Written by Dean Mahmoud, CEO, and checked by Trevor Guilday, founder.Prices from the September 2026 Cost Index. Updated October 14, 2026.
A typical Wyoming home system is 7.04 kW and costs about $22,106 in cash at $3.14 per watt. With Rocky Mountain Power it pays for itself in about 14.2 years if you use every credit, or 37.4 years if every kWh you export is sold back in January at 1.418¢.
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Extra power your panels send out becomes a kWh credit on your next bill, 1 for 1. Credits carry from month to month. At the start of each calendar year, state law makes you sell any that are left to your utility at its avoided cost.
Per leftover kWh in 2026, for fixed panels (Schedule 37). An update is pending.
Per leftover kWh since January 1, 2026, down from 2.0437¢.
A kWh at the 14.01¢ state average is worth about 10 times one sold at 1.418¢.
The largest home system the net metering law covers.
With easy numbers: 100 kWh of credits you use during the year save about $14.01 at the state average price. Leave the same 100 kWh unused, and Rocky Mountain Power pays $1.42 for them in January. So size the system to the kWh your home uses in a year, not above it.
Not by a new law so far. In 2025 two bills to change net metering failed in the Senate (House Bill 183 by 15 to 16, Senate File 111 by 10 to 17), and no net metering bill passed in 2026. The statute, W.S. 37-16-101 to 37-16-104, reads the same in the July 2026 compilation.
The price can change. Rocky Mountain Power applied to update its Schedule 37 prices, and the Public Service Commission gave notice on July 10, 2026 (Docket No. 20000-714-ET-26). So the price for the January 2027 sale is not settled yet.
Both cases price the typical system for a Rocky Mountain Power home. We assume 40% of the power is used at home as it is made and 60% is sent out. The cases differ only in what the exported kWh earn.
| What exported kWh earn | Year-one value | After upkeep | Simple payback |
|---|---|---|---|
| Used later as credits, 15.67¢ | $1,766 | $1,555 | 14.2 years |
| Sold in January, 1.418¢ | $802 | $591 | 37.4 years |
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
The net metering law covers power companies, electric co-ops and irrigation districts. It leaves out utilities owned by a city or town. Each covered utility sets its own January price.
About 41% of Wyoming homes. Schedule 135 nets your use and output over each billing period.
Next: ask for the Schedule 37 price that applies in the January you first sell.
About 14% of Wyoming homes. Part of Black Hills Energy and covered by the state law. We could not read its January price sheet.
Next: get its avoided cost price in writing.
Gillette, Cody, Powell, Torrington and Wheatland run their own utilities. The state law does not cover them.
Next: get the city’s solar policy in writing before you ask for quotes.
| Utility | Share of Wyoming homes | January price per leftover kWh |
|---|---|---|
| Rocky Mountain Power | 41.2% | 1.418¢ in 2026 (update pending) |
| Cheyenne Light, Fuel and Power | 13.9% | Its avoided cost; ask |
| Lower Valley Energy | 8.0% | Its avoided cost; ask |
| Powder River Energy | 5.4% | 1.4686¢ since January 1, 2026 |
| Montana-Dakota Utilities | 5.1% | Its avoided cost (Rate 57); ask |
| City of Gillette | 4.9% | Not under the state law; ask the city |
| High Plains Power | 4.5% | Its avoided cost; ask |
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
Shares are our calculation from federal data for 2024 (EIA Form 861, 286,475 Wyoming homes). The rest are served by other co-ops and city utilities.
Credits are kWh, so they cannot pay a fixed monthly charge. The law also bars any fee that would push a solar home’s minimum monthly bill above that of other customers in the same rate class. Montana-Dakota applied in March 2026 to update its net metering rate (PSC notice of March 25, 2026).
$0.25 above the $2.89 US average, or 8.7% higher. These are modeled cash prices, not quotes we collected.
| Size | Cash price | kWh made a year |
|---|---|---|
| 5 kW | $15,700 | 8,005 kWh |
| 7.04 kW (typical) | $22,106 | 11,271 kWh |
| 8 kW | $25,120 | 12,808 kWh |
| 10 kW | $31,400 | 16,010 kWh |
The full price has to come back through your power bill. The net metering law is the one state policy that helps.
Wyoming has no rebate program for home solar.
Wyoming has no personal income tax, so there is no credit to claim.
The old exemption for renewable energy equipment ended in 2012. Some guides still list it.
Not for a system you own placed in service after December 31, 2025.
Payment route | Who owns the panels | The Wyoming question to ask |
|---|---|---|
Cash | You | Does the price include sales tax, and is the size matched to your yearly use? |
Loan | You | Cash and financed totals side by side; a dealer fee stretches a long payback further |
Lease or PPA | The company | Who keeps the kWh credits, how the payment rises, and what happens if you sell |
Swipe the table sideways to see every column.
A to Z, not ranked. Facts from their own sites, read October 13 and 14, 2026. None prints a Wyoming license number, so ask for it.
None of these companies buys homeowner leads from EcoGen America. How we make money.
Ask each installer how many kWh it expects you to sell back each January.
Request Wyoming quotes sized to your yearly useEcoGen 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. Privacy policy
CEO of EcoGen America. Since 2021 he has connected homeowners with residential solar installers in all 50 states.
About Dean
Founder of EcoGen America. He has worked in residential solar since 2016 and maintains the EcoGen Solar Cost Index.
About TrevorEditorial standardsCost Index methodologyVerified Installer methodology