Sunrun Review: Costs, Quality, Services & More (2025)

EcoWatch Reviews Methodology

I’ve spent the last four years researching and writing about renewable energy and, more specifically, the different solar installers available and the benefits of going solar in general. In addition to writing about clean energy solutions, I’ve converted to solar myself, connected with industry professionals, and kept up with news regarding the solar industry to ensure the information I provide you is as up-to-date and accurate as possible. I have an intimate understanding of what makes a good solar installer, and I used the information I’ll share with you in this Sunrun review to eliminate my electric bill and reduce my carbon footprint.

I’ll also use EcoWatch’s proprietary methodology for scoring and ranking solar providers. This includes a look at each company’s services and financing options, affordability, overall environmental impact, the quality of the equipment offered, warranty coverage, company reputation, and customer service experience. Each company is assessed using over 20 metrics and dozens of hours of research, with the metrics weighted to provide scoring that will help you choose the best company possible, even if you just have a few minutes to look over our rankings.

I’ve also contacted Sunrun as a secret shopper to get a sense of how responsive the company is and the quality of the customer service they provide leading up to a formal quote. That’s coupled with a sense of the service after the installation, which I’ll base on hundreds of customer reviews I’ve read through.

Sunrun: Best Protection Against Damage

What I Like About Sunrun

While Sunrun isn’t my favorite solar installer company for a few reasons, it’s undeniably a major player in the solar industry, and there are a lot of positive things to mention.

Sunrun provides an outstanding warranty package if you lease your panels or enter into a power purchase agreement (PPA). I’ll discuss why this is a double-edged sword a bit later, but for now, know that if you know you want to enter into a lease or PPA, Sunrun is a reliable option because it has a special protection plan for those financing options. It covers all panel maintenance and repairs you might need over 25 years for free, free solar monitoring to identify production and safety issues as quickly as possible, a 25-year production guarantee, and a 25-year warranty to cover the labor, including roof leaks.

The roof leak guarantee is uncommon in the solar industry, and a leaking roof is one of the major concerns homeowners have when considering installing solar panels. In my opinion, the roof leak guarantee is one of the biggest upsides to choosing Sunrun.

Sunrun goes above and beyond in terms of the services it offers. Most solar companies install panels and batteries, and many offer EV chargers. Sunrun provides all three of these services, plus energy-efficient home upgrades and remote system monitoring. It also has an exclusive deal with Ford to provide two-way EV setups for the Ford F-150 Lightning. This is an all-electric pickup truck that doubles as a home battery. With Sunrun’s equipment, you can charge your Lightning with your solar panels or batteries, and you can also use your EV as a backup battery for emergency power to provide electricity to your entire home.

These unique offerings make Sunrun a stand-out company for warranty coverage and customizability.

What I Don’t Like About Sunrun

My biggest gripe with Sunrun is that it prioritizes leases and PPAs, both by promoting them over cash purchases and loans and by enticing customers with perks that only apply to these no-money-down options, including the comprehensive warranty coverage mentioned above — 25 years for the equipment, workmanship, power production, and roof leaks. If you buy your panels from Sunrun with cash or a loan, you don’t get the same coverage, which is a shame.

The reason I don’t particularly love the leasing business model is that it benefits Sunrun more than it benefits the customer. I’ll get into this more in a later section, but for now, know that leases and PPAs save you about a sixth of what a cash purchase would (although the up-front cost is usually $0), whereas a cash purchase averages around $21,000 after the federal tax credit. I love that Sunrun provides stellar coverage for leases; I just wish it didn’t push leases on customers and promote them as the better financial option.

You can learn more about the pros and cons of PPAs and why they’re not as beneficial as cash purchases in the video below:

Sunrun also has quite a lot of negative reviews across multiple platforms, including on the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and Trust Pilot. In our ratings, Sunrun scores just a 4 out of 10 for company reputation for this reason, whereas companies like SunPower and Blue Raven score perfect 10 out 10s despite being larger companies with footprints. I suspect this is because Sunrun contracts out all of its installations to third-party companies. Other providers, like SunPower and Tesla, do this too, but it’s possible that Sunrun’s screening procedures for its dealer network aren’t as rigid as other companies’ processes.

