Today, the solar system can be partially or completely responsible for providing the house with electricity. It is able to provide uninterrupted power to air conditioners, household appliances, mobile devices, etc. But the most important thing is that solar energy is more economical and safer. So, how much do solar panels reduce electricity bills? Let’s figure it out.
What are the savings?
You can stop at least on the fact that the energy of the sun is free. It remains only to purchase a converter in the form of a solar panel and freely use it to generate electricity. This already means that the solar panel will be able to reduce electricity bill.
With the system, you don’t need meters to record consumption, and anything that’s accumulated in excess of your home’s needs can be easily saved for future costs or donated to utility companies for additional bonuses.
Today, most US citizens are forced to pay hundreds of dollars a month to use electricity from fuel-fired power plants. Yes, there are homeowners who have very small houses, no yard, and energy bills that don’t exceed $50. They really shouldn’t even think about a solar panel, as it won’t cut the bill much. And why?! And everyone else should consider switching to solar panels, and here’s why.
In July 2022, the average price per kWh in the US was $0.166. But the average electricity bill with solar panels, on the condition of a 30% discount on federal tax, will be 0.06 to 0.08 dollars per 1 kWh. Therefore, solar cuts electricity costs by 2 times.
For a comparative assessment of the cost of fuel and solar electricity for different states, see the table:
| Cost of electricity in the network ($/kWh) for 2022 | Average solar price on solar.com ($/kWh) | Grid electricity markup | |
| Average cost by country | 0.166 | 0.08 | 107.5% |
| Seattle | 0.118 | 0.08 | 47.5% |
| Houston | 0.345 | 0.08 | 331.25% |
| Los Angeles | 0.244 | 0.08 | 205% |
| Boston | 0.270 | 0.08 | 237.5% |
| Chicago | 0.185 | 0.08 | 131.25% |
| Miami | 0.162 | 0.08 | 102.5% |
| Denver | 0.152 | 0.08 | 90% |
Solar power solves electrical problems
Traditional electricity has 3 significant disadvantages: high cost, constant rise in price and the impossibility of predicting the cost. The solar system is able to solve each of them.
The high cost of electricity
We have already talked about savings from solar panels, it is really significant. But it makes sense only with the active use of electrical appliances.
On the diagram you can see what the approximate savings will be when using solar energy for 20 years. As you can see, one owner uses traditional electricity and spends $41,360. And the second pays an average electric bill with solar panels for all 20 years worth $20,484.
Considering that only the warranty period of the solar system is 20-25 years, and the total service life can be even longer.
Constant rise in price
Unfortunately, the rise in prices for traditional electricity is constantly happening. Over the past 20 years, it has grown annually by an average of 2.79%. The solar battery will be able to reduce electricity bill even at the expense of a fixed energy price. That is, if the cost of solar energy in your region when connected is 7 cents per 1 kWh, then in 10 years the price will remain at the same level. The only possible price increase is the annual price escalator. It represents a variable cost of electricity, but a rate increase of only 1-5% is possible, which will not be noticeable to consumers.
And again, we propose to evaluate the chart, which displays the changes in the cost of traditional and solar energy over 20 years.
That is, solar panel savings will be $33,912.50 over 20 years if the price of traditional energy rises by 2.78% and $47,896.39 with a 5% increase.
The increase in the cost of energy from fuel-fired power plants is due to the constant need for maintenance, repair and replacement of network parts. The United States has one of the oldest electrical networks, so this need is only growing. Even when taking into account changes in technology and general progress, cost reduction is not possible.
The impossibility of predicting the cost
Yes, we have considered possible options for increasing the cost of electricity from the public grid. But these are only approximate values. No one can predict for sure. They depend on too many factors. At their core, they are unpredictable, which can be seen on the chart from MishTalk:
As you can see the price goes up a lot. At the same time, there is no stability and patterns of growth and gradualness. So, in 2022, electricity cost 47.3% more than in 2021. Are you still thinking about how to reduce your electricity bill? Just go ahead and buy solar panels, otherwise your bills could go up again and again next year. The main thing is to carefully study all the information before buying and choose the most Efficient Solar Panels for your home.
Other factors to save on solar energy
Excess energy
If your state is constantly sunny, there is a good chance that the solar panel will generate excess energy. It can be saved in one of the following ways:
- In the city / local transformer network – in other words all excess energy will be directed to utility providers and redistributed to other consumers. If you are wondering “can this reduce my solar electric bills?”, then we assure you – yes. Due to the excess energy, the counter will spin in the opposite direction. There is also a SEG program, upon registration of which you can get money for excess energy.
- In a home energy battery – you need to buy it, but it will allow you to spend the accumulated energy later when it is needed.
But don’t buy your own battery unless you’re sure you’ll have an overabundance of solar power.
Solar loan
Everyone associates a loan with a significant overpayment. Do solar panels reduce electricity bills in this case? Yes! Having issued a loan and installed a panel, you will already save on electricity, which means lower bills. In addition, you can get a tax credit until 2033 for as much as 30% of the cost of the battery.
Conclusion
As you can see, with solar panels, reducing electricity bills is easy. This is achieved due to several factors:
- solar energy does not rise in price over time, and a possible price escalator will not be noticeable to the consumer;
- solar energy comes from the sun and does not require expensive fuel;
- a solar panel can not only reduce electricity bills, but bring additional income when excess energy is accumulated and redirected to utilities;
- solar systems are welcomed in many states, which gives their owners credits, tax breaks and other benefits.
And of course, the most important question “how much does solar panels save you?” we can answer with confidence – solar energy costs for the consumers at least 2 times cheaper.
Today solar panels are the best way to reduce electricity bills. In addition to the overall savings for the energy itself, they can be used to get excess electricity and additional bonuses from federal programs (loans and benefits).