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.
Although the Ohio Public Utilities Commission recently reduced the amount of credit you get when you send unused solar power back to your utility, solar power still makes a lot of sense here for homeowners.
In the future, we'd like to see more support from Mike DeWine for homeowners who want to go solar, and on a strengthened renewable portfolio standard. Ohioans deserve to be part of a profitable renewable energy future for us all.
Learn what solar incentives are available to Ohio homeowners
See what Ohio solar incentives you qualify for based on your utility company and city
Find out how much these incentives and/or Ohio 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 Ohio
If you install your photovoltaic system before the end of 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% starting in 2033.
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.
Net Metering requires your utility to monitor how much energy your solar power system produces and how much energy you actually consume, and make sure you get credit for the surplus.
Ohio used to have one of the strongest net metering policies in the country. However, now any net excess generation your system produces on a monthly basis will be credited to your bill, but only at the per-kWh generation charge, which averages between 4 and 5 cents per kWh across the state. While that’s still a credit, it’s less than half of current retail electricity rates of $0.12/kwh.
Therefore, it’s important to size your solar energy system well, so you aren’t feeding in a whole bunch of credits back to your utility when you aren’t able to use the power onise.
Ohio separates itself from the pack as one of the handful of states that allows you to request a check for any credits accumulated over the course of a 12-month billing cycle. That’s right – if you run a surplus for the year, the utility company will actually pay you.
While Ohio does not have a dedicated state rebate for solar panel installation, some manufacturers like LG offer their own solar rebates. These programs are usually time sensitive. For example, LG offers a $600 solar rebate on their equipment, which your installer can help you redeem over the next year.
Here’s some great news: the value of your home goes up when you install solar panels. Here’s some okay news: The cities of Cleveland and Cincinnati will let you keep that extra home value off the property tax rolls for many years to come. Here's some not-so-good news: the rest of the state has property tax relief only for commercial solar installations.
Ohio does have a sales tax exemption for solar energy though! That means you’ll save 5.75% on the purchase of your new system. On an investment of tens of thousands of dollars, that’s nothing to sneeze at.
Showing data for:
Prices based on a 10.8kW system, after 30% federal tax credit
27 solar companies in Ohio provide pricing on SolarReviews. Here are the best rated companies near you.
4.83 93 Reviews
Jeb Heller, 1 week ago
From our first interaction with them to the last they were always friendly, informative and helpful. There was no pressure from our first meeting to go with them which was really nice. Every step of the way and every interaction was positive. They are an amazing company and I would 100% recommend them to anyone. We absolutely love the system and running our entire house on the sun is so cool. Thank you Paradise Energy Solutions!
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Average cost (5kW system)
$16,000 ($3.20 per watt)
Jeb Heller, 1 week ago
From our first interaction with them to the last they were always friendly, informative and helpful. There was no pressure from our first meeting to go with them which was really nice. Every step of the way and every interaction was positive. They are an amazing company and I would 100% recommend them to anyone. We absolutely love the system and running our entire house on the sun is so cool. Thank you Paradise Energy Solutions!
4.65 54 Reviews
Solarites, over 1 month
Very transparent process from start to install. Forthright, friendly and responsive to any and all questions or inquiries during sales, planning and installation. No hard sale re: sale of system. Installers were cordial, efficient and timely. System went on line a week ago. The monitoring capability via "Enlighten" is a great tool.
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Solarites, over 1 month
Very transparent process from start to install. Forthright, friendly and responsive to any and all questions or inquiries during sales, planning and installation. No hard sale re: sale of system. Installers were cordial, efficient and timely. System went on line a week ago. The monitoring capability via "Enlighten" is a great tool.
4.65 39 Reviews
Patrick Farrell, over 1 month
I agree with the other reviewers that Ecohouse Solar is outstanding! Our goal was to produce enough energy to offset the full electrical consumption of our home and electric vehicle throughout the year while simultaneously providing us with daytime backup in the event of a grid failure. We purchased a 16.2KW system consisting of 45 panels, microinverters and added Sunlight Backup for 8 x Circuits. The sales process with Ecohouse was smooth sailing. Mike Hopper was our Project Manager. I cannot say enough great things about him personally and the entire Ecohouse Solar team. Our solar system worked perfectly from the day it was installed and the installation quality was top notch. I made the right choice both to go Solar and in my choice of Ecohouse Solar. You should strongly consider them too!
