility | Average price per kWh | Solar charge per year | Payback before incentives | After the $5,000 credit |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Con Edison | 38.17¢ | about $139 | 7.3 years | 5.9 years |
| Central Hudson | 30.35¢ | about $180 | 9.0 years | 7.4 years |
| Orange & Rockland | 28.12¢ | about $108 | 9.6 years | 7.8 years |
| PSEG Long Island | 27.76¢ | about $122 | 9.4 years | 7.6 years |
| NYSEG | 25.00¢ | about $128 | 10.8 years | 8.8 years |
| RG&E | 23.68¢ | about $141 | 12.0 years | 9.8 years |
| National Grid | 22.81¢ | about $105 | 12.1 years | 9.8 years |
Prices are residential revenue divided by sales, August 2025 to July 2026 (EIA, preliminary), for homes that buy their power from the utility; the state average is 28.39¢. They include fixed charges. City and village utilities set their own prices and solar rules.
Exports earn the full price. Your utility gives one kWh of credit for each kWh you send to the grid, and leftover credits move to later bills. On Phase One net metering the credit runs for a 20-year term with no cash-out. That is why our figures do not depend on how much of your power you use at home as it is made.
The charge solar cannot cancel. Homes that connected solar on or after January 1, 2022 pay a Customer Benefit Contribution: a fixed monthly amount per kW of panels, from $0.97 (National Grid) to $1.67 (Central Hudson) in 2026. It resets yearly, and a quote that leaves it out overstates your savings. On Long Island, credits apply only to systems of 25 kW or less and no bigger than 110% of your last year of use.
Ask for quotes built on your own utility
A Con Edison quote and a National Grid quote should not share a savings number. Ask which price and solar charge each one used.
Solar providers that serve your area may contact you, and they pay EcoGen for the introduction. How we make money.
The state credit only counts if you owe New York tax
The state gives back 25% of what you pay, up to $5,000. On the typical $27,120 system that is the full $5,000. It lowers New York income tax you owe and is never refunded; unused credit carries forward 5 years, then expires. With it, the Con Edison example pays back in about 5.9 years instead of 7.3 years before incentives.
- Sales tax: no 4% state sales tax, about about $1,085 on the typical price. Some counties still charge their local part.
- Property tax outside New York City: the added value is exempt for 15 years if you file Form RP-487, unless your county, city, town, village or school district opted out.
- New York City: a property tax cut of 7.5% of the cost a year for 4 years, up to $8,136 on the typical price, never more than your yearly tax. Where it applies in full, the Con Edison payback gets shorter still.
- Lower incomes on Long Island: Affordable Solar still pays $0.40 per watt for households under 80% of the area median income.
Cash, loan, lease or PPA in New York
New York’s credit can apply even when a company owns the panels, if the contract is long enough. In a lease you rent the panels; in a power purchase agreement (PPA) you buy their power by the kWh. The company keeps part of the savings.
| Option | Who owns the panels | Upfront | Ongoing | Check before signing |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash | You | Full price | Remaining bill plus the solar charge. | The $5,000 credit shown as a tax credit, not a price cut. |
| Loan | You | Often $0 | Loan payment plus remaining bill. | Cash vs financed price. NYSERDA lends up to $25,000. |
| Lease | Solar company | Often $0 | Lease payment plus remaining bill. | State credit on your payments if it runs 10 years or more; none after the 15th year. |
| PPA | Solar company | Often $0 | A price per kWh for the panels’ power. | Same 10 years rule. Compare the PPA price with your utility’s. |
See our solar financing guide for loan terms. Renters and shaded homes can read about community solar in our New York free solar guide.
Before you sign a New York solar contract
Compare two or three quotes. If one cannot show these lines, you cannot check its payback.
- Utility and price. Your utility’s name and the price per kWh the savings use.
- The solar charge. Your utility’s 2026 rate per kW and the yearly total for this system.
