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Home › Solar › District of Columbia › Washington

Solar Cost in Washington, DC

Estimate residential solar cost, annual production and savings in Washington. Adjust system size, installed price, value captured and verified incentives using local and state 2026 planning data.

Federal residential solar credit in 2026: $0. CalcuRiver does not subtract the expired 30% Section 25D credit from this estimate. Add only local or utility incentives you have independently verified.
Planning solar yield1,386 kWh/kW
Installed-cost benchmark$3.09/W
Federal credit assumed0%
Electricity rateloading…
city solar model

Build your Washington scenario

Start with planning benchmarks, then replace them with your actual quote or roof-specific inputs.

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“Value captured” is deliberately editable because self-consumption, export credits and net-metering rules vary by utility. 100% represents a retail-value ceiling, not a guaranteed bill saving.

How this Washington estimate works

  • Annual production = system size × 1,386 kWh/kW planning yield.
  • Retail-value ceiling = annual production × current District of Columbia residential electricity price.
  • The value-capture control lets you haircut that ceiling for self-consumption/export economics.
  • Simple payback = entered net installed cost ÷ modeled annual electricity value.

Source boundaries

1,386 kWh/kW-year planning benchmark based on CalcuRiver's District of Columbia representative-city PVWatts planning value; planning input, not a site-specific roof forecast. Roof orientation, shading, equipment, weather year and utility export compensation can materially change the result.

Production benchmarkCost benchmarkDetailed solar calculator
district benchmark

Washington, DC solar snapshot

8 kW production11,088 kWh/yr
8 kW benchmark cost$20,720
Residential electricity25.21¢/kWh
Retail-value ceiling$2,795

Washington, DC uses CalcuRiver's disclosed District of Columbia representative-city planning benchmark. Because there is no separate Solar state benchmark record for DC, CalcuRiver does not invent a city-versus-state percentage difference.

Production basis: PVWatts-based state planning benchmark · electricity benchmark: EIA 2026-07.

methodology & sources

Washington solar methodology

Production precision: state/regional benchmark disclosed for Washington; no unverified city-specific production uplift is applied.

Production basis

1,386 kWh/kW-year planning benchmark. This page explicitly uses the state/regional fallback rather than claiming site-specific city precision.

Installed-cost basis

3.09 $/W planning benchmark for this city/region; not an installer quote.

Electricity benchmark

25.21¢/kWh District of Columbia residential benchmark for 2026-07.

Utility boundary

The city page does not assume one electric utility. Use an available city × utility page when the service territory is verified.

Methodology: Solar utility model · CalcuRiver methodology.

why this estimate changes

Why this solar estimate changes

Solar value is driven by local production, installed cost, the retail value of electricity you avoid buying, and the compensation you receive for exported energy. CalcuRiver does not assume export credits equal the retail rate unless that utility program is explicitly verified.

Core logic: self-used solar offsets retail purchases; exported solar is valued only under a verified export-compensation rule.

Methodology & source policy