Sunrun Installation Process and Timeline

The process of installing solar panels on your home is going to look about the same regardless of whether you choose Sunrun, another national company, or a local installer. I’ll provide a brief overview of the process from start to finish below and I’ll include some information about when and how Sunrun may exceed expectations or fall short at any given point during the process.

• Initial property inspection: First and foremost, you’ll need an in-person property inspection. Some companies may offer to do a remote inspection, but this is a red flag, as your installer really needs to inspect your roof for damages before installing solar. Thankfully, Sunrun always does in-person inspections. A rep will come to your home and get up on your roof to take measurements and determine whether or not a roof replacement would be a good idea before installing your panels. Older roofs may need repairs or total replacement; if you install panels over a damaged or aging roof, you’ll just end up paying more to have them removed and stored when you inevitably need work done.
• Design phase and equipment ordering: Your rep will send measurements to the design team, which will start designing your system. The design phase should only take a few days, but it can be longer with Sunrun, depending on how backed up your local branch is. The team will send the design to you for review, along with a contract for the installation. It will include the number of panels you need, the total cost of the installation, the pattern in which the panels will be installed on your roof, where your conduit and wiring will run, and more. Once you approve the design and sign your contract, Sunrun will order your equipment and wait for delivery.
• Permitting phase: While you’re waiting for your panels and other equipment to be delivered, Sunrun’s team will work on getting building permits for your project. All municipalities will require permits before your installation can commence. The fee for the permits should have been included in your initial estimate. As far as the timeline goes, this step can cause major delays, sometimes on the order of weeks. Some local governments have expedited procedures for processing solar permits, but in other areas, you might just have to wait based on how backed up the permitting desk is. Sunrun usually isn’t responsible for delays here, and you might wait a few weeks, regardless of which installer you choose.
• System installation: Once permits are approved and equipment is delivered, Sunrun will get in touch with you and schedule the installation. On that day, a team will show up and need access to your roof, your electrical panel, and your garage if you’re installing batteries or EV chargers there. In most cases, the local installation company Sunrun assigns to your project will complete the installation in a single day. Unfortunately, this is where outsourced installations come back to bite some homeowners. Your experience will depend on the quality and professionalism of the third-party installer. Some customer complaints I’ve read online have mentioned days and sometimes even weeks of delay at this stage. It’s unclear exactly what the cause of those delays might be, but having two companies to communicate with — Sunrun and the third-party company they hire for the installation — can complicate things and lead to further delays.
• Final inspection and activation: The last step of the process is to have your final inspection completed by an underwriter from your power company. They’ll check to make sure the connection to your home and the grid is done safely. If it is, they’ll approve the system, and your Sunrun installer will activate the panels. At this point, they will start producing power for your home. Unfortunately, this is another area where some Sunrun customers have run into delays. Some negative Sunrun reviews mention long delays here, too. At this point, I suspect the problem is a lack of communication between Sunrun and its assigned local installer or one of the two parties failing to take responsibility for the problems. Some customers have mentioned months of delays and have received no response from Sunrun regarding a resolution.

In the ideal case, you can expect to wait between one and three months from the time you sign your contract with Sunrun to the day the panels are commissioned and start saving you money. However, due to unexpected delays in the permitting process or delays from Sunrun’s installer during the installation process, you could wait six months or more before your panels are installed and activated.

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Sunrun Standard Services & Financing

22/25

Sunrun goes above and beyond when it comes to the services it provides, and it also gets full marks for accepting all four of the major payment options: cash, loan, lease, and PPA. It does lose three points in this category because it doesn’t have an in-house installation team, and while outsourced installations aren’t always a cause for concern, they can be more likely to lead to problems due to a lack of communication and delays during and following the installation.

In terms of being a one-stop shop for all things solar, Sunrun is pretty close. It installs four different tier-one panel brands — REC, QCells, SolarEdge, and Canadian Solar — which means you’ll have options to optimize for price, performance, or another metric based on your specific needs. Some companies, like SunPower, only work with a single panel brand, which means you’re locked into one brand and can’t customize your system. 

In my opinion, the REC panels from Sunrun are going to be the best option overall. These have an unusually high-efficiency rating of up to 22.6% to help maximize your energy savings over time. They also have solid warranty coverage and come from a particularly sustainable manufacturer that uses recycled materials in the panel production process and has a robust end-of-life recycling program for old panels. REC panels are particularly good in extreme climates, as they lose less efficiency than most in higher temperatures, and they’re tied for the second-highest snow load resistance.