- State credit. 25% up to $5,000 on Form IT-255, shown as a tax credit, not cash on day one.
- No expired money. No federal homeowner credit, and no NY-Sun rebate outside Long Island Affordable Solar.
- Size and output. kW and year-one kWh, next to 12 months of your bills.
Compare New York solar quotes
Ask each installer to put your utility’s price and solar charge in writing. Enter your ZIP code to request quotes from providers that serve your area.
How EcoGen is paid
EcoGen America does not sell or install solar. When you request quotes, we pass your request to solar providers serving your area, and they pay us for the introduction. Providers can include installers, solar marketplaces and lead exchanges, and more than one may contact you. You never pay us. This is not an application to the New York State solar tax credit.
Keep reading: New York solar guides
- New York solar guide: utilities, incentives and installers in one place
- New York solar companies: compare local installers before you request quotes
- New York solar incentives: the state credit, tax exemptions and battery money
- What solar costs in New York
- Free solar panels in New York: what $0 down really means
- Are solar panels worth it? The national guide and payback calculator
All 51 state guides
New York solar, answered
Are solar panels worth it in New York?
For many owners, yes, but the utility sets the pace. Before incentives a typical owned system pays back in about 7.3 years with Con Edison and about 12.1 years with National Grid, about 8.9 years statewide; 5.9 and 9.8 years after the $5,000 state credit. Shade, an old roof, a small state tax bill or a short stay can tip the answer.
What changed for New York solar in 2026?
The federal homeowner credit is gone for systems installed after December 31, 2025. The NY-Sun rebate for standard incomes closed, the last upstate block on December 17, 2025. Homes connected since January 1, 2022 pay a monthly solar charge. The 25% state credit remains.
How long does solar take to pay back in New York?
Before incentives, about 7.3 years with Con Edison to about 12.1 years with National Grid, and about 8.9 years statewide; the other large utilities fall in between. That uses the typical 8.98 kW system at $27,120, with no upkeep and no future price rises counted. With the full $5,000 state credit, it is 5.9 to 9.8 years.
Is net metering still available in New York?
Yes, from the large utilities. Each kWh you send to the grid earns a kWh of credit, and leftover credits move to later bills. On Phase One net metering the credit runs for a 20-year term with no cash-out. You also pay a Customer Benefit Contribution of $0.97 to $1.67 per kW each month in 2026, which credits cannot cancel.
Is a solar battery worth it in New York?
Mostly for backup, since one-for-one credits already bank your extra power. NYSERDA pays $250 per kWh in the Con Edison area and $200 per kWh upstate, through your contractor. National Grid also pays a yearly reward, about $250 a year on average.
Is leasing solar better than buying in New York?
Buying usually saves more over time, because you keep all the bill savings and the $5,000 credit. A lease or PPA earns the state credit on your payments only if it runs 10 years or more. Compare the escalator, transfer terms and buyout price.
Sources, method and corrections
The example uses the Cost Index typical New York system (September 2026) and our per-utility payback figures of October 19, 2026: 1,318 kWh per kW a year, each utility’s 12-month residential revenue divided by sales (EIA, preliminary) less its fixed monthly charge, one kWh of credit for each kWh sent out, and each utility’s solar charge. No upkeep and no future price rises are counted. Simple payback uses flat first-year values; the after-credit figures count the whole state credit.
Spotted an error? Tell us through our corrections and feedback process.
- U.S. EIA: monthly sales and revenue by utility (EIA-861M)
- NYSERDA: 2026 Customer Benefit Contribution rates
- New York Tax Department: Form IT-255 instructions
- New York Tax Department: sales tax on home solar
- New York Tax Department: RPTL Section 487
- NYC Department of Finance: solar property tax abatement
- NYSERDA: NY-Sun upstate block data
- NYSERDA: residential storage incentive blocks
- PVWatts Calculator
- IRS: Residential Clean Energy Credit
- EcoGen Solar Cost Index, September 2026: New York
