Grid & off-grid

Net metering calculator, Rhode Island

Enter your exact usage, system size, and rate details to see how Rhode Island's net metering policy affects your solar bill, with precise controls for season, tiered rates, and fixed fees.

Your numbers

1 Project details Optional
Shown on your exported report. Leave blank to skip.
2 Your usage and system
Find this on a recent utility bill, usually labeled kWh used.
Use your quoted or planned system size. Panel count times panel wattage divided by 1,000 gives a rough figure.
Solar production swings seasonally; pick a specific month type to see how your bill shifts.
Most utilities charge a flat customer or connection fee regardless of usage.
3 Your location and rate
Defaulted to Rhode Island's average peak sun hours. Adjust if you know your local figure.
Defaulted to Rhode Island's current average residential rate. Your utility's actual rate may differ.
Solar output you use offsets your bill at full value. Excess production earns a lower credit tied to the supply rate, well below a typical Rhode Island rate.
Some utilities charge progressively higher per-kWh rates as monthly usage climbs into higher tiers.
Accounts for inverter loss, wiring loss, dust, and temperature derate combined.
Informational only. A monthly cycle means unused export credit does not carry to the next bill; annual and rolling cycles do.

How it works

Three steps to your Rhode Island solar bill estimate

Step 1

Enter your usage, system size, and season

Pull your monthly kWh from a recent bill and enter your planned or quoted system size in kW. If you only know your panel count, multiply it by each panel's wattage and divide by 1,000 to get a kW figure first. Select a season to model a specific month rather than only an annual average.

Step 2

Confirm your rate, tier, and export credit

Rhode Island's typical residential rate and export credit level are filled in by default. Swap in your utility's actual tariff numbers, tier bracket, and fixed monthly fee if you have a recent bill or interconnection agreement showing them.

Step 3

Compare the result to a full retail scenario

Run the net billing vs net metering comparison tool to see exactly how much Rhode Island's current export credit rate costs you compared to full 1:1 retail crediting.

How net metering works in Rhode Island

Output you use earns full value, and excess earns less

Rhode Island Energy, the state's sole electric utility, credits solar in two layers under state law. The Office of Energy Resources describes net metering as bill credits for generation up to 125% of your on-site consumption. Production up to 100% of your own consumption earns the full renewable net-metering credit, while production beyond that earns a lower excess credit, which the Public Utilities Commission's 2024 order tied to the Last Resort Service supply rate. A 2025 law change moved that valuation toward a wholesale-rate basis, and the commission is still implementing it, so the excess rate may change. The 20% reduction sometimes quoted as "80% of retail" is written for certain stand-alone systems, not for every installation.

REG is an alternative to net metering, and it pays a fixed rate

Beyond net metering, Rhode Island runs the Renewable Energy Growth (REG) program, a fixed-rate power purchase agreement. For the 2026-2027 program year, RI Energy's REG tariff pays 31.55 cents per kWh produced for systems up to 15 kW over 15 years, and 28.65 cents for 15 to 25 kW systems over 20 years. REG and net metering are alternatives rather than a stack, so compare both before choosing.

The system cap is set relative to your own usage

Rhode Island credits net metering production up to 125% of a customer's on-site consumption, based on a three-year average, which leaves some room to size a system for future usage growth, such as an EV or heat pump addition. See the glossary entry for power purchase agreement if that term is new to you.

Battery storage has its own separate incentive too

Rhode Island's ConnectedSolutions program pays customers for battery capacity they make available during peak events, with the per-kW rate set each year, so confirm the current rate with RI Energy. It is a separate incentive layered on top of whichever export credit structure applies to your system. This is worth factoring in if you're weighing a battery alongside your solar installation, and Rhode Island's tax credit and rebate estimator covers what else stacks on top.

Interconnection and the off-grid comparison

Connecting a system through Rhode Island Energy still requires a standard interconnection application, and the grid interconnection cost estimator covers what to expect there. With either net metering or the REG program available, staying grid-tied remains far cheaper than going fully off-grid in Rhode Island, and the grid tie vs off grid comparison tool shows how much cheaper. The credit rate only matters once it becomes a payback period. The payback period calculator in our Savings & Payback section can help you work out how long the system takes to pay for itself.

Questions

Frequently asked

Rhode Island Energy credits solar output at full value up to 100% of your own consumption. Production beyond that, up to 125%, earns a lower excess credit tied to the supply rate. A separate Renewable Energy Growth program is an alternative that currently pays 31.55 cents/kWh for systems up to 15 kW.

The average residential rate in Rhode Island was about 29.5 cents per kWh as of May 2026, per EIA data. Solar output you use offsets that full rate, while excess production earns a lower credit.

REG is an alternative to net metering, paying a fixed rate per kWh produced through a power purchase contract: 31.55 cents for systems up to 15 kW over 15 years and 28.65 cents for 15 to 25 kW systems over 20 years, for the 2026-2027 program year. You choose REG or net metering, not both.

Yes. Rhode Island's ConnectedSolutions program pays customers for battery capacity they make available during peak events, with the per-kW rate set each year, so confirm the current rate with RI Energy. It is separate from whichever export credit structure, net metering or REG, applies to your solar system.

Related tools

Compare Rhode Island's policy to other structures

Grid tie vs off grid comparison Net billing vs net metering Buy all sell all vs net metering Avoided cost rate calculator Grid export cap calculator Grid interconnection cost estimator Grid tie with battery backup comparison All grid and off-grid tools