Net Metering Savings Calculator

Are you getting robbed by your utility company? Calculate the true financial value of the solar energy you generate vs. what you sell back to the grid.

The price you pay the utility company for power.

The price the utility pays YOU for your extra solar. (Wholesale is usually around 0.05 to 0.08).

For estimation only. Calculations assume a standard 40% daytime self-consumption profile. Exact metering rules vary wildly by region and utility provider.

Financial Readout

Target Output
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The Grid Trap: Why Solar Without a Battery Might Be Costing You

For decades, going solar was a no-brainer because of "1:1 Net Metering." If your panels sent 1 kWh of extra power to the grid during the day, the utility company would give you 1 kWh of free power back at night. It was a perfect, fair exchange. Unfortunately, those days are mostly over. Our Net Metering Calculator proves exactly how new utility policies (like NEM 3.0 in California) are mathematically designed to destroy your solar ROI.

Retail vs. Wholesale: The Unfair Exchange

To understand why your bill is still high despite having solar panels, look at the spread between these two numbers:

Total Value = (Self-Consumed × Retail Rate) + (Exported × Wholesale Rate)
  • •The Retail Rate: This is what the utility company charges you when you buy power from them at night.
  • •The Export Rate (Wholesale): This is what the utility pays YOU for your extra midday solar power. Instead of 1:1, many utilities now only pay the "wholesale" generation rate. They buy it from you for pennies, and sell it back to you hours later for a massive markup.

How to Fix Your Math

If your calculator output showed a high "Value Lost to Grid," you only have two options to fix your ROI. First, change your habits. Try to run heavy appliances (dishwasher, dryer, EV charging) strictly in the middle of the day while the sun is shining. This ensures you "Self-Consume" the power at its full retail value rather than exporting it for a fraction.

The Battery Solution

If you cannot change your daily habits, the only way to stop the utility company from exploiting your solar panels is to sever the connection entirely by storing the power yourself. Plug your rate difference into our Battery Storage Payback Calculator to see exactly how fast a home battery will pay for itself by storing your power instead of selling it for cheap. You can also re-evaluate your total system costs using our Solar ROI Calculator.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is NEM 3.0?

NEM 3.0 (Net Billing Tariff) is a policy change that drastically reduced the rate utilities pay homeowners for excess solar power. Instead of getting a 1:1 retail match, homeowners are now paid wholesale rates. This change made home batteries almost mandatory to see a good ROI.

Why doesn't the utility company just pay me 1:1?

Utilities argue that the 'Retail Rate' includes the cost of maintaining the grid, power lines, and infrastructure. When you send them power, you aren't providing infrastructure—just raw energy. Therefore, they argue they should only pay you the wholesale 'generation' rate.

How can I avoid getting screwed by low export rates?

There are two ways. 1) Change your habits to use massive amounts of power strictly during the day (charge your EV, run pool pumps) so you 'Self-Consume' the power instead of exporting it. 2) Buy a home battery system to store your midday power so you can use it yourself at night.

Can my solar bill actually be negative?

Yes, but rarely in cash. If you generate massively more power than you use over a year, most utility companies will not cut you a check. Instead, they roll the credit over to the next month indefinitely, or they 'true-up' at the end of the year and pay you out at a devastatingly low wholesale rate.