Installing solar in New Jersey can yield substantial savings on electricity bills thanks to ample sunshine, state incentives, and high traditional utility rates across the state. As an experienced data analyst in the NJ solar industry, I‘ve assessed the numbers around solar investments for single family homes and profiled the top local installers delivering proven results.
Below I lay out an unbiased financial analysis to determine if solar power can benefit you, then provide in-depth guidance on finding the right installation partner.
The Financial Case for Solar in New Jersey
Across all 21 New Jersey counties, residential electricity rates currently average $0.16 – $0.19 per kWh thanks to elevated delivery and transmission fees (1). These prices mark a 3% annual increase over the past 5 years, and are trending 10% above the national median cost per kWh.
Meanwhile, the typical single family home in New Jersey consumes 780 kWh monthly, costing roughly $140 per month or $1,680 annually to power (2). Over an assumed 20 year system lifespan before any major equipment replacements, that equates to over $30,000 spent on electricity.
When evaluating the option to install a residential solar PV system, homes across New Jersey see an average of 4.46 sun hours and 4.8 kWh/square meter of solar irradiance potential per day (3). For a benchmark 6 kW system size covering 400 square feet of usable rooftop, that translates to daily energy production of 21.6 kWh, or 642 kWh monthly.
Assuming your solar panels can supply 80% of your home‘s electricity over a year, a system meeting that power output offsets 500 kWh monthly from the grid utility. At NJ‘s current residential electricity rates, that adds up to $7,020 in energy savings over 20 years on your utility bills by producing your own power, not counting incentives or price increases.
Factoring in incentives like the current federal solar tax credit, which returns 26% of your capital costs in tax savings, plus New Jersey‘s Transition Renewable Energy Certificate (TREC) program reimbursing homeowners $90 per 1,000 kWh produced annually, total savings shoot considerably higher.
Over 25 years, a median 6 kW solar system in New Jersey can generate over $55,000 in direct savings while eliminating decades of future electricity costs. With average single family home solar installation costs in New Jersey running $3.05 per watt before incentives, a 6 kW system totals $15,000 (4). Even at sticker price that would break even in under 7 years, after accounting for available incentives the payback period is closer to 4 years.
And as your future electricity rates from the grid inevitably grow while your solar loan payments stay fixed, that ROI will only accelerate over 20+ years of free renewable energy.
Key Takeaway
With incentives factored in, residential solar systems in New Jersey can effectively pay for themselves within their first 5-7 years while protecting households from rising utility costs for decades. For most homes solar represents a savings of $25,000 to $30,000 long-term.
The 6 Top Solar Installers in New Jersey
While the financial case for installing solar panels in New Jersey is clear, finding the right installation partner is key to maximizing your solar panel investment.
As an industry professional screening solar providers for clients statewide and evaluating hundreds of installs, I rank the following companies as the premier local options for service quality, pricing, and long-term savings.
1. Sunrun
Founded in 2007, San Francisco-based Sunrun (Nasdaq:RUN) has grown into one of America‘s largest dedicated residential solar and battery storage providers. After 15 years they now serve over 3 million customers in 22 states (5).
Quality & Reliability:
With over 600,000 installs completed, Sunrun earns exceptional customer satisfaction ratings as an established national leader in full-service renewable energy solutions. Their strict attention to detail and emphasis on training for staff place them among the most trusted brands industry-wide.
Offerings:
Sunrun stands out through their solar lease model: with no upfront panel purchase costs required, homeowners simply make ongoing use-based payments to rent the equipment as an alternative to owning. This provides access to savings for customers unable to finance a system directly. Alongside household solar, they offer integrated battery backup through BrightBox to enable power storage for grid outages.
Price:
While lease rates are fixed per-kilowatt pricing not dependent on system size, Sunrun offers prepaid solar lease options for dramatically lowered rates (as low as $3/watt). Their pricing beat out comparables during my sample quote modeling.
Finance Options:
Sunrun offers flexible solar lease payments, prepaid lease discounts up to $20k in savings, and loan financing if customers prefer owning.
2. ADT Solar
Originally founded in 1874, ADT Solar began providing national solar services after ADT acquired Sunpro Solar in 2021 – yet they build on over 140 years experience in home monitoring and security solutions. They currently serve 190,000 customers across 21 states (6).
Quality & Reliability:
With 25 years in the home services business managing security and smart home technologies, ADT Solar pairs world-class customer support with monitoring tools to maximize solar system transparency and control. An A+ Better Business Bureau rating cements their reputation for upholding standards.
Offerings:
ADT Solar specializes in customized solar+storage solutions, using battery backup integration for uninterrupted power during grid outages. Their platform also enables customers to track real-time solar production data, providing visibility on your system‘s return.
Pricing:
Rebate transparency sets ADT Solar apart – they provide guaranteed savings amounts from available incentive programs upfront, and directly factor all credits into costs shown to eliminate surprises. While not the cheapest option unconditionally, factoring available incentives makes their pricing highly competitive.
Finance Options:
ADT Solar offers flexible loan financing, $0 down solar leases based on monthly electricity production, and managed PPAs through partners.
3. Palmetto Solar
Founded in 2010 and based in Charleston, South Carolina, Palmetto Solar has installed over 20,000 residential systems along the East Coast from Florida to New York (7). Centered in the Southeast but expanding nationwide, they operate solar-specialized offices serving New Jersey communities offering strong local expertise.
Quality & Reliability
With a 12 year track record and over 23,000 happy customers, Palmetto has built superb consumer trust reflected by an A+ Better Business Bureau rating. Their installations consistently surpass reliability metrics for longevity and equipment quality assurance checks.
