There can be solar tax credits and incentives available at the federal, state and local levels. The calculator above will show you the value of all incentives your home is eligible for.
The state of home solar in Colorado is strong! 100% of electricity now needs to come from carbon free renewable sources by 2050. Residents of the most populous areas continue to benefit from Xcel’s solar rewards program which pays extra for solar credits over 20 years. Way to go, lawmakers!
Xcel has released a nice program called Solar*Rewards, which earns you a little extra money for every kilowatt-hour of electricity your panels generate.
Rebates continue to be available for residents of Boulder and Colorado Springs, too. All in all, Colorado is a great place to go solar, and we know expert local installers. If you're ready to see how much you can save with solar on your roof, use our calculator above to get started.
Learn what solar incentives are available to Colorado homeowners
See what Colorado solar incentives you qualify for based on your utility company and city
Find out how much these incentives and/or Colorado solar tax credits will reduce your cost to go solar and add batteries
The federal solar investment tax credit will have the biggest impact on the cost you will face to go solar in Colorado
If you install your photovoltaic system before 2032, the federal tax credit is 30% of the cost of your solar panel system. This is 30% off the entire cost of the system including equipment, labor and permitting.
Example: If your solar energy system costs $20,000, your federal solar tax credit would be $20,000 x 30% = $6,000.
The federal tax credit falls to 26% at the end of 2032.
With net metering in some states, you get full retail rate credit for the amount of electricity you send back into the grid with your solar panels.
In short, net metering makes sure that you get credit, either in energy or in cash, for every bit of solar energy your panels produce. Your utility will track how much solar energy you produce and how much you use, and the utility will "store" any extra your solar system produces. At night or on cloudy days, the utility credits your surplus power back to you.
Net metering is one of the keys to successful solar policy, and Colorado may just have the best net metering laws in the country. The state requires utilities to pay you for the net excess energy that your system produces over the course of a year. So if you’re smart about your energy usage, your solar panels can actually turn a profit! The utility company will literally cut you a check at the end of the year for any extra solar juice you’ve contributed to the grid.
Colorado makes taking advantage of those savings even easier, allowing you to opt either for the check or to simply roll your extra credit to any subsequent monthly bills.
The real vein of Rockies gold for solar comes from Colorado’s utility companies. They have to meet the state’s renewable portfolio standard guidelines, so they’re willing to help you put solar on your roof, just for joining the world of electricity generation.
Truth be told, though, the big, fat rebates of years past are all but gone in the Rocky Mountain State. The good news is prices for solar have dropped by about the same amount of the erstwhile rebate money! The rebates worked!
If you’re lucky enough to be an Xcel customer in Colorado, you should definitely sign up for their Solar Rewards program. It pays you on an ongoing basis for the amount of kwh you produce with your solar panels.
You sign a contract to give your renewable energy certificates to Xcel for 20 years. They will pay you for the first 10 years at a rate of $.07/kwh, which is huge!
On an average sized 6kW system, you can expect to reap about $700 annually or $6,500 over those ten years.
A solar installation adds tens of thousands of dollars in value to your home. The good news in Colorado is that homeowners who go solar will not pay a single, solitary, Denver-minted penny in taxes on that value. Thanks, Colorado!
Also, when you install a residential solar system in Colorado you are exempt from 100% of related sales and use taxes. Now that’s how we like our renewable energy laws: simple, smart, and saving you money.
In 2020, the city of Boulder created a hefty home solar grant program. Income-qualified homeowners making less than $82,000 a year for a family of 4 can receive up to 50% of total project costs after rebates, incentives and tax credits are subtracted.
While that’s a good chunk of change, we’re curious to know how many residents will qualify, given Boulder’s relatively high living expenses. We’d love to see similar types of programs offered across more diverse areas of the state.
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Prices based on a 10.1kW system, after 30% federal tax credit
93 solar companies in Colorado provide pricing on SolarReviews. Here are the best rated companies near you.
4.78 56 Reviews
Fred, 5 days ago
Generally, I am skeptical of all contactors based on their sales techniques and performance. However, this company is absolutely the exception. In fact, I wish that all contractors were as attentive as this company. We first contacted them over one year ago and learned what we needed. However, we weren't quite ready to pull the trigger. A year later, they had all of our information and were able to schedule us right away. They outlined the specific steps in the process, provided realistic timeframes and performed as promised. Every step of the process was met with high energy, competence and attention to detail. This was true from the engineer, the production manager and every employee. They have a wonderful team. In the end, we are not only satisfied with the work performed but have also referred them to others. I am proud to have them on our side AND on a side note, I feel like I can call them my friends. It is not often that you fall into a groove with a person/team. They have such a genuine approach to fulfilling expectations. And at the same time, willing to share their personality with you.
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Fred, 5 days ago
Generally, I am skeptical of all contactors based on their sales techniques and performance. However, this company is absolutely the exception. In fact, I wish that all contractors were as attentive as this company. We first contacted them over one year ago and learned what we needed. However, we weren't quite ready to pull the trigger. A year later, they had all of our information and were able to schedule us right away. They outlined the specific steps in the process, provided realistic timeframes and performed as promised. Every step of the process was met with high energy, competence and attention to detail. This was true from the engineer, the production manager and every employee. They have a wonderful team. In the end, we are not only satisfied with the work performed but have also referred them to others. I am proud to have them on our side AND on a side note, I feel like I can call them my friends. It is not often that you fall into a groove with a person/team. They have such a genuine approach to fulfilling expectations. And at the same time, willing to share their personality with you.