Sunrun also installs solar batteries and EV chargers, including its own Sunrun Shift battery, the Tesla Powerwall, and the Ford F-150 Lightning connection to turn your EV into a backup battery for your home. The Sunrun Shift is a bit of an outdated take on a solar battery because it doesn’t provide emergency backup power. Rather, it stores power solely for use when you have an active grid connection, but electricity prices are high — usually during periods of high demand. Regardless, having options is great. Sunrun also installs EV chargers for the F-150 Lightning and other EVs, which will be increasingly important as we continue to shift more toward EVs and hybrid cars.

On top of the standard services, Sunrun also offers energy efficiency upgrades, including its SPAN smart electrical panel, which lets you control your consumption remotely via a free mobile app to optimize your home. It’s also one of the few national companies that provides company monitoring for your system, although this is only included with your system if you lease or enter into a PPA. Most installers provide access to self-monitoring via a mobile app, but Sunrun uses its own systems to monitor your panels, so it will detect and report problems and potential repairs you might need without you having to do anything.

Cost and Financing Options

Solar equipment is unavoidably expensive, so companies that provide a variety of financing options score higher in our rankings. There are four primary ways to pay for solar panels: a cash purchase, a solar loan, a solar lease, and a power purchase agreement (PPA). Thankfully, Sunrun provides access to all of these options, although, as mentioned, it incentivizes customers to choose the no-money-down options, which include leases and PPAs. Their financing options are named as follows:

• Cash purchase: BrightBuy
• Solar loan: BrightAdvantage
• Solar lease/PPA: BrightSave Monthly
• Prepaid solar lease/PPA: BrightSave Prepaid

The average cost of a solar array in the U.S. is $29,970 before any incentives, according to EcoWatch calculations, which puts the effective total at $20,979 after the federal investment tax credit (ITC), assuming you can take the entire credit. Sunrun doesn’t publicize pricing on its website, but based on my careful assessment of customer reviews and speaking with Sunrun customers in my area, it seems like Sunrun’s prices are slightly below average. I do love to see companies with below-average pricing, as it helps keep access to renewable energy more widely available.

More importantly, Sunrun accepts all of the major payment options. However, I strongly recommend you choose a cash purchase or go with a solar loan if you can’t manage a cash purchase. The main reason for this is that a cash purchase will provide the highest savings possible.

On average, a system that you pay for in cash will pay for itself in around 11 years by providing savings on your electric bills. After the system pays for itself, it’s expected to save you an additional $31,513 over the next 14 years. Your actual savings will likely be higher, as electricity prices are on the rise throughout the U.S., and most solar panels last for longer than the 25-year warranty period. I’m using conservative estimates so that you’re not caught off-guard by your own savings.

With a solar loan, your up-front cost will be much lower than with a cash purchase, as you’ll only need to pay a down payment and not the entire cost of your system. However, you’ll have to pay interest on the loan, which adds up to around $5,000 over the loan term. That means you’ll effectively save that same $31,513 on your electric bills after the system pays for itself, but you’ll have to account for your interest paid, bringing your net savings to around $26,500. Obviously, this is less appealing, but it’s still worthwhile.

With a lease, you rent the panels for a monthly fee and get to use the electricity they generate. When you consider the monthly payment you’ll be making for the panels for the life of the lease — since there’s no payback period and you’ll never break even as you would with a cash purchase or solar loan — your overall savings will be around $5,000. A PPA works similarly, but instead of renting the panels, you pay nothing for the panels and instead agree to buy electricity produced by the panels from your installer. Long-term PPA savings typically amount to between $4,000 and $5,000.

Overall, leases and PPAs are more accessible because they don’t require any money down, but you miss out on between $21,500 and $26,500 as opposed to a loan and a cash purchase, respectively. This is why I’m not a huge fan of Sunrun incentivizing solar leases and PPAs. Yes, they’re accessible and can be beneficial, but they’re not nearly as beneficial as other options. Sunrun does still accept cash purchases and loans, which is a positive.

