The most common estimate of the average payback period for solar panels is six to ten years. This is a pretty wide range because there are many factors that will influence 1) the number of years it can take to pay off your panels, and
2) the monthly savings you can expect.
This estimate assumes that your electricity rates don’t go up at all. Well, we all know from experience that electricity rates go up all the time! Historically, rates have always gone up over the years, since the beginning of electricity. So, when the rates go up, your savings increase and sometimes, by quite a lot.
For example, Duke Energy had a 20% rate hike in April, 2023. Homeowners with solar systems saw bigger savings after that rate hike while their non-solar neighbors paid 20% more on their monthly electric bills. Solar energy users realized much shorter payback periods as a result.
So, it’s understandable why these estimates are not easy to predict and have wide ranges!