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Patrick Farrell, over 1 month
I agree with the other reviewers that Ecohouse Solar is outstanding! Our goal was to produce enough energy to offset the full electrical consumption of our home and electric vehicle throughout the year while simultaneously providing us with daytime backup in the event of a grid failure. We purchased a 16.2KW system consisting of 45 panels, microinverters and added Sunlight Backup for 8 x Circuits. The sales process with Ecohouse was smooth sailing. Mike Hopper was our Project Manager. I cannot say enough great things about him personally and the entire Ecohouse Solar team. Our solar system worked perfectly from the day it was installed and the installation quality was top notch. I made the right choice both to go Solar and in my choice of Ecohouse Solar. You should strongly consider them too!
4.49 55 Reviews
Solar45224, over 1 month
I had a 19 panel system installed last week. I’m overall very satisfied with SIF on pricing, quality of equipment, and quality of install. The only area that I wish was a little better is their communication. During my 3 month install process, I called the office 3 times. I never had anyone answer the phone when I called, but they did call me or text me back within 24 hours. Ultimately, no major issue, but hope they improve this going forward. If/when I move, I would be happy to have SIF install a system on my next home.
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Solar45224, over 1 month
I had a 19 panel system installed last week. I’m overall very satisfied with SIF on pricing, quality of equipment, and quality of install. The only area that I wish was a little better is their communication. During my 3 month install process, I called the office 3 times. I never had anyone answer the phone when I called, but they did call me or text me back within 24 hours. Ultimately, no major issue, but hope they improve this going forward. If/when I move, I would be happy to have SIF install a system on my next home.
4.47 1,727 Reviews
Landen Ferguson, 2 weeks ago
Terrible experience. Dishonest and Dishonorable company, IMO. We chose Blue Raven because our research indicated that they were an honorable and reputable company. In the initial consultation we even discussed with our sales rep, Kristen Ostrowski, that one of our concerns is that we don’t expect a company to be perfect, but that we expect a company to fix their mistakes. She assured us that Blue Raven Solar had an excellent track record of fixing their mistakes properly. Our experience couldn’t be farther from the truth. Our installation started on Monday 10/31/22, I was told that the install would be a 1 day install when scheduling it. The crew did not get finished that first day and the crew told me that they would be back the next day to finish the installation. Next morning, no one showed up. Our solar panels were left leaning against the house outside. I reached out to the company and asked why no one was at the job site. They then explained that the crew would be back on Friday to finish the installation. I explained that I didn’t appreciate the miscommunication and that I didn’t appreciate the panels that I was paying tens of thousands of dollars for being left outside leaning against my house for the entire week. To their credit they rescheduled some things and had the crew back on Wednesday 11/2 to finish the installation. The crew was very kind, however, they did leave a mess in the yard. Shingles laying about, tubes of caulk, drink cups etc. 11/4/22, I luckily was home with one of my sick kids. We went in to the kitchen and noticed water leaking from the ceiling on to the kitchen counter. Turns out the installation crew missed a rafter when installing the brackets and put a hole in the roof thus causing water to pour in from the rainstorm. I called Kristen and to her credit and the companies, they had someone to our house within 40 minutes of my call, and the roof leak was fixed within 15 mins. Additionally though, the leak did much less damage then possible because I knew how to get in to my attic, find the leak and put down towels and buckets to collect the water until someone showed up thus mitigating the initial damage in the first place. After the leak Kristen assured us that the company would hand the repairs to our ceiling. I explained to her that coming from a construction background that just doing touch up paint on a ceiling does not look good and that I wouldn’t be happy with that, that the whole ceiling would need to be repainted in order to be in good condition after the damage. She again assured us that the company would handle the repairs and told me specifically that she told her manager that the whole ceiling needed to be repainted. Then came the next 6 months. I’m writing this review on 5/12/23, and the ceiling still hasn’t been painted. Blue raven had someone out to patch the ceiling about a month later on 12/8/22. I asked the sheetrock company about repainting and was told that they were only authorized to do the patch repairs as necessary. Reached out to Blue Raven after the sheetrock company left and they told me that they would have someone contact me to paint my ceiling shortly. End of December I hadn’t heard anything so I contacted them again for a status update. I was told that they were having a hard time getting ahold of their paint contractor and that they would start looking for someone else. I asked if the whole ceiling was going to be repainted and they assured me that they would. They told me that someone would reach out in the next week or two to schedule the painting. Didn’t hear anything for the entire month of January. Reached out to the work order department in February for an update and they asked me if I had the paint on hand because that’s what their records indicated they were waiting for to move forward. I explained that nobody had communicated that I needed to get the paint, but that I would get it. We discussed the amount of paint that I should purchase, and the rep and I decided on two gallons of paint because they agreed that’s approx how much it would take to repaint the entire