Rooftop solar on net metering by state

Rooftop solar per thousand homes: the 2025 ranking

The ranking counts residential photovoltaic systems that utilities reported under net metering on EIA's annual census of utilities, form EIA-861, for 2025 (final data, released October 7, 2026). To compare a state of a few hundred thousand homes with one of several million, the count is divided by residential customers and shown per thousand. Nationally the figure was 38.1 per thousand, from 5,510,135¹ installations.

The map and full table show every state with the raw count and the average residential price over the 12 months from September 2025 to August 2026 beside it. EIA counts meters and accounts, not households, so "per thousand homes" here means per thousand residential accounts. EIA's next annual release is due in August 2027.

Hawaii and the Southwest lead

The ten highest in 2025:

Hawaii is well clear of second place. Seven of the top ten are in the West and Southwest; the other three are Connecticut, Massachusetts and DC, with New Jersey just outside the list at 58.0. The rest of the country is far behind. The median state had 16.9 per thousand, less than half the US figure of 38.1¹, because California, the state with the most residential customers, is also near the top and pulls the national figure up.

Hawaii232.3

California156.0

Nevada106.7

Arizona104.2

Connecticut75.6

Colorado73.8

Massachusetts71.9

New Mexico68.2

District of Columbia66.1

Utah66.0

New Jersey58.0

Maryland48.1

Rhode Island43.0

New Hampshire38.3

United States38.1

New York33.7

Oregon32.6

Delaware31.5

Florida29.9

Vermont29.9

Idaho26.9

Source: EIA-861 2025, advanced meters, dynamic pricing and net metering. Residential photovoltaic installations under net metering (EIA-861) per 1,000 residential customers. Period: 2025.

Show the numbers

State	Net-metered solar per 1,000 homes
Hawaii	232.3
California	156.0
Nevada	106.7
Arizona	104.2
Connecticut	75.6
Colorado	73.8
Massachusetts	71.9
New Mexico	68.2
District of Columbia	66.1
Utah	66.0
New Jersey	58.0
Maryland	48.1
Rhode Island	43.0
New Hampshire	38.3
United States	38.1
New York	33.7
Oregon	32.6
Delaware	31.5
Florida	29.9
Vermont	29.9
Idaho	26.9

California's count dwarfs every other state

Per home, California is second. In absolute numbers it has no rival: its utilities reported 2,241,381 net-metered residential systems in 2025, of the 5,510,135 nationwide. The next largest counts were in Arizona (333,870), Florida (319,411) and New York (251,828¹).

Size and density tell different stories. Florida has the third-largest count but ranks tied for 18th highest per home (29.9 per thousand). Texas, with 137,801 systems, ranks 18th lowest at 10.8¹ per thousand. Both are large states where a big count is still a small share of homes.

Price and sunshine both show up

At the very top, the two lists match. Hawaii had the highest average residential price over the 12 months from September 2025 to August 2026 (44.27¢ per kWh) and also the most net-metered systems per home; California³ is second on both lists.

The pattern breaks in two directions. Nevada and Utah are in the top ten for solar, yet their homes paid some of the lowest prices in the country over the same 12 months: 13.45¢ per kWh in Nevada (6th lowest) and 13.26¢ per kWh in Utah (5th lowest), against a US average of 18.04¢ per kWh. In the other direction, Maine paid 29.60¢ per kWh³ over those 12 months, among the highest, but ranks 21st highest for solar with 25.4 per thousand; New York ranks 15th highest at 33.7¹.

The chart plots the two measures for every state. The periods differ: solar counts are for 2025, prices for the 12 months from September 2025 to August 2026.

Source: EIA, Electric Power Monthly / EIA-861M sales and revenue by state; EIA-861 2025, advanced meters, dynamic pricing and net metering. Each dot is a state (horizontal: Residential ¢/kWh, 12 months; vertical: Net-metered solar per 1,000 homes). Residential revenue divided by kilowatt-hours sold over the 12 months 2025-09 to 2026-08 (EIA-861M; months since January 2026 preliminary). Average revenue per kWh, all charges included; not a tariff. Period: September 2025 to August 2026. Residential photovoltaic installations under net metering (EIA-861) per 1,000 residential customers. Period: 2025.

