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Solar savings calculator

Estimate annual solar production, retail-value savings and simple payback from your location, system size and verified electricity-rate context.

Solar Savings Calculator
California33.61¢/kWh
shared calculation engine

Your inputs

Choose a location and system size. CalcuRiver derives a sourced planning production estimate and benchmark installed cost; override cost only if you have a real quote.

Uses the state planning benchmark until a city is selected.
kW
$
Production estimate13,480 kWh/yrLoading location benchmark…
Installed-cost benchmark$20,000Loading cost benchmark…
Location basisCalifornia statewidePlanning benchmark, not a site-specific roof forecast

Start with the statewide EIA average, or choose a verified utility rate where available.

Advanced settings
kWh/year
$
%
Federal credit boundary: incentives default to $0. Add only project incentives you have independently verified. CalcuRiver does not silently insert a federal residential credit into 2026 projects. Production is estimated from a state/city planning yield benchmark and system size; shading, roof orientation, tilt, equipment losses and site-specific weather are not individually modeled.
Updates the result using the inputs and rate source above.
LocationCaliforniaEIA residential state average
Rate33.61¢/kWh2026-07
vs U.S. average+83.6% vs U.S.same input comparison
National rank#2 highest+2.9% YoY
Result explained

Why this number?

Calculation

Loading the calculation…

Rate used

Loading the active electricity rate…

U.S. comparison

$2,468.19$2,062.44 more per year than the same inputs at the U.S. average.

Boundary

Estimate boundaries will appear here.

Utility context

Retail import prices do not automatically equal solar export compensation. Utility plans are context only until export/NEM terms are encoded.

Location-based production

The calculator multiplies system size by a sourced state or city kWh/kW-year planning benchmark, then values the selected share of that production using the same rate engine as other CalcuRiver tools.

Planning boundary

Production benchmarks are not site-specific roof forecasts. Utility import rates also do not automatically equal solar export compensation; export/NEM treatment remains separate unless explicitly modeled.