ceiling. I purchased the paint the next day and called them, I was told that they would now start looking for another contractor because they couldn’t get a hold of their paint contractor. Didn’t hear anything for the month of March to my recollection, so I called them at the beginning of April for an update. They told me that they were now going to start looking for a new contractor because they couldn’t get a hold of their paint contractor. This time I told them that was ridiculous because this is what I’ve been told for the last 4 months. Was told by the rep that he wasn’t the primary on my work order and that he was new, so he would have his coworker who was in charge of my work order contact me in the next day or two. I waited a week and never heard anything so I called back. I was told that they were going to start looking for another contractor because they couldn’t get a hold of their paint contractor. I asked to talk to a supervisor. I was transferred to Steven Hall - Work Orders Lead (According to his email signature). I spoke with Steven and explained my frustrations that this was taking so long to get taken care of. I explained to Steven that I own a construction company and that at this point they should just pay me to paint my own ceiling so that we could move on and have our ceiling taken care of. Steven told me to email him my bid. I did so, and explained that the pricing was due to the fact that its the whole ceiling, and due to the layout and fixtures there was quite a bit of prep work. Steven emailed me back and told me “We will only cover painting the affected area”. I called Steven and explained that I had been assured by my sales rep Kristen and multiple Work Orders Reps that my entire ceiling would be repainted, and even explained that his reps told me to purchase two gallons of paint to ensure that we had enough paint to cover the whole ceiling. He told me that they would not cover painting the whole ceiling. I reached out to my sales rep Kristen and explained my frustrations and that I was not happy that I had been strung along this whole time. She said she would contact some people, and explain the notes and situation and do what she could to get it taken care of because she was under the impression that the whole ceiling being painted had already been approved, something that she had communicated to me on multiple occasions through email, text and phone calls. I spoke with Steven again on 5/9 and he said again that they would not be repainting the entire ceiling. Asked to speak with his Supervisor, he told me that his supervisor was Eric and unavailable but that he would have Eric contact me. I text Kristen and told her about the call, her response was that she had sent her emails and “I’m sorry, I’ve done everything I can.” And that I would have to work it out with the work order department. I didn’t hear from Eric, so I called Steven again on 5/11 and was told that they would absolutely not be taking care of having the ceiling painted, that they would only cover spot painting the affected area. I don’t think it’s unreasonable to expect a company to leave your home in as good of condition as when they entered, especially when they are the ones who caused the damage in the first place. I was assured by multiple parties on multiple occasions that my ceiling would be repainted after they put a hole in my roof resulting in damage to my ceiling. Ultimately, Blue Raven is a company that tells you what you want to hear, and then doesn’t care once they have their money in their pocket. If you choose to use this company, you better hope that everything goes perfectly, but in my experience with this company, it won’t. And when they mess up, they don’t have the care or honor to follow through on what they say, or to fix the mistakes and damage that they are responsible for in the first place. Now, after 6 months of waiting, being the one to reach out for updates and trying to move the project along, and being told they would handle the situation multiple times, I have to be the one to pay out of pocket for my ceiling to be repainted.
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Landen Ferguson, 2 weeks ago
Terrible experience. Dishonest and Dishonorable company, IMO. We chose Blue Raven because our research indicated that they were an honorable and reputable company. In the initial consultation we even discussed with our sales rep, Kristen Ostrowski, that one of our concerns is that we don’t expect a company to be perfect, but that we expect a company to fix their mistakes. She assured us that Blue Raven Solar had an excellent track record of fixing their mistakes properly. Our experience couldn’t be farther from the truth. Our installation started on Monday 10/31/22, I was told that the install would be a 1 day install when scheduling it. The crew did not get finished that first day and the crew told me that they would be back the next day to finish the installation. Next morning, no one showed up. Our solar panels were left leaning against the house outside. I reached out to the company and asked why no one was at the job site. They then explained that the crew would be back on Friday to finish the installation. I explained that I didn’t appreciate the miscommunication and that I didn’t appreciate the panels that I was paying tens of thousands of dollars for being left outside leaning against my house for the entire week. To their credit they rescheduled some things and had the crew back on Wednesday 11/2 to finish the installation. The crew was very kind, however, they did leave a mess in the yard. Shingles laying about, tubes of caulk, drink cups etc. 11/4/22, I luckily was home with one of my sick kids. We went in to the kitchen and noticed water leaking from the ceiling on to the kitchen counter. Turns out the installation crew missed a rafter when installing the brackets and put a hole in the roof thus causing water to pour in from the rainstorm. I called Kristen and to her credit and the companies, they had someone to our house within 40 minutes of my call, and the roof leak was fixed within 15 mins. Additionally though, the leak did much less damage then possible because I