Idaho · Net metering
ID Net Metering
Sets the billing terms for excess solar generation sent back to the grid by residential customers in Idaho -- see the credit rate and how it shapes payback below.
- Retail rate credit
- stated benefit
- Residential
- eligible customers
- 20 yr
- Idaho baseline payback
- 1
- other Idaho programs
What it means
In Idaho, a 6 kW system already pays back in about 20 years on ~$823/year of modeled savings, and the ID Net Metering stacks on top of that, on top of any federal credit.
- Retail rate cr…
- stated benefit
- 20 yr
- baseline payback (pre-incentive)
- 2
- Idaho programs that stack
- full
- net-metering policy
Payback and savings are modeled from public NREL/EIA data; the program benefit is summarized from DSIRE and may change.
Program description
Idaho utilities must offer net metering for systems up to 25 kW.
Program at a glance
- Program type
- Net metering
- Eligible customers
- Residential
- Stated benefit
- Retail rate credit
- State electricity rate
- 10¢/kWh
- Idaho solar score
- 20/100
How Idaho compares to the U.S. average
Why this incentive matters more (or less) here - Idaho's solar fundamentals against the national average.
Source: NREL irradiance and U.S. EIA rates; payback modeled by PlainSolarData. Bars are scaled to the larger of the two values per metric.
Solar's trajectory in Idaho
The market this incentive operates in: total installed solar capacity in Idaho reported to the EIA.
How this incentive fits Idaho's solar picture
The ID Net Metering governs how Idaho credits excess solar generation sent back to the grid, one of the state's DSIRE-tracked solar policies. Eligibility is scoped to residential customers, with a stated benefit of Retail rate credit. DSIRE lists no scheduled sunset, though enabling legislation and appropriations can still be revised year to year.
That baseline is slower than most states, which raises the stakes for every incentive on the table. Idaho averages 4.7 kWh/m²/day of usable sunlight and residential rates of 10¢/kWh, producing an estimated 8,234 kWh/year and $823 of annual utility offset on a typical 6 kW system costing $16,500. That baseline already implies a 20-year simple payback and a 25-year modeled net of roughly $4,075 before this incentive - every dollar this net metering delivers compresses that payback further.
Few other programs are tracked here, so this incentive carries most of the weight for Idaho solar buyers. Idaho has 2 solar incentive programs indexed in DSIRE. The state's net-metering policy is classified as full, which governs how excess generation is credited and often decides whether a given program is worth claiming for a specific household.
Your next step
- See Idaho's full solar profile, score, irradiance, rates, payback, and every program you can claim. Idaho solar data
- Run the savings calculator with your real bill to see how this incentive changes your own payback. ROI calculator
- See how net-metering credits are valued state by state. Net-metering guide
Estimates here are modeled from public data and are not financial advice; confirm program terms and your own eligibility before relying on a dollar figure.
Frequently asked questions
What is the ID Net Metering?
How does the ID Net Metering work?
Who is eligible for the ID Net Metering?
How does this incentive affect solar ROI in Idaho?
Are there other solar incentives in Idaho?
Incentive data from the DSIRE (Database of State Incentives for Renewables & Efficiency); state solar economics from NREL and the U.S. EIA. See our methodology.