Another reason I don’t typically recommend leases and PPAs is that you never own your panels. That not only means you won’t see a payback period where savings really start ramping up, but it also means you can’t take advantage of the ITC. That’s an average of $8,991 you’re potentially leaving on the table. Some states also have statewide tax credits and rebates, many of which only apply if you own your panels through a cash purchase or loan.

Sunrun Extra Services Offered

3/5

Sunrun scores an average 3/5 score when it comes to the extra services offered, and it only loses two points here because it doesn’t carry out roof repair or replacement in-house. Sunrun — and any other reputable solar installer — will inspect your roof as part of an initial property assessment to make sure it’s in good shape. If it is expected to last for one to two decades longer, your installation can usually proceed. If it’s nearing the end of its life, the inspector will recommend repair or replacement prior to installing panels, as you could otherwise be on the hook for panel removal and replacement in just a few years when you have to replace your roof.

Some solar companies have in-house roof specialists who can get you a quote for your roof replacement and then carry out the work before your panels are installed. This is just convenient, as you won’t have to coordinate with another company to get your roof replaced before scheduling your solar installation. It’s not a huge deal that Sunrun doesn’t offer this service, but it can make things a bit more complicated if you do need a replacement.

Sunrun does score some points in this category for its other add-on services, which some other installers don’t offer. The most important, in my opinion, is EV charger installation. EVs are becoming more and more popular, and coupling your solar array with an EV charger is just going to save you more money over time and reduce your carbon footprint even further by avoiding burning gasoline and using renewable energy to charge your car. If you go with an installer that doesn’t handle EV chargers, you can always add one on after the fact, but then you can’t include the cost in your federal tax credit. Given the average cost of an EV charger, that means you could be missing out on an average of $400 to $600 in tax credits if you install an EV charger retroactively.

Sunrun also scores points in this category for energy efficiency upgrades, as it offers SPAN, which is a smart electrical panel. This gives you remote access to your home and battery storage, so you can maintain total control over your energy consumption, even when you’re not home. Ultimately, this could end up saving you money over time and it can help further reduce your reliance on fossil fuels, so it’s a win-win in my book.

Additionally, Sunrun offers solar panel monitoring, which detects problems with your panels and issues with underproduction before they turn into a need for repairs or panel replacement. Most installers provide access to a mobile app that you can use to do your own solar monitoring, often through the panel or inverter manufacturer, but Sunrun provides this service for you so that you don’t have to check your production diligently. This is a rarity in the solar industry, and although it’s really just a nice-to-have and not a necessity, Sunrun scores points here for offering it.

I do have to mention that this last service is only available if you enter into a lease or PPA, which I don’t love. I definitely don’t think system monitoring should be a deciding factor when choosing your financing option, but it’s a nice perk if you know you already want a lease or PPA.

Finally, Sunrun provides access to three different solar storage solutions. The first is the Tesla Powerwall, which is widely regarded as the best solar battery in the industry, and it’s the one I installed in my own home. The Powerwall acts as an emergency backup battery, so you’ll automatically move to battery power if you experience a power outage. You can also adjust settings to optimize your consumption and grid usage in areas that don’t have access to net metering or use a time-of-use structure. With California recently rolling out net metering 3.0, I expect more states to follow, which means this feature will likely be more valuable in the near future.

Sunrun also offers its own battery (currently only available in California and Hawaii) called the Sunrun Shift. Interestingly, this battery doesn’t provide emergency backup power, which is strange to me, but it makes sense that it’s only available in two states. Instead, it optimizes your energy consumption and grid usage based on the demand and the price of electricity. So, it will charge itself from the grid during times of low energy prices, and it will power your home for free during times of high demand and high prices. Again, I expect this to be more valuable — and, hopefully, available in more states — in the future as NEM policies are downgraded.

Finally, Sunrun has an exclusive deal with Ford to provide customers with a two-way charging setup for the Ford F-150 Lightning, an EV pickup truck. With Sunrun’s equipment, you can charge your F-150 Lightning as normal using your EV charger, but you can also use your massive EV battery for emergency backup power for your home. This is a really cool feature that I hope other installers will adopt over time, as it makes EVs more valuable and effectively reduces installation costs because you don’t need to buy a stand-alone home solar battery.