knew how to get in to my attic, find the leak and put down towels and buckets to collect the water until someone showed up thus mitigating the initial damage in the first place. After the leak Kristen assured us that the company would hand the repairs to our ceiling. I explained to her that coming from a construction background that just doing touch up paint on a ceiling does not look good and that I wouldn’t be happy with that, that the whole ceiling would need to be repainted in order to be in good condition after the damage. She again assured us that the company would handle the repairs and told me specifically that she told her manager that the whole ceiling needed to be repainted. Then came the next 6 months. I’m writing this review on 5/12/23, and the ceiling still hasn’t been painted. Blue raven had someone out to patch the ceiling about a month later on 12/8/22. I asked the sheetrock company about repainting and was told that they were only authorized to do the patch repairs as necessary. Reached out to Blue Raven after the sheetrock company left and they told me that they would have someone contact me to paint my ceiling shortly. End of December I hadn’t heard anything so I contacted them again for a status update. I was told that they were having a hard time getting ahold of their paint contractor and that they would start looking for someone else. I asked if the whole ceiling was going to be repainted and they assured me that they would. They told me that someone would reach out in the next week or two to schedule the painting. Didn’t hear anything for the entire month of January. Reached out to the work order department in February for an update and they asked me if I had the paint on hand because that’s what their records indicated they were waiting for to move forward. I explained that nobody had communicated that I needed to get the paint, but that I would get it. We discussed the amount of paint that I should purchase, and the rep and I decided on two gallons of paint because they agreed that’s approx how much it would take to repaint the entire ceiling. I purchased the paint the next day and called them, I was told that they would now start looking for another contractor because they couldn’t get a hold of their paint contractor. Didn’t hear anything for the month of March to my recollection, so I called them at the beginning of April for an update. They told me that they were now going to start looking for a new contractor because they couldn’t get a hold of their paint contractor. This time I told them that was ridiculous because this is what I’ve been told for the last 4 months. Was told by the rep that he wasn’t the primary on my work order and that he was new, so he would have his coworker who was in charge of my work order contact me in the next day or two. I waited a week and never heard anything so I called back. I was told that they were going to start looking for another contractor because they couldn’t get a hold of their paint contractor. I asked to talk to a supervisor. I was transferred to Steven Hall - Work Orders Lead (According to his email signature). I spoke with Steven and explained my frustrations that this was taking so long to get taken care of. I explained to Steven that I own a construction company and that at this point they should just pay me to paint my own ceiling so that we could move on and have our ceiling taken care of. Steven told me to email him my bid. I did so, and explained that the pricing was due to the fact that its the whole ceiling, and due to the layout and fixtures there was quite a bit of prep work. Steven emailed me back and told me “We will only cover painting the affected area”. I called Steven and explained that I had been assured by my sales rep Kristen and multiple Work Orders Reps that my entire ceiling would be repainted, and even explained that his reps told me to purchase two gallons of paint to ensure that we had enough paint to cover the whole ceiling. He told me that they would not cover painting the whole ceiling. I reached out to my sales rep Kristen and explained my frustrations and that I was not happy that I had been strung along this whole time. She said she would contact some people, and explain the notes and situation and do what she could to get it taken care of because she was under the impression that the whole ceiling being painted had already been approved, something that she had communicated to me on multiple occasions through email, text and phone calls. I spoke with Steven again on 5/9 and he said again that they would not be repainting the entire ceiling. Asked to speak with his Supervisor, he told me that his supervisor was Eric and unavailable but that he would have Eric contact me. I text Kristen and told her about the call, her response was that she had sent her emails and “I’m sorry, I’ve done everything I can.” And that I would have to work it out with the work order department. I didn’t hear from Eric, so I called Steven again on 5/11 and was told that they would absolutely not be taking care of having the ceiling painted, that they would only cover spot painting the affected area. I don’t think it’s unreasonable to expect a company to leave your home in as good of condition as when they entered, especially when they are the ones who caused the damage in the first place. I was assured by multiple parties on multiple occasions that my ceiling would be repainted after they put a hole in my roof resulting in damage to my ceiling. Ultimately, Blue Raven is a company that tells you what you want to hear, and then doesn’t care once they have their money in their pocket. If you choose to use this company, you better hope that everything goes perfectly, but in my experience with this company, it won’t. And when they mess up, they don’t have the care or honor to follow through on what they say, or to fix the mistakes and damage that they are responsible for in the first place. Now, after 6 months of waiting, being the one to reach out for updates and trying to move the project along, and being told they would handle the situation multiple times, I have to be the one to pay out of pocket for my ceiling to be repainted.