Show the numbers

State	Residential ¢/kWh, 12 months	Net-metered solar per 1,000 homes
North Dakota	12.35¢	0.2
Nebraska	12.74¢	3.6
Idaho	12.77¢	26.9
Louisiana	13.02¢	16.7
Utah	13.26¢	66.0
Nevada	13.45¢	106.7
Arkansas	13.57¢	13.1
Tennessee	13.61¢	0.0
Oklahoma	13.81¢	9.6
Kentucky	13.94¢	5.3
Montana	13.94¢	22.2
Missouri	13.97¢	11.3
Wyoming	14.01¢	12.1
Iowa	14.20¢	13.2
Washington	14.20¢	19.4
South Dakota	14.28¢	1.3
North Carolina	14.79¢	12.4
Mississippi	14.85¢	1.5
Kansas	15.13¢	7.4
Georgia	15.17¢	4.2
New Mexico	15.31¢	68.2
Arizona	15.39¢	104.2
Florida	15.41¢	29.9
Oregon	15.53¢	32.6
West Virginia	15.53¢	5.6
South Carolina	15.77¢	15.7
Texas	15.98¢	10.8
Minnesota	16.28¢	10.2
Alabama	16.44¢	0.0
Colorado	16.61¢	73.8
Virginia	16.64¢	20.2
Indiana	16.90¢	3.7
Delaware	17.98¢	31.5
Ohio	18.41¢	5.8
Wisconsin	18.79¢	7.5
Illinois	18.91¢	22.0
Pennsylvania	20.86¢	16.9
Maryland	21.18¢	48.1
Michigan	21.28¢	5.9
New Jersey	23.74¢	58.0
Vermont	23.90¢	29.9
District of Columbia	24.48¢	66.1
Alaska	26.94¢	10.0
New Hampshire	26.95¢	38.3
Connecticut	27.42¢	75.6
New York	28.60¢	33.7
Rhode Island	29.44¢	43.0
Maine	29.60¢	25.4
Massachusetts	30.39¢	71.9
California	32.34¢	156.0
Hawaii	44.27¢	232.3

Where rooftop solar on net metering is rare

The ten lowest in 2025 were Tennessee (0.0 per thousand), Alabama (0.0), North Dakota (0.2), South Dakota (1.3), Mississippi (1.5), Nebraska (3.6), Indiana (3.7), Georgia (4.2), Kentucky (5.3) and West Virginia (5.6¹). They are in the Southeast, the northern Plains and the Ohio Valley, and several had residential prices below the US average of 18.04¢ per kWh³ over the 12 months from September 2025 to August 2026.

A figure that rounds to zero is not the same as no solar. Utilities in Tennessee reported 97 net-metered residential systems and those in Alabama 87¹; homes with panels credited under another kind of arrangement, or with no grid export credit at all, do not appear in this count.

The utility matters as much as the state

EIA reports the same data for each utility, and inside one state the share of homes with net-metered solar can differ several times over. Among the large California utilities in 2025:

The city-owned utilities in Sacramento and Los Angeles are well below the three investor-owned ones. The same spread appears elsewhere:

• New York: PSEG Long Island reported 92.6 per thousand, Con Edison 26.0.
• Florida: Duke Energy Florida 57.1, FPL 22.4.
• Texas: El Paso Electric 81.9 and CPS Energy in San Antonio 54.9, against 10.8 for the state.
• Nevada: NV Energy in the south 133.2, NV Energy North 45.2.
• Georgia: low everywhere; Georgia Power 5.0 and Jackson EMC 5.1¹.

Each utility page shows its own net-metering count beside its prices and bills.

Net metering, net billing and what the count leaves out

Net metering credits the electricity a home sends to the grid against what it buys, at the retail price. Under net billing, exports are instead credited separately, usually at a lower value than the retail price. California is the largest example: the Public Utilities Commission's net billing tariff applies to customers of its regulated utilities who submitted an interconnection application on or after April 15, 2023, and its overview of net energy metering and net billing says net billing export credits reflect avoided-cost values that are usually lower than import rates, while earlier customers may stay on their net metering tariff for 20 years from interconnection.

Read the ranking with these limits in mind:

• It counts systems, not output. A small and a large array each count once. It also says nothing about how much of a home's use the panels cover.
• It counts net metering as utilities report it on EIA-861. Systems under other compensation schemes, and panels behind the meter with no export credit, may be missing.
• It is not a policy map. Whether a state requires net metering, how credits are valued and whether there is a cap are decided by state commissions, legislatures and, for public power and cooperatives, utility boards. Check your utility's tariff and your state commission.
• It does not tell you your bill after solar. The prices in the table are averages of everything residential customers paid divided by kWh sold, not a tariff and not an export credit. What a solar home pays depends on its own rate plan and how exports are credited.