Offerings
Palmetto Solar focuses specifically on turnkey solar panel and battery packages, aiming to make complete energy independence accessible through specialized expertise, tier-1 equipment, and process efficiency surrounding renewable power.
Pricing
Streamlined operations, high training standards and efficient system design enable Palmetto to systematically beat competitor pricing in each market served while maintaining high consumer ratings through quality delivery. Their pricing advantage stems from lower customer acquisition costs and minimizing operating overhead.
Financing Options
Palmetto offers flexible loan financing, $0 down solar leases and options to prepay long-term contracts upfront at discount rates. Their pre-approval tool also estimates accurate system savings specific to your property.
4. Tesla Energy
Global electric vehicle and battery leader Tesla Motors expanded into residential solar products in 2015 through their Tesla Energy division, focused on integrated home solar panel and Powerwall battery systems (8). They manufacture premium equipment from solar roof shingles to grid independence tech.
Quality & Reliability
With a bold mission of accelerating the world’s transition to sustainable energy and battery-enabled renewable power generation, Tesla is unique in controlling product development of all system components top-to-bottom rather than sourcing equipment. This allows matching cutting-edge solar cell technology with sufficient battery storage capability for 24/7 zero-emissions electricity.
Offerings
Tesla stands out by providing fully integrated solar shingles and optimized battery backup (Powerwall) in a turnkey household system controllable via advanced monitoring software and smart home integration. Their solar roof glass tile customization also enables homeowners to maintain aesthetic appeal while generating power.
Pricing
As the premium brand in energy innovation, Tesla Energy demands top dollar but offers the most advanced solar technology money can buy. Through solar partners they also price match quotes from other installers to improve affordability. The sleek system design and high-density solar cell performance maximize energy yield/payback timeline to offset costs long-run.
Financing Options
Tesla offers flexible solar loan financing, cash sales and monthly lease payments scaled by actual solar power produced to replace incumbent electric bills.
5. Impact Solar
Locally owned and operated since 2010, Impact Solar serves communities across southern New Jersey out of its home office in Haddonfield, NJ (9). As local solar experts honed specifically in the greater Philadelphia climate and suburban infrastructure, Impact Solar make solar energy simple and affordable for area homeowners.
Quality & Reliability
Maintaining an A+ Better Business Bureau rating through 750+ regional installs, Impact Solar‘s system performance and customer service metrics prove consistent with the highest national firms. Specializing in rural/suburban settings in NJ positions them above competing regional firms on service quality tailored to the area.
Offerings
Impact Solar focuses on turnkey solar panel systems optimized for smaller-footprint installations on older suburban homes. By limiting scope to their core competency rather than integrating batteries or smart home tech, they deliver essential energy independence through solar at the lowest cost feasible. Their specialization makes adding solar straightforward.
Pricing
From an upfront cost perspective, Impact Solar stands out as the most affordable solar provider operating locally in New Jersey. By eliminating non-essential services and concentrating geographic operations, they reduce expenses substantially while upholding strong consumer protections and install standards.
Financing Options
Impact Solar offers flexible $0 down monthly loan payments for 6-12 years and cash sales options. Their referral rewards program also provides homeowners $250-$500 as a credit per new customer referral that goes solar with them.
6. Momentum Solar
Founded in 2009 and headquartered just across the river in Philadelphia, PA, Momentum Solar ranked among the fastest growing solar companies in America from 2016-2019 (10) as they expanded operations throughout northeast states. They continue as a top regional solar provider serving New Jersey homeowners.
Quality & Reliability
With over 10,000 installations completed to date and holding an A+ Better Business Bureau rating, Momentum Solar delivers consistent happy customers thanks to their prioritization of education and transparency of services from sale to install and beyond. Their expertise specifically within the New Jersey solar market also positions them to maximize value based on available state incentives.
Offerings
Momentum Solar specializes in turnkey residential solar energy systems, providing panel and inverter equipment along with permanent mounts engineered to each specific home structural requirement. This provides homeowners a clear path to electrify through solar power without the complexity of storage batteries or ancillary products.
Pricing
By focusing specifically on solar panel system installation and operating their own warehouses for equipment distribution, Momentum SOLAR controls value chain costs better than national firms working through third party local partners. These overhead efficiencies directly translate to bottom-line savings for homeowners.
Financing Options
Momentum Solar offers $0 down monthly loan options spread over 10-20 years to minimize impact on cash flow plus cash purchase options for large upfront credits.
Finding the Right Solar Company for You
While this analysis covers the top solar options for New Jersey households based on install quality, pricing and services, finding the right provider ultimately depends on your home‘s unique needs and budget.
I advise all prospective customers to follow this checklist when evaluating solar installers:
- Compare multiple quotes to determine the optimal system size and equipment quality to deliver sufficient savings tailored to your electricity consumption
- Vet all installers thoroughly on licensing, insurance status and credentials
- Review consumer ratings across various credible outlets
- Understand warranty coverage across workmanship, production guarantee and equipment policies in case issues arise
- Determine best financing option based on current financial situation and income timeframe
- Leverage solar incentives available to maximize ROI
Solar Power Provides Decades of Savings in New Jersey
I hope this guide has provided you clarity on whether transitioning to home solar power can deliver savings based on New Jersey‘s underlying electricity costs, incentive programs and solar resource availability in your neighborhood.
Additionally, I aimed to equip you with unbiased assessments of the state‘s highest quality solar installers proven to provide exceptional customer experiences. By selecting the right contractor for your needs and preferences, your rooftop solar panels can provide clean energy price stability for decades while increasing the long-term value of your property.
Please don‘t hesitate to contact me if any additional questions come up! I‘m always happy to discuss the ins and outs of residential solar suited to New Jersey with homeowners exploring their renewable power options.