4.46 14 Reviews
Anonymous, over 1 month
We hired Bold Alternatives to do a 3KW array on our house (no storage). They pulled all permits and passed inspection the first time. The array looks beautiful. They worked with a roofer who seems to have done a good job with our cedar shingle roof. Overall a highly recommended company.
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Anonymous, over 1 month
We hired Bold Alternatives to do a 3KW array on our house (no storage). They pulled all permits and passed inspection the first time. The array looks beautiful. They worked with a roofer who seems to have done a good job with our cedar shingle roof. Overall a highly recommended company.
4.44 31 Reviews
Wadsworth 2021, over 1 month
Cody, Paul and their team were great to work with. We had 1 panel fail shortly after install but it was replaced in a timely manner. I'm surprised at the power it generates on cloudy days. Can't wait to see the output and savings after 1 entire year. We check the App frequently to see how things are going with the system. I was able to identify a reoccurring power pattern and resolved the reason for the periodic spikes in usage that the electric bill doesn't show. I waited to do this review until I had some time and experience with the product and people. I highly recommend YellowLite.
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Wadsworth 2021, over 1 month
Cody, Paul and their team were great to work with. We had 1 panel fail shortly after install but it was replaced in a timely manner. I'm surprised at the power it generates on cloudy days. Can't wait to see the output and savings after 1 entire year. We check the App frequently to see how things are going with the system. I was able to identify a reoccurring power pattern and resolved the reason for the periodic spikes in usage that the electric bill doesn't show. I waited to do this review until I had some time and experience with the product and people. I highly recommend YellowLite.
4.38 18 Reviews
ARP - The best Solar system out , over 1 month
I am not sure where to start. I saw a huge difference in the various installers out there. ARP-Solar is EXCELLENT. I looked seriously at four different providers and Gary Easton at ARP-Solar was by far the best; best design, most knowledgeable about the products in the industry and the industry in general, fastest response time to questions, best references, and yes, the best price. His installation team was very pleasant to work with and top notch. They even re-stacked my fire wood next to where they installed one of the disconnect boxes. I can’t wait to tell everyone in my network about them. The only issues I really had all were dealing with Duke Energy and getting the bi-directional meter in. We had issues with them reading it correctly and entering the data correctly. It should be fixed now – my last Duke energy bill was $5.36 for November. I still need to find a way to keep the snow and ice off the panels and to clear out these clouds! I can’t wait to see my production numbers this coming spring and summer!
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ARP - The best Solar system out , over 1 month
I am not sure where to start. I saw a huge difference in the various installers out there. ARP-Solar is EXCELLENT. I looked seriously at four different providers and Gary Easton at ARP-Solar was by far the best; best design, most knowledgeable about the products in the industry and the industry in general, fastest response time to questions, best references, and yes, the best price. His installation team was very pleasant to work with and top notch. They even re-stacked my fire wood next to where they installed one of the disconnect boxes. I can’t wait to tell everyone in my network about them. The only issues I really had all were dealing with Duke Energy and getting the bi-directional meter in. We had issues with them reading it correctly and entering the data correctly. It should be fixed now – my last Duke energy bill was $5.36 for November. I still need to find a way to keep the snow and ice off the panels and to clear out these clouds! I can’t wait to see my production numbers this coming spring and summer!
4.35 23 Reviews
Anonymous, over 1 month
SunLight Solutions has solved our high energy bills. Our electric bills keep increasing and now after our solar panels have been installed our first bill has shown a nearly 50% decrease. Everyone at Solar Energy has been so friendly and helpful throughout the whole process. Keeping in touch with us and letting us know what to expect with every step was so helpful and we found it to be very comforting.
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Anonymous, over 1 month
SunLight Solutions has solved our high energy bills. Our electric bills keep increasing and now after our solar panels have been installed our first bill has shown a nearly 50% decrease. Everyone at Solar Energy has been so friendly and helpful throughout the whole process. Keeping in touch with us and letting us know what to expect with every step was so helpful and we found it to be very comforting.
4.32 10 Reviews
Silvia Rodriguez, over 1 month
They installed 8 LG 320 watt solar panels in our historic house in German Village. The process went smoothly. We had a good experience with Johnathan and his team at Modern Energy, they are very profesional. Also, we are very pleased with the way they handled all the permits with German Village commission and the city. Thank you to Modern Energy we became the first house in German Village with solar panels!
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Silvia Rodriguez, over 1 month
They installed 8 LG 320 watt solar panels in our historic house in German Village. The process went smoothly. We had a good experience with Johnathan and his team at Modern Energy, they are very profesional. Also, we are very pleased with the way they handled all the permits with German Village commission and the city. Thank you to Modern Energy we became the first house in German Village with solar panels!