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How To Find The Best Solar Companies in 2021

A lot has changed in the last few years and the best solar companies in 2021 aren’t the same as in past years.

While once the industry was dominated by nationwide, lease-wielding installer/financiers like SolarCity (Tesla) and Sunrun, today smaller solar panel installers are taking the lead.

Let’s take a look at which solar panel installation companies you need to look out for as well, as well as how to find the best solar company for you.

Solar panel installation costs in 2021 have dropped a shocking 63% since 2010 and the technology has become so ubiquitous across the country.

Solar panels are more attainable than ever before, but still require a considerable investment, so you want an installation company that does the job right and provides exceptional customer service, fast turnaround, and competitive prices.

Enter your zip code below or visit UnderstandSolarPower to get started and find the best solar companies in your area.

The Benefits of a Local Solar Panel Installer

In 2015, those three big integrators (SolarCity/Tesla, Sunrun, and Vivint) accounted for 59% of the residential solar market. Fast forward to Q1 2018 (the last period we have data for) and their collective share has dropped to just 33%. That leaves 66% of the residential market open.

Who’s installing all that solar, you might ask? These are small solar panel installers that do not provide any financing themselves. In other words, local companies that focus on a specific city or state and that can’t (or don’t want to) offer solar leases.

As we’ve seen these big nationwide installers don’t provide the best customer service. If you’re dead-set on financing your solar installation via a solar lease, Sunrun, Tesla, or Vivint is probably your best option, as most smaller installers don’t offer this option.

However, smaller installers can typically provide more attentive service, as they’re working with fewer customers in a much smaller geographic area. They know all the quirks and idiosyncrasies of the local utilities and building departments, as well as any special regulations or requirements that needs to be met, and can typically move projects along quicker.

On top of that, large installers generally quote costs at 10% more than smaller installers, likely due to their higher marketing and customer acquisition costs. NREL compared installation costs between large and small installers, publishing the study, and found this difference works out to $0.33/watt. That probably doesn’t sound like much, but for an average-sized installation it’s equivalent to just over $2,000 more.

So when going solar, don’t overlook the little companies! You might just have a better experience, faster installation, and lower cost.

Why You Should Pick The Best Solar Company Now

If you’re wondering why you should install solar in 2021, wonder no more! There’s a major reason to take care of it now, instead of next year.

Going solar is still a strong investment

With the rising cost of electricity and the continually dropping cost of solar, going solar is a better investment than ever.

Homeowners in states with lots of strong sunshine and/or great financial incentives (net metering being the most important) – think California, Massachusetts, and Colorado – are going to come out further ahead than those in states without the above qualifications. In fact, if your state doesn’t have any net metering, your solar industry is probably pretty small.

Let’s take a look at a quick example to see what kind of savings you could see. Solar panels produce varying amounts of electricity depending on the location, but we’ll use US national averages from the US EIA and National Renewable Energy Lab (NREL) for as much as possible:

  • Average utility electricity rate: $0.13 per kilowatt-hour
  • Average yearly increase in utility price: 2.9%
  • Size of solar installation: 5 kilowatts
  • Installation cost: $2.70 per watt ($13,500 for the 5 kW system above)

Averaging out estimated production of a 5 kW installation in each state, we find that an ‘average’ 5 kW installation produces 7,111 kilowatt-hours a year. Over its entire lifespan, that installation should produce 161,000 kWh of electricity – all for $13,500. If you bought all that electricity from the utility over 25 years, you’d spend $29,900. So you’ve saved $16,400 with a 13 year payback.

Of course, your own situation will surely be different, but the simple math shows the power of solar on your wallet. And you might not have even noticed, but we didn’t even take the federal tax credit into account! If we added on that, your savings would be blown through the roof.

Tips to Find the Best Solar Panel Installation Company

The best solar salespeople can explain the benefits and inner workings of a solar installation clearly and succinctly. But even still, all the little details and data points can quickly add up and make your head spin. Kilowatts, kilowatt-hours, degradation, utility rates increases, avoided cost, savings, tax credits. It’s all rather a lot.

As a homeowner, here are a few tips to keep your head from spinning when it comes to install solar:

Get Multiple Quotes

We’ve said this again and again, but it bears repeating. Don’t just go with the first company you talk to and don’t just take your neighbor’s word for it, even if they claim they had the best experience in the world (you know most installers give money for referrals, right?)

Getting several quotes not only allows you to compare cost and equipment, but it also allows you to see how the company does business. Are they pushy know-it-alls, or do they actually listen to you?

Meeting with companies for a face-to-face sales call allows you to weigh both their cost/savings estimate as well as their customer experience. Unexpected hiccups frequently arise when installing solar, from utility red tape to roof issues, and your salesperson can be your knight in shining armor continually pushing your project forward or simply a dead weight.

Thankfully, getting quotes from multiple installers is extremely easy and always free. On their first meeting, they’ll give your roof a quick assessment, run through equipment options, and give you ballpark figures for both cost and savings. Enter your info below to get started and find the best local solar installation company today.

Read online reviews of your local branch

Like we saw for Sunrun and Tesla above, customer review scores can fluctuate from branch to branch. If you decide to work with a major installer with several branches, be sure to read reviews of your local branch. Yelp and Google are your best friends in this scenario, as users can leave feedback for a specific branch, not just the company as a whole.

If you’re working with a local company, finding reviews is obviously much easier, as they’ll all be relevant.

Focus on what’s important

Listening to your salesperson, you can easily get bogged down in the details. They even might try to upsell you on panels or inverters. Certainly listen to them, but just remember to focus in on the two most important points: financial savings and great customer service.

While it may look simple from the homeowner’s point of view, installing solar is actually a complex process involving salespeople, project managers, engineers, building departments, utilities, and installers. Your project goes through many hands before it gets to your roof, so a solar installer that you can trust to do the right thing and do it well is an indispensable asset. This is why getting multiple quotes and reading reviews is so important.

Solar is a financial investment, so spend as little as possible (within reason, of course), so you can save as much as possible. For the vast majority of homes, ‘standard’ run of the mill equipment will do just fine. Most homeowners find that premium, high efficiency panels simply aren’t worth the additional cost, even with the greater energy production.

Choose financing wisely

Leases and loans add cost. That’s just the way things work. Financing can add thousands of dollars to your final solar costs. And of course, that translates to thousands of lost savings.

Exactly how much depends on the details of your agreement. Sunrun use to claim homeowners could knock about 10% off their monthly electricity expenditure by installing solar with a lease. With a loan, it’s easy to calculate exactly how your financing will affect your bottom line. Just take a look at your interest rate and term.

Let’s say you take out a 12 year loan with 5% interest to pay for the 5 kW installation above. You’ll be tacking on an additional $4,480 to your total investment. So instead of paying $13,500 for your solar installation, you’ll pay $17,980. Yikes!

Needless to say, if you can pay in cash, do it. It might hurt a little now, but you’ll see the benefit down the line.

With solar panel cost and installation costs shocking drop in price over the last decade, we aren’t limited to solar leases to finance installations, which opens up a whole new range of smaller, local companies that really weren’t an option before.

This is of course a blessing, as more choices are never a bad thing, but it does make creating a list of the nation’s best solar companies rather difficult. If you want to find the best solar companies in your area, just research on Yelp and Google and be sure to get estimates from multiple installers. If you are interested in learning more about solar panels themselves then check out our list of the best solar panels for 2021 too.

Ready to go solar? Enter your zip code below to find out if solar panels are right for you.