All 50 states and DC
Where solar pays, and where it does not
An 8 kW system in every state, priced at what people there actually paid in 2025 and valued at what electricity actually costs there now. Sorted fastest payback first.
8 kW system
Every state, ranked by payback
| State | Cost per watt | System price | Output | Power price | Payback |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | - | $30,000 | 1,606 | 48.0¢ | 4.7 years |
| Maine | - | $30,000 | 1,235 | 32.4¢ | 8.7 years |
| Massachusetts | $3.74 | $29,920 | 1,263 | 30.5¢ | 9.0 years |
| New York | $3.98 | $31,840 | 1,255 | 29.9¢ | 9.7 years |
| Rhode Island | $3.75 | $30,000 | 1,258 | 28.3¢ | 9.7 years |
| California | $4.36 | $34,880 | 1,602 | 33.6¢ | 10.5 years |
| District of Columbia | - | $30,000 | 1,283 | 25.2¢ | 10.5 years |
| New Hampshire | - | $30,000 | 1,218 | 26.6¢ | 10.5 years |
| New Jersey | - | $30,000 | 1,278 | 25.2¢ | 10.6 years |
| Connecticut | $3.75 | $30,000 | 1,278 | 24.2¢ | 11.0 years |
| Delaware | $3.18 | $25,440 | 1,275 | 18.5¢ | 12.1 years |
| Michigan | - | $30,000 | 1,200 | 23.1¢ | 12.1 years |
| New Mexico | - | $30,000 | 1,729 | 16.1¢ | 12.1 years |
| Maryland | - | $30,000 | 1,282 | 21.4¢ | 12.2 years |
| Pennsylvania | - | $30,000 | 1,265 | 21.7¢ | 12.2 years |
| Vermont | - | $30,000 | 1,145 | 23.8¢ | 12.3 years |
| Arizona | $3.62 | $28,960 | 1,688 | 15.4¢ | 12.4 years |
| Colorado | - | $30,000 | 1,508 | 17.0¢ | 13.0 years |
| Alaska | - | $30,000 | 876 | 28.8¢ | 13.1 years |
| Virginia | - | $30,000 | 1,372 | 17.6¢ | 13.7 years |
| Wisconsin | $3.73 | $29,840 | 1,256 | 19.1¢ | 13.7 years |
| Illinois | - | $30,000 | 1,239 | 19.2¢ | 13.8 years |
| Texas | $3.46 | $27,680 | 1,389 | 15.9¢ | 13.8 years |
| Ohio | - | $30,000 | 1,220 | 19.4¢ | 13.9 years |
| Georgia | - | $30,000 | 1,408 | 16.3¢ | 14.3 years |
| South Carolina | - | $30,000 | 1,442 | 15.5¢ | 14.6 years |
| Kansas | - | $30,000 | 1,451 | 15.3¢ | 14.7 years |
| Alabama | - | $30,000 | 1,311 | 16.4¢ | 15.1 years |
| Missouri | - | $30,000 | 1,337 | 16.1¢ | 15.1 years |
| Nevada | - | $30,000 | 1,689 | 12.8¢ | 15.1 years |
| Wyoming | - | $30,000 | 1,495 | 14.4¢ | 15.1 years |
| Minnesota | - | $30,000 | 1,228 | 17.4¢ | 15.2 years |
| Oklahoma | - | $30,000 | 1,487 | 14.3¢ | 15.2 years |
| Iowa | - | $30,000 | 1,313 | 16.0¢ | 15.4 years |
| Indiana | - | $30,000 | 1,249 | 16.7¢ | 15.5 years |
| North Carolina | - | $30,000 | 1,370 | 15.2¢ | 15.6 years |
| Mississippi | - | $30,000 | 1,382 | 14.5¢ | 16.0 years |
| South Dakota | - | $30,000 | 1,314 | 15.4¢ | 16.0 years |
| Florida | $4.08 | $32,640 | 1,426 | 15.0¢ | 16.3 years |
| Arkansas | - | $30,000 | 1,361 | 14.3¢ | 16.4 years |
| Idaho | - | $30,000 | 1,397 | 13.7¢ | 16.7 years |
| Montana | - | $30,000 | 1,278 | 15.0¢ | 16.7 years |
| West Virginia | - | $30,000 | 1,199 | 15.8¢ | 16.9 years |
| Utah | - | $30,000 | 1,427 | 13.1¢ | 17.0 years |
| Nebraska | - | $30,000 | 1,333 | 13.8¢ | 17.3 years |
| Louisiana | - | $30,000 | 1,405 | 12.7¢ | 17.7 years |
| Kentucky | - | $30,000 | 1,276 | 13.8¢ | 17.9 years |
| Tennessee | - | $30,000 | 1,282 | 13.7¢ | 18.0 years |
| Oregon | $3.90 | $31,200 | 1,078 | 16.0¢ | 18.9 years |
| North Dakota | - | $30,000 | 1,185 | 13.4¢ | 19.5 years |
| Washington | - | $30,000 | 1,086 | 14.7¢ | 19.5 years |
Output is annual kWh per kW installed, modelled at the largest city in each state. System price is gross: there is no federal credit to subtract from it any more. Payback assumes the electricity you make is worth the retail rate you currently pay, which is a generous assumption in states that have moved off full net metering. The power prices on their own, ranked with the year-ago month: electricity rates by state; the export policies: net metering by state.