Cost of Solar Panels in Louisiana: Local Solar Installation Prices (2022)
Here’s a quick look at the estimated cost of solar in Louisiana:
- Average Cost Per Watt: $2.57
- Cost of Average System: $23,773*
- Cost of Energy Without Solar: $45,771
- Payback Period: 16 Years**
- Lifetime Savings of Going Solar: $13,646
*Average system size is calculated using data from the Energy Information Administration. This price is after tax credit.
**Payback period is calculated assuming the system is purchased in cash.
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Find Cost Savings on Solar in Louisiana
As a homeowner in Louisiana, you may be wondering: How much do solar panels cost in your area? In this article, we’ll discuss the average cost of a solar installation, how much that can save you on energy for your home and what incentives are available in your region. If you want to jump straight to getting a quote for an installation, you can follow the links below to speak with a verified professional.
Jump to Section:
- Cost of Solar Panels in Louisiana
- Louisiana Solar Incentives
- Best Solar Panel Brands And Installed Solar System Costs in 2022
- EcoWatch FAQ: Solar Panel Cost Louisiana
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Cost of Solar Panels in Louisiana
The cost of solar panel systems in Louisiana is around $2.57 per watt, which is below the national average of $2.66. However, Louisianans use a lot more energy than residents in most states to combat the hot, muggy summers and cold winters. Most Louisiana homeowners need a system that is around 12.5 kW to offset their electricity costs.
This is a larger system size than the national average. As a result, all-in costs in Louisiana are higher overall despite a lower per-watt price and relatively low electricity rates, even in busy cities like New Orleans and Baton Rouge.
Solar Panel System Installation Cost in Louisiana
When you’re pricing your solar energy system, the most prominent factor will be the size of the solar array. For each additional kilowatt your home requires, you can expect to add about $2,570 to your total price. The table below provides some estimated costs before and after the solar tax credit for standard-size solar systems in Louisiana.
| Size of Solar Panel System | Louisiana Solar Panel Cost | Cost After Federal Tax Credit |
| 10 kW | $25,700 | $19,018 |
| 11 kW | $28,270 | $20,920 |
| 12 kW | $30,840 | $22,822 |
| 13 kW | $33,410 | $24,723 |
| 14 kW | $35,980 | $26,625 |
| 15 kW | $38,550 | $28,527 |
Ready to see how much your ideal solar system will cost but not sure where to turn? Check out our review of the best solar companies in Louisiana to find the most reputable installers.
What Determines the Cost of Solar Panels in Louisiana?
System size isn’t the only cost factor to consider when going solar. The equipment you choose, the financing options to take and the solar installer you select will all affect your price as well. We’ll discuss each of these cost factors below.
Solar Equipment
As is the case with any home improvement, the quality of the equipment you decide on when installing solar can sway your price significantly.
First, you’ll need to consider the brand of solar equipment you’re installing. There are a decent number of solar companies in and around Louisiana, so the costs for equipment are lower than in many other states. Higher-quality options — like SunPower solar panels or Tesla Powerwalls — will still be more expensive relative to other, less efficient equipment. However, the more costly and efficient your equipment is, the greater your savings will likely be in the long run.
Second, the type of equipment you want to be installed as a part of your solar project will affect your costs. All home solar setups include panels and inverters, but some homeowners wish to add on products like solar batteries to provide power through outages or electric vehicle chargers. These additional, optional pieces of equipment can bring your price up by thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars.
Solar Financing
With an average cost in Louisiana of $32,125, going solar is prohibitively expensive for many homeowners. Luckily, most solar installers provide access to solar financing, and solar loans are also available via many third-party lenders. Financing options significantly reduce or eliminate upfront costs, but you will end up paying more in the long run due to interest.
It’s best to include the total interest you expect to pay over the life of the loan when considering your costs to go solar. High-APR loans can add significantly to your all-in costs, but even low-APR solar loans can bring your total up by thousands of dollars. A good rule of thumb is to pay as much as you comfortably can upfront, as this will bring down the total interest paid and, potentially, your APR. You can use a solar calculator to decide what the ideal down payment is to reduce your interest.
Solar Installation Company
Finally, the solar panel installation company you choose will have an impact on your costs. Louisiana’s solar companies all charge different amounts for labor, equipment and warranties offered.
Opting for a company that only carries high-efficiency equipment — like SunPower panels — will naturally lead to higher prices than companies that install lower quality products. Panels with a high production can also save you more over the lifetime of the panels, so it’s best to balance upfront costs with expected savings.
Finally, the size of the company you choose can have a bearing on your total. Larger national companies frequently have suboptimal customer service and minimal options for system customization, but they also tend to have lower costs. It really depends on the specific company, as some smaller local installers will offer discounts or sales to undercut the national players.
Louisiana Solar Incentives
Paying upfront or financing a photovoltaic system in Louisiana might seem overwhelming from a cost perspective, but there are a number of incentives available to Louisiana residents that make switching to clean energy more accessible. We’ll discuss the solar rebates and incentives available in Louisiana below.
Federal Solar Tax Credit For Louisiana Homeowners
The most significant tax credit you’ll receive for Louisiana solar panels is offered by the federal government in the form of the federal solar investment tax credit (ITC). This rebate is for a massive 26% of your entire costs for switching to a renewable energy source, which, in Louisiana, averages out to $8,353.
The federal tax credit will drop to 22% in 2023, at which point the average rebate in LA will be $7,068. The credit is set to expire in 2024 unless Congress renews the bill.
