Financing
Enter your system price, term, and rates from each type of lender. See the total cost difference over the full loan term.
How it works
Step 1
Check whether you already qualify for membership, or whether the credit union has open membership criteria you can meet. The credit score impact on rate estimator can help set expectations for what rate range to expect, and the loan payment calculator shows what any quoted rate means for your monthly payment.
Step 2
National lenders often move faster online, which is worth factoring in alongside the rate itself.
Step 3
Even a modest rate difference compounds meaningfully over a long loan term, so the actual dollar comparison matters more than which number looks lower at a glance.
Credit unions are member-owned, nonprofit financial institutions, which structurally lets them pass savings back to members through lower rates rather than maximizing profit for shareholders. On a $25,000 loan over 20 years, a 6.25% credit union rate totals about $43,856, compared to about $48,299 for a 7.49% national lender rate, a difference of about $4,443 over the loan term. The loan APR impact calculator shows how sensitive that total cost is to smaller rate differences too. For general background on how credit unions operate, see the NCUA credit union consumer resources.
Most credit unions require some form of membership to open an account or take out a loan, but many have relatively open criteria, such as living, working, or worshipping in a certain area, or paying a small one-time fee to join an affiliated association. Check the specific requirements before assuming you're not eligible.
National lenders often have faster, simpler online approval and funding processes, and some offer solar-specific loan products with features like an interest-only draw period that smaller credit unions may not provide. If speed or a specific loan feature matters more to you than the lowest possible rate, this tradeoff is worth weighing. Before you sign a loan, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's report on solar financing is worth reading for its findings on dealer fees and loan terms.
Rates and terms vary enough between specific institutions that a general assumption about which type of lender is better doesn't always hold for your particular situation. A brief comparison using real quotes from both replaces that assumption with an actual answer. The cash vs loan savings comparison is worth checking too once you have real numbers from either lender.
Confirm the exact APR, whether it's fixed for the full term, any origination or dealer fees, and the approval timeline. The contractor financing vs bank loan comparison covers a related tradeoff if your installer is also offering financing worth comparing against both of these options, and the total cost including financing fees calculator can help you factor any origination fee into the comparison properly. The small business solar loan calculator is worth checking too depending on your situation, and the CFPB's issue spotlight on solar financing covers solar-specific guidance. The small business solar loan calculator is the business version of this calculation, with depreciation and business credits included.
Questions
Often yes, since credit unions are member-owned and typically pass on savings through lower rates rather than maximizing profit. On a $25,000 loan over 20 years, a 6.25% credit union rate totals about $43,856, compared to about $48,299 for a 7.49% national lender rate, a difference of about $4,443.
Most credit unions require membership, but many have open membership criteria, such as living in a certain area or paying a small one-time fee, that make joining straightforward. Check the specific credit union's requirements before assuming you don't qualify.
National lenders often have faster, simpler online approval processes and may offer solar-specific loan products with features like an interest-only period that some credit unions don't provide. Speed and specific loan features can matter alongside rate depending on your situation.
Yes, getting quotes from at least one credit union and one national lender takes relatively little time and lets you compare real numbers rather than general assumptions about which type of lender is better. Rates and terms can vary enough between specific institutions that a general rule doesn't always hold.
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