Grid & off-grid

Net metering calculator, West Virginia

Model your solar bill under West Virginia's net metering, where your grandfathering deadline and export rate both depend on whether FirstEnergy or AEP serves your address.

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 West Virginia's average peak sun hours. Adjust if you know your local figure.
Defaulted to West Virginia's current average residential rate. Your utility's actual rate may differ.
West Virginia typically credits exports around 100% of retail. Full retail net metering up to 25 kW residential.
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 West Virginia 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. Confirm which utility serves your address first, since Mon Power, Potomac Edison, Appalachian Power, and Wheeling Power each have their own grandfathering deadline and export rate. Select a season to model a specific month rather than only an annual average.

Step 2

Confirm your rate, tier, and export credit

A typical West Virginia residential rate is filled in by default. Choose an export credit level matching your specific utility's current rate, 9.3 cents for FirstEnergy customers or about 12.4 cents for AEP customers, rather than assuming full retail.

Step 3

Compare the result to a full retail scenario

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

How net metering works in West Virginia

Two utility territories, two different grandfathering deadlines

West Virginia's full retail net metering, previously guaranteed up to 25 kW residential, has closed to new applicants, but the deadline and replacement rate depend on which utility serves you. Mon Power and Potomac Edison, both FirstEnergy subsidiaries, grandfathered anyone interconnected by December 31, 2024, with new applicants since credited at 9.3 cents/kWh starting January 1, 2025. Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power, both AEP subsidiaries, grandfathered applications filed by March 1, 2026, with new residential systems credited at about 12.4 cents/kWh.

Both new rates are still a real reduction from retail

Mon Power and Potomac Edison's 9.3 cent rate and AEP's roughly 12.4 cent rate are both well below the full retail rate those exports were previously worth, though AEP's new rate held up better than Mon Power's did. AEP had originally proposed cutting the credit by two-thirds before more than 5,000 public comments pushed the final settlement closer to two-thirds of the full retail value instead. The net billing vs net metering comparison tool can help you quantify the gap in dollar terms for your own utility's rate.

Public opposition shaped both settlements

FirstEnergy's 2024 push to cut net metering compensation drew more than 1,700 public comments in opposition, resulting in modifications before the Mon Power and Potomac Edison settlement was adopted. AEP's later 2025 proposal to cut net metering by two-thirds drew more than 5,000 public comments, pushing its own settlement to a notably better outcome for homeowners than the original proposal.

Confirm your exact interconnection status before assuming a rate

Whether your specific system falls under legacy full retail terms or the newer reduced rate depends on your utility and your interconnection date relative to its deadline, and the payback period calculator can show how much that distinction is worth over time. If you're evaluating an existing system or planning a new one, confirm it directly with your utility before relying on either rate.

Interconnection and the off-grid comparison

Either way the rate lands, a standard interconnection application comes first, and the grid interconnection cost estimator walks through what that step costs, while the tax credit and rebate estimator for West Virginia totals up what incentives apply regardless of which rate you land on. Even under either utility's reduced export rate, a grid-tied system still undercuts an off-grid build by a wide margin, and the grid tie vs off grid comparison tool puts a number on that gap.

Questions

Frequently asked

It depends on your utility. Mon Power and Potomac Edison grandfathered anyone interconnected by December 31, 2024, at the full retail rate, with new applicants since credited at 9.3 cents/kWh. Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power grandfathered applications filed by March 1, 2026, with new residential systems credited at about 12.4 cents/kWh. A grandfathered home exporting 300 kWh a month earns about $50 in credit at the 16.8 cent full retail rate.

The average residential rate in West Virginia is about 16.8 cents per kWh. Full retail net metering up to 25 kW residential still applies to systems grandfathered under either utility's deadline; new systems since receive a lower rate specific to their utility.

Only for grandfathered systems, and the deadline depends on your utility. Mon Power and Potomac Edison customers needed to interconnect by December 31, 2024; new applicants since are credited at 9.3 cents/kWh. Appalachian Power and Wheeling Power customers had until March 1, 2026; new residential systems since are credited at about 12.4 cents/kWh.

Yes. FirstEnergy's 2024 proposal for Mon Power and Potomac Edison drew more than 1,700 public comments, leading to modifications before that settlement was adopted. AEP's later proposal to cut net metering by two-thirds drew more than 5,000 public comments, pushing its own settlement to a better outcome than originally proposed.

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