Net Metering Policies in Louisiana
Net metering is a policy that compensates you for any excess energy your solar array produces. Through interconnection, your home will receive power from the grid if your panels ever fail to produce enough energy to meet your home’s needs — like at night or on a cloudy day. If your panels produce more than your home is using — like on a sunny day — then your home is powered off-grid, the excess gets routed to the electric provider and your meter runs backward.
Unfortunately, net metering in Louisiana is not required by state law, so not every utility company offers it to consumers. Those that do often have a lower rate of compensation than the price you pay for energy coming in. Every utility company has a different policy and buyback rate, so it’s best to check yours before committing to a net metering program.
For example, Energy Louisiana, a company that serves an enormous part of the state, changed its net metering policy in 2020 due to new regulations. The change saw a lowered buyback rate from retail prices to wholesale prices or what it calls an “avoided cost rate.” Ultimately, policies like this lower the overall value of solar power in Louisiana, but converting to solar is still considered a good investment for most homeowners.
Local Solar Rebates in Louisiana
While the net metering program in Louisiana isn’t the best, there are some appealing state incentives to reduce your total costs.
First, and most importantly, is the solar property tax exemption. Installing rooftop solar on your home, provided you buy the system outright or finance it, will increase your property value. Usually, increases in property value also bump up your tax assessed value and property taxes. The property tax exemption promises that your taxes won’t go up from the value added to your home when you go solar. For many customers, this can mean thousands of dollars in savings.
Second, the Department of Natural Resources in Louisiana has established the Home Energy Loan Program (HELP). This program provides access to low-APR financing options for home improvements that increase energy efficiency, including solar conversions, up to $12,000. The program further lowers the barrier to entry and makes solar more accessible to homeowners throughout Louisiana.
Best Solar Panel Brands And Installed Solar System Costs in 2022
In Louisiana, you have access to a wide variety of solar brands. The EcoWatch team has assessed and reviewed the best solar panels available, which are listed below. We’ve also included relative pricing to help you decide which is best for you.
| Solar Panel Brand | Average Cost Per Watt |
| LG Solar | $$$ |
| Canadian Solar | $$$ |
| JA Solar | $$ |
| Mission Solar | $$ |
| Panasonic | $$ |
| Q Cells | $$ |
| REC | $$$ |
| Silfab | $$$ |
| SunPower | $$$$$ |
| Tesla | $$ |
| Trina Solar | $$$ |
People Also Ask
EcoWatch FAQ: Solar Panel Cost Louisiana
We get questions about the process and prices of going solar from Louisiana homeowners every day. Below are the questions we see most often and our responses to each.
This question is more complicated than it might seem because the cost of your solar panel system will depend on many factors. For an accurate estimate, you’ll need to consider your roof size and the direction it faces, your home size and energy efficiency, your monthly energy usage in kilowatt-hours, shading on your property, the equipment brand, and installer you choose, and much more. The only way to get an accurate estimate is to have a local installer assess your home.
With that being said, most homeowners in Louisiana require a 12.5-kilowatt system to offset their electric bills 100%. At an average of $2.57 per watt throughout the state, that’s a typical cost of $32,125 before the federal tax incentive or $23,773 after the rebate is deducted from the total.
Yes, absolutely! Increased home value is one of the most appealing benefits of going solar for many homeowners. According to research done by Zillow, most homes increase by about 4.1% from installing a solar panel system. Given the average home value of $203,222 in Louisiana, that amounts to an average bump in the value of $8,332.
It’s important to note that this increase in value is only expected if you buy or finance your solar equipment. Entering into a lease or a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) will not increase your property value.
We always encourage buying or financing your solar energy system rather than leasing. Solar leases provide a no-money-down option that sometimes is more accessible to homeowners, and while they seem like a more affordable option, they usually aren’t worth it in the long run.
Solar leases don’t bump up your home value like buying or financing would, so you’ll be passing up an average of $8,332 by choosing a lease option. Similarly, you won’t get access to the federal tax credit with a lease, which is an additional $8,353 you’ll be missing out on by leasing. Leases also save you the least amount of money on your electric bills over time.
Leasing is especially discouraged in Louisiana because the state offers the Home Energy Loan Program, which provides access to low-APR solar loans for most homeowners.
No, solar panels are not free in Louisiana. There are some companies that advertise “free panels,” but they’re never actually free. This is a marketing strategy to get you to enter into a lease or Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), both of which are discouraged.
While you can’t get genuinely free panels in Louisiana, many customers find that their solar panel systems pay for themselves and even provide additional savings once the paid off. If you consider the total average cost of $32,125, subtract the federal tax credit of $8,353, the average property value increase of $8,322, and the lifetime energy savings you’ll enjoy, your panels effectively become free, as they pay for themselves.
Yes, it is possible for solar panel systems to eliminate your electric bills in Louisiana, but it’s a bit more challenging here than in other states because of the below-average net metering policies. You’ll need a sizable system — usually 12.5 kW or more — and a big enough roof to house the panels. Many homeowners find that adding solar batteries also helps, as you can take better advantage of overproduction by storing it rather than selling it to the power company for wholesale rates.
There isn’t a one-size-fits-all solar PV system that will be appropriate for all homeowners. Your solar system size depends on many factors, including your roof and home size, shading on your property, your monthly energy consumption, and much more. The only way to get an accurate estimate for your system size is to have a reliable solar company in Louisiana assess your home and energy needs and provide a customized system design.
With that being said, most homeowners in Louisiana require a 12.5-kW system to offset their electric bills.