Sunrun Environmental Impact & Sustainability Practices

7.5/10

As of February 2024, the company has installed over 90,000 solar systems nationwide, based on a Sunrun press release. This pales in comparison to a company like SunPower, which has hit over 400,000, but based on the company’s much smaller footprint, this is massively impressive. Not only does it suggest good things for the company’s longevity, but since solar arrays reduce emissions from burning fossil fuels for electricity, the company has undoubtedly had an overwhelmingly positive effect on the environment.

The company has also made sizable charitable donations to companies like the Honnold Foundation, which is a nonprofit organization that focuses on solar availability for underserved communities. Things like this suggest that Sunrun is in the industry for the right reasons, and although I have qualms with things like prioritizing solar leases over loans, donations to nonprofits that help drive the solar industry forward make me think that Sunrun is a company that does truly care about renewable energy and the customer.

With that said, we don’t just rely on the number of installations a company completes or the donations it makes to determine its sustainability. Our EcoWatch methodology for ranking companies also involves a close look at the different panel brands a company offers. We consider whether or not the panels are manufactured using recycled material, the manufacturer’s end-of-life (EoL) recycling program for panels that no longer produce sufficient energy, where the panels are assembled and whether or not there’s a history of slave labor or other moral issues among the manufacturer.

All of the panel brands Sunrun is known to work with — REC, Canadian Solar, QCells, and SolarEdge — use recycled materials in the production of their panels and have robust EoL programs. Sunrun does lose some points here because all of the panels are manufactured outside of the U.S.. This is a small downside, as regulations outside America tend to be less strict, so the likelihood that there are non-sustainable practices going on behind the scenes is higher.

I recommend you check out the following video for a more in-depth discussion about solar panel sustainability. This should help you understand why we include sustainability practices in our methodology when discussing something as inherently sustainable as solar power.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWV4e453y8Y

Sunrun Equipment Quality & Reliability

16.7/20

The specific solar equipment you purchase can have a surprisingly significant impact on your overall solar experience, including how long your system lasts and how much electricity it generates in different conditions. This second factor also influences how much money you save on your utility bills, which makes it an important consideration when choosing an installer. Most installers, including Sunrun, work with a small subset of the available solar panel brands, so it’s important to look at the brands a provider offers before signing any contracts.

It’s important to talk about the different metrics that determine how well a particular panel brand will serve you and perform on your specific roof. Below are some of the most important things EcoWatch looks at when ranking installers by the manufacturers they work with:

• Average efficiency rating: First, we look at every solar panel model offered by the manufacturers with which an installer works. In many cases, that means assessing dozens of panels and taking an average of their stated efficiency ratings. A panel’s efficiency rating tells you the percentage of available sunlight a panel can convert into electricity, which is important because more electricity production means more savings and potentially fewer panels necessary to offset your consumption. The higher a manufacturer’s average efficiency rating, the better the chance is that any panel from its product lines will serve you well and generate enough electricity to reduce up-front costs and maximize long-term savings. We give perfect scores in this category to manufacturers whose panels have average efficiency ratings of 22% or higher.
• Max efficiency rating: Next, we look at the highest-performing panel offered by each manufacturer in terms of efficiency. This tells you the overall performance and output of your panel if you choose the best — and often the most expensive — model available from that company. Once again, the higher the maximum efficiency rating, the more electricity the high-end panels will generate, which translates to greater long-term savings. This isn’t a good metric by itself to determine how good a panel brand is, but it’s an important piece of the puzzle. Companies with at least one panel model that hits 22.8% efficiency or higher get the highest possible marks in this category.
• Power tolerance: Power tolerance is expressed as a negative number and a positive number, which tells you how far below and above your panel’s stated efficiency you’ll see in real-world conditions. Power tolerance is an important metric to consider alongside the efficiency rating, as a panel with an above-average efficiency but a higher-than-average negative power tolerance could end up being just average in real-world conditions. We give perfect scores here to panels with a -0% negative power tolerance and higher than +5% positive tolerance.
• First-year degradation: All solar panels will decline in efficiency over time, and the fastest degradation happens in the first year, so manufacturers will provide a maximum degradation rate over the first year. The lowest and best first-year degradation rate I’ve seen is just a 1% loss of efficiency, which gets a perfect score. For tier 1 panel brands, the rate goes up to 2%. The lower the degradation rate, the less efficiency you lose in year one, and the more