4.69 30 Reviews
David P, over 1 month
Where to begin, from the great sales experience, to the dedicated installer team and back office support, Apollo handled everything extremely well! A huge thank you to Melissa, Grete, Molly, Nate, Amanda and the installation team for making this whole experience possible. There were some bumps on the install (not due to them) and they handled them with great care, they were always willing to answer my ever growing number of questions about solar and did an incredible job of installing our solar system in a single business day and a month ahead of schedule! It took longer to get the city inspection and xcel to do their part than it was for the installation to happen. Highly recommend them if you have future solar needs!
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David P, over 1 month
Where to begin, from the great sales experience, to the dedicated installer team and back office support, Apollo handled everything extremely well! A huge thank you to Melissa, Grete, Molly, Nate, Amanda and the installation team for making this whole experience possible. There were some bumps on the install (not due to them) and they handled them with great care, they were always willing to answer my ever growing number of questions about solar and did an incredible job of installing our solar system in a single business day and a month ahead of schedule! It took longer to get the city inspection and xcel to do their part than it was for the installation to happen. Highly recommend them if you have future solar needs!
4.68 64 Reviews
Tom Van Ness, over 1 month
Very good customer service - on our vacation home. Matt and the team were able to plan, coordinate rebates, deal with the power company and get everything installed even with part shortages, etc. Also were great about a rebate that expired before install - kept their end of the deal. Now we are our own little power company.
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Tom Van Ness, over 1 month
Very good customer service - on our vacation home. Matt and the team were able to plan, coordinate rebates, deal with the power company and get everything installed even with part shortages, etc. Also were great about a rebate that expired before install - kept their end of the deal. Now we are our own little power company.
Anonymous, over 1 month
Good installation
4.65 81 Reviews
Neighbor, 2 weeks ago
This was one of my top two choices to use for solar panels and my neighbor down the block had a horrible experience with them They went a year without a battery. The battery they installed was defective and they have now been a year without a battery. This company also installed the panels wrong and they had to be reinstalled. They have horrible customer service and they do not honor the initial contract.
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Neighbor, 2 weeks ago
This was one of my top two choices to use for solar panels and my neighbor down the block had a horrible experience with them They went a year without a battery. The battery they installed was defective and they have now been a year without a battery. This company also installed the panels wrong and they had to be reinstalled. They have horrible customer service and they do not honor the initial contract.
Jenny Lighthart, over 1 month
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4.53 52 Reviews
Chris Sasarman, 3 weeks ago
I had Solar Power Pros install a 22k solar system on my house on May 2021. A few months into my installation, monitoring showed some panels were underperforming and the company admitted to some design flaws in the system. They promised to give me a 1-year review of the system and compare production against the contractual "guarantee", but that never happened as of this time (1 year and 3 months since installation). Customer Service is absolutely useless, they just give you the general runaround and lately even stopped responding to emails. I am rating them 2 stars since they did an excellent job at collecting their payment and getting a solar system running. But it is apparent that the company can not stand behind its installations and their "guarantee production" and warranty are meaningless. I would recommend looking for more reputable solar companies to trust with such a major investment.
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Chris Sasarman, 3 weeks ago
I had Solar Power Pros install a 22k solar system on my house on May 2021. A few months into my installation, monitoring showed some panels were underperforming and the company admitted to some design flaws in the system. They promised to give me a 1-year review of the system and compare production against the contractual "guarantee", but that never happened as of this time (1 year and 3 months since installation). Customer Service is absolutely useless, they just give you the general runaround and lately even stopped responding to emails. I am rating them 2 stars since they did an excellent job at collecting their payment and getting a solar system running. But it is apparent that the company can not stand behind its installations and their "guarantee production" and warranty are meaningless. I would recommend looking for more reputable solar companies to trust with such a major investment.
4.52 1,613 Reviews
Tamica, 2 days ago
If I could give Blue Raven a negative 1 I would. They are full of it. I was excited to get solar panels for my first home and now I regret it. They came out installed the panels but failed to communicate that they needed some additional parts and would need to come back . I only learned of this after boxes showed up to my home for Blue nRaven. I called and they advised a tech would come out to finish the job only to have days later to get a text message saying my appointment was cancelled indefinitely. Well that was in August and here it is almost October and still no working panels. I have a product that I am paying for but cant use. I WILL NEVER RECOMMEND BLUE RAVEN TO ANYONE!
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Tamica, 2 days ago
If I could give Blue Raven a negative 1 I would. They are full of it. I was excited to get solar panels for my first home and now I regret it. They came out installed the panels but failed to communicate that they needed some additional parts and would need to come back . I only learned of this after boxes showed up to my home for Blue nRaven. I called and they advised a tech would come out to finish the job only to have days later to get a text message saying my appointment was cancelled indefinitely. Well that was in August and here it is almost October and still no working panels. I have a product that I am paying for but cant use. I WILL NEVER RECOMMEND BLUE RAVEN TO ANYONE!
4.51 273 Reviews
Leroy Adams, 3 days ago
My experience with Freedom Solar Power is none other than exceptional. My energy advisor Crisjo Jaimon took great care of my project from A to Z. Although Centerpoint took some time for inspections, the team at Freedom Solar Power did an amazing job. My system is operating as advised.
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Average cost (5kW system)
$17,000 ($3.40 per watt)
Leroy Adams, 3 days ago
My experience with Freedom Solar Power is none other than exceptional. My energy advisor Crisjo Jaimon took great care of my project from A to Z. Although Centerpoint took some time for inspections, the team at Freedom Solar Power did an amazing job. My system is operating as advised.
4.50 36 Reviews
Paul, over 1 month
Well Done! Curtis is a pleasure to work with, knowledgeable, experienced, quality from start to finish. No need to call anyone else.
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Paul, over 1 month
Well Done! Curtis is a pleasure to work with, knowledgeable, experienced, quality from start to finish. No need to call anyone else.
For more information about going solar near where you live, check out the following resources:
Fort Collins Solar Loan Program - Offers on-bill repayment