Residential solar
Solar built around your home, not a template
Two houses on the same street can need different systems. Roof, shading, usage, and your utility's rules all change the answer — which is why we start with your bill rather than a package.
What shapes a design
Four things that change everything
Before anyone can say what a system should look like, these have to be understood.
Roof condition and age
Panels are installed for a long service life. Putting them on a roof near the end of its own life can mean paying to remove and reinstall them later, so it is better to know early. Some homeowners handle the roof first.
Shading and orientation
Trees, chimneys, neighbouring buildings, and which way the roof faces all affect how much a panel produces. Shading in the middle of the day matters more than shading at the edges.
How much power you actually use
Household consumption is the anchor for the whole design. An EV, a heat pump, or air conditioning changes it substantially, and a bill shows what is really happening rather than what is assumed.
Your utility's rules
Rate structure, time-of-use periods, and interconnection rules are set by your utility and its regulator. They determine what exporting power is worth and whether storage changes the picture.
Understanding your bill
SCE Home Electricity Bill Estimate
See how home energy use—not square footage alone—can influence an electricity bill.
A 2,000-square-foot home does not have one standard electricity bill. Climate, appliance fuel type, air-conditioning use, time-of-use behavior, EV charging, pools, and household habits can materially change consumption.
SCE average residential rate
34.4¢per kWh
Effective June 1, 2026
33.2¢ per kWh with the California Climate Credit applied
This is SCE's published average across residential customers and rate plans. It is almost certainly not your exact rate — yours depends on the rate plan your account is on.
Start with how much electricity you use
Consumption is the input that matters. Square footage on its own does not tell you what a home uses, because two houses of the same size with different heating, cooling, and appliances can sit at opposite ends of the range below.
Find this on your SCE bill, listed as your total kWh for the billing period.
That preset is the middle of the gas/electric range below, not a standard for a home of that size. Replace it with your own figure as soon as you have a bill to hand.
Enter a monthly usage figure to see an illustrative energy charge at SCE’s published average rate.
Gas and electric home
Space heating, water heating, cooking, or a dryer run on natural gas, so electricity mainly covers lighting, appliances, electronics, and cooling.
Illustrative monthly use: 600–1,000 kWh
Approximately $206–$344 in energy charges at the average rate above.
All-electric home
Heating, water heating, and cooking are electric, so loads that a gas home never puts on the meter show up on the electricity bill instead.
Illustrative monthly use: 1,200–2,000 kWh
Approximately $413–$688 in energy charges at the average rate above.
Where the home is matters too
Coastal or moderate
Milder summers mean air conditioning runs less and for shorter stretches, which usually places a home toward the lower end of its range.
Inland or high-cooling
Sustained summer heat means cooling runs longer and during the most expensive hours of the day, which usually places a home toward the upper end of its range.
Climate shifts where a home sits within a range. It is shown here as context rather than as an adjustment, because the size of the effect depends on the building, the equipment, and the household.
What tends to move a home up its range
Select any that apply to see what they typically add to a household's consumption. These change what you should expect from your own bill; they do not change the illustrative figure above, because the size of each effect depends on your equipment and your habits.
Your own bill already reflects all of these. That is why the usage figure from your bill is a better input than any profile on this page.
Rates change, and not always in one direction
SCE residential rates have changed substantially in recent years. Current and future bills remain subject to CPUC-approved rate changes.
October 1, 2025
31.2¢ to 35.3¢
SCE described this as about a 12.9% increase to the average residential bill.
January 1, 2026
35.3¢ to 34.5¢
A decrease to the average residential rate.
June 1, 2026
34.5¢ to 34.4¢
The current published average, and the figure used above.
Each figure above is the average residential rate published in the SCE advisory for that date. Rate changes are approved by the CPUC, and requested or authorized revenue changes are not the same thing as a confirmed change to what a customer pays.
This is an educational estimate based on SCE's published average residential rate, not a quote or guarantee. Your actual bill depends on your rate plan, electricity use, time-of-use periods, location, credits, taxes, fees, and other adjustments. Check your current SCE bill for your actual usage and rate details.
The homeowner journey
What happens after you send a bill
Six stages, in order. Select any one to see what it involves and what it rests on — later stages depend on what the earlier ones find.
01 · You
Share a recent utility bill
Your bill carries your usage, your rate, and your utility — the three facts that turn a general conversation into a specific one. A full year is better than a single month, because household usage moves with the season.
What this stage depends on
- Having a recent bill to hand, or access to your utility's online account
- Whether your usage is typical for the year or unusual for the month you picked
02 · Us
Review energy usage and property details
We look at the shape of your consumption alongside roof orientation, available area, and shading. This is the stage where we find out whether solar suits your property at all — and saying it does not is a real outcome.
What this stage depends on
- What the bill shows about how much power you use and when
- Roof condition, age, orientation, and what shades it during the day
- Your utility's rate structure and interconnection rules
03 · Together
Compare system and payment possibilities
Cash, loan, lease, and PPA side by side against your own bill, with the trade-offs stated plainly — including the ones that do not favour a sale. Battery storage is considered here if it is relevant to what you want.
What this stage depends on
- Which pathways the provider makes available for your property
- What you want to achieve — lower monthly cost, backup power, or ownership
- How long you expect to stay in the home
04 · Installation partner and provider
Complete site and eligibility review
A qualified partner confirms the roof structure and electrical service on site, and the provider assesses qualification for the pathway you are considering. Findings here can change the design and the numbers — that is what the stage is for.
What this stage depends on
- Physical findings on site, which can differ from a desk review
- Qualification criteria set by the provider or lender, not by us
- Whether the roof needs work before panels go on it
05 · Installation partner and authorities
Coordinate design and installation
Final design, permitting, installation, inspection, and utility interconnection. Your installation partner performs the work; we coordinate and tell you what stage you are at and what is actually outstanding.
What this stage depends on
- Permitting timelines set by your city, not by us
- Utility interconnection queues, which vary by area and season
- Equipment availability and installer scheduling
06 · Together
Activate and understand the system
Once the utility gives permission to operate, the system starts producing. We go through what your monitoring shows, how your bill changes shape, and who to contact for equipment, workmanship, or billing questions.
What this stage depends on
- Utility approval to operate, which is the utility's decision
- The monitoring your specific equipment provides
- The warranty and service terms of the provider and installer you chose
Solar and storage
How the pieces relate to each other
A solar array, a battery, and the grid each do a different job. Select one to see what it actually does and what decides whether it is worth having.
Solar production
Panels produce while the sun is on them, which means production has a shape across the day and across the year rather than being a constant.
What that means in practice
- Output rises and falls with the sun's position, weather, and season
- Orientation and shading change how much a given panel contributes
- Nothing is produced at night, which is what the rest of the system exists to deal with
This is an explanation of how the parts relate, not a simulation of your property. Production, storage behaviour, and backup coverage are established during design and site review, and no figure for any of them can be given before that.
Battery storage
Storage is optional, and it is a real decision
A battery can keep selected circuits running during an outage and can shift when you use the power you produce. Both are genuine benefits.
It also adds cost and changes the system design. Whether it pays for itself depends on your utility's rate structure and how often your area actually loses power.
We will tell you when storage does not make financial sense for your property, because being wrong about that is expensive for you and it is not a decision we are prepared to sell blind.
Ownership and payment
More than one way to go solar
These are the common pathways. Not every option is available to every homeowner, and availability depends on the provider, your property, and your qualification.
Cash purchase
You own the system outright from day one.
What that means in practice
- No monthly financing payment
- You hold any applicable incentives
- Highest upfront cost
Solar is never free. Zero-upfront-cost options such as some leases and power purchase agreements may be available to qualified homeowners, which means no money at signing — not that the system costs nothing.
Getting ready
What to have handy
- A recent power bill — ideally a full year if you have it, because usage moves with the season
- Rough age of your roof and whether it has been replaced
- Any planned changes: an EV, a pool, an addition, a heat pump
- What you want to achieve — lower monthly cost, backup power, or owning the system
Residential questions
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to replace my roof first?
Not necessarily, but it depends on the age and condition. If the roof has a few years left, removing and reinstalling panels later usually costs more than doing the roof first. A site survey establishes this properly.
What if my roof is shaded part of the day?
Partial shading is common and is not automatically a problem. Where it falls and when matters more than whether it exists. The design accounts for it, and in some cases the honest answer is that solar is not a good fit.
Will I still get a bill from my utility?
Most homeowners do. You stay connected to the grid, and there are usually fixed charges regardless of how much power you produce. Solar changes how much electricity you buy, not whether you have an account.
Can I add a battery later?
Often, but it is easier and usually cheaper to plan for it at design time. Retrofitting can mean additional equipment and another permit. If storage is something you are considering, say so early.
See what your home actually supports
Share a recent bill and we will build the comparison around your roof, your usage, and your utility.