Financing

Refinancing solar loan calculator

Enter your current loan details and a new rate you've been quoted. See your remaining balance, the new monthly payment, and whether refinancing actually saves you money.

Your numbers

1 Project details Optional
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2 Your current loan
3 The refinance offer
Ask the new lender for the exact figure. Enter 0 if none.

How it works

Three steps to your refinance comparison

Step 1

Get your current loan details

Use your original loan amount, APR, term, and how many years you've already paid. Check whether refinancing would trigger a prepayment penalty on the current loan.

Step 2

Get a real refinance quote

Shop the new rate through a bank, credit union, or another solar lender, and ask for the exact refinance fee. The credit union vs national lender comparison is a good place to start shopping.

Step 3

Compare total remaining cost, not just the rate

A lower rate is only worth it once the fee and any change in term length are factored in. This tool compares the full picture, not just monthly payment.

Reading your refinance comparison

Why refinancing can still make sense years into a loan

If your original loan carried a high dealer-arranged rate or your credit has improved since signing, a new lender may offer a meaningfully better APR on the remaining balance. On a $28,000 loan originally at 8.99% with $24,835 remaining after 5 years, refinancing to 6.49% over a new 15-year term saves about $5,927 in total remaining cost, even after a typical $300 fee. The total cost of ownership calculator can help you see this savings alongside your full ownership costs.

What actually gets compared here

This tool estimates what you'd still pay if you stayed on your current loan versus what you'd pay under the new loan's rate and term, including any refinance fee. It's not comparing back to the original loan amount, since that money is already spent, only the remaining cost from today forward. Check for a prepayment penalty on your current loan too, since that would add to the cost of switching. The CFPB's CFPB consumer finance guidance covers general refinancing considerations worth reviewing.

How choosing a new term changes the math

You don't have to match your remaining time exactly when refinancing. A shorter new term raises the monthly payment but minimizes total interest, while a longer one lowers the payment but stretches out the payoff and can add cost even at a better rate. Try a few term lengths in this tool to see where the tradeoff lands for your numbers. The federal solar tax credit calculator is worth checking too if a carried-forward credit factors into your decision.

What to check before refinancing

Confirm whether your current loan has a prepayment penalty, get the new lender's exact fee in writing, and make sure the new loan's APR is genuinely fixed and comparable to what you're paying now. The loan APR impact calculator can help you judge whether a quoted rate difference is meaningful before committing. The CFPB's explainer on how loan amortization works covers the underlying math behind term and rate tradeoffs.

When refinancing usually isn't worth it

If only a year or two remains on your current loan, the interest savings from a lower rate rarely outweigh a refinance fee and the hassle of switching lenders. Refinancing tends to make the most sense earlier in a loan's term, when more interest-bearing years remain to benefit from the lower rate. The loan term comparison tool can help you see how much term and rate both matter before deciding.

Questions

Frequently asked

It can be, if the new rate is meaningfully lower than your current one and the loan still has enough years remaining to make the savings worthwhile. On a $28,000 loan originally at 8.99% APR with $24,835 remaining after 5 years, refinancing to 6.49% over a new 15-year term saves about $5,927 in total remaining cost, even after a typical $300 refinance fee.

Refinance fees for solar loans typically run a few hundred dollars, often in the $200 to $500 range, though some lenders charge no fee at all. This is usually much smaller than the interest savings from a meaningfully lower rate, but it's still worth factoring into the total comparison.

Refinancing makes the most sense when your credit score has improved significantly since the original loan, when market rates have dropped, or when your original loan carried a high dealer-arranged APR that a bank or credit union can beat. It matters less if only a year or two remains on the loan, since there's less time left to recoup any refinance costs.

It depends on the term you choose for the new loan, since you can typically pick a shorter, equal, or longer term than what remained on the original loan. Choosing a new term equal to or shorter than your remaining time keeps you on a similar payoff schedule while still capturing the rate savings.

Related tools

Keep comparing your financing options

Prepayment penalty cost calculator Early payoff savings calculator Credit union vs national lender Loan APR impact calculator Amortization schedule generator Credit score impact on rate Loan term comparison tool All financing tools