Do You Still Have an Electric Bill with Solar Panels?

Many homeowners interested in solar energy assume that installing solar panels means they will no longer receive an electric bill. The idea is that your solar panels generate all the electricity you need, so you won’t have to buy any from the utility company anymore.

Unfortunately, that’s not exactly how it works in most cases. Even after installing solar panels, the majority of homeowners will still get an electric bill every month.

Why You Still Get an Electric Bill with Solar Panels

There are a few main reasons why your electric bill doesn’t disappear when you go solar:

1. Connection to the Electric Grid

Most residential solar panel systems are connected to the electric grid in what’s known as a “grid-tied” system.

This means that on days when your solar panels don’t produce enough energy for your home’s needs, you can draw electricity from the grid. The grid acts as a backup for those cloudy days and nights when solar generation is low.

Being connected to the utility grid means you must have an account with that utility company. As an account holder, you’ll continue receiving a monthly bill, even if your solar panels produced all the electricity you used that month.

2. Mandatory Utility Fees

That electric bill comes with fees that you can’t avoid, including:

• Customer service fees – For billing, account maintenance, meter reading, etc.
• Distribution fees – For building and maintaining utility infrastructure like power lines.
• Transmission fees – For transmitting electricity from power plants to your home.

These fees exist whether you use grid electricity or not. As a grid-connected solar customer, you must pay them.

3. Variable Solar Generation

Your solar panels can’t produce a consistent amount of electricity each day. Their output depends on:

• Weather – Cloudy days mean less solar generation.
• Time of day – Panels only work while the sun is out.
• Seasons – Shorter winter days have fewer sunlight hours.

Most solar homes need to supplement with grid electricity on low solar generation days. And that adds to your electric bill.

4. No or Limited Battery Storage

Batteries can store excess solar energy during peak generation times for use at night. But battery systems are expensive, so most solar homes don’t have large enough systems to eliminate grid reliance.

Without ample battery power, you’ll have to pull electricity from the utility grid on low solar generation days.

What Your Electric Bill Looks Like with Solar

While you will definitely still get a monthly electric bill with solar panels, there are a few factors that impact the size of that bill:

• Solar energy system size – The more solar power your system produces, the less you’ll need from the grid.
• Electricity usage habits – Using less power means needing less from the grid.
• Net metering – This credits you for excess solar energy sent to the grid, which offsets your bill.
• Battery storage – Stored solar energy can displace grid electricity usage.
• Weather patterns – Sunny climates rely less on the grid than rainy/overcast ones.
• Utility fees and rates – What your electric company charges monthly account holders.

Here are some examples of how your electric bill might look with solar panels:

As you can see, even in the best scenario, you’ll likely have a bill of $15 or more per month due to grid connection fees. But with the right solar and battery storage setup, you can minimize the portion of your bill that’s from actual electricity usage.

How to Reduce Your Electric Bill with Solar Panels

If you want to slash your electric bill as much as possible with solar power, here are some effective strategies:

• Increase solar panel system size – Produce more of your own power so you need less from the grid.
• Add solar batteries – Store excess solar generation for use when your panels aren’t producing.
• Decrease energy use – Replace appliances with energy efficient models, install a programmable thermostat, etc.
• Leverage net metering – Get credits for excess solar energy to offset future electric bills.
• Go off-grid – Completely disconnect from the grid and utility company. This is rare and expensive to do.

The Bottom Line

While solar panels won’t completely eliminate your electric bill, they can still help you achieve significant savings compared to non-solar homes. A properly designed solar system coupled with batteries and smart energy usage can make your monthly bills minimal.

Just remember that as long as you’re connected to the electric grid, you’ll face some unavoidable monthly fees from your utility company. But by producing your own solar power, you can reduce the portion of your bill subject to fluctuating electricity rates and usage charges.