Utah solar tax credit and rebate estimator

Utah's incentive picture has shifted meaningfully since the state credit and net metering peaked

The state tax credit is gone, not just reduced

Utah's residential renewable energy tax credit under Utah Code Section 59-10-1014 was phased down gradually over several years before being fully phased out for systems installed in 2024 or later. Some general guides still list a state solar tax credit as an active incentive, sometimes citing a specific dollar cap from an earlier phase-down year, without noting that the credit no longer applies at all to current installations. If you're buying solar in 2026, don't build a state tax credit into your math. Before you count on any incentive, check the DSIRE database of state incentives for your state's current programs.

Net metering closed to new Rocky Mountain Power customers back in 2017

Rocky Mountain Power, Utah's largest utility, closed its traditional net metering program, formerly Schedule 135, to new customers on November 15, 2017. Anyone who filed an interconnection agreement before that date remains grandfathered on the old program until January 1, 2036. Everyone connecting since then is placed on Schedule 137, called Net Billing, which credits exported solar generation at a seasonal rate rather than the full retail rate, currently 5.636 cents per kWh from June through September and 4.745 cents per kWh from October through May, both roughly half of a typical Rocky Mountain Power retail rate. These credits are calculated instantaneously rather than netted over a full billing cycle, which means the most value comes from using your solar power directly at home or storing it in a battery, rather than exporting it, since exported power earns meaningfully less than what you'd otherwise pay to buy it back. Municipal utilities including St. George and Murray City still offer full net metering, so your specific provider matters more in Utah than in states with one uniform statewide policy.

The Wattsmart rebate is a real, confirmed cash incentive worth claiming

Rocky Mountain Power's Wattsmart solar rebate pays $0.20 per watt of installed capacity, capped at $1,600, a ceiling reached at 8 kW, which covers many typical residential systems. Smaller systems scale proportionally, so a 5 kW system earns $1,000 and a 6 kW system earns $1,200. The rebate typically arrives as a bill credit within 60 to 90 days of your system passing interconnection inspection, and importantly, it is not deducted from your system cost before calculating any separately available federal credit, so the two can stack without reducing each other's base. A separate Wattsmart Battery Program adds $400 per kW of battery power capacity, up to $2,000, plus an additional $15 per kW per year for at least three years, for approved battery models installed alongside solar, which is worth factoring in if you're adding storage.

The sales tax exemption isn't clearly confirmed, so don't assume it applies

Several general guides state that Utah exempts solar panels and related equipment from sales tax, but a review of the relevant sections of Utah's sales and use tax code did not turn up a specific, clearly worded residential solar exemption comparable to what many other states have explicitly enacted. Given this genuine gap between what some guides claim and what the statute appears to actually say, treat this exemption as unconfirmed rather than assumed. Ask your installer for a written, itemized quote showing whether sales tax is charged on your specific purchase, and if certainty matters to your budget, confirm directly with the Utah State Tax Commission before finalizing, or run both scenarios through the sales tax exemption savings calculator. Compare the overall landscape against a neighboring state with the Idaho incentive estimator or the Nevada incentive estimator.

With your rebate total in hand, the combined loan and rebate timing tool shows the monthly payment on the amount you still need to borrow. If a battery is part of your plan, the savings with battery vs without battery comparison shows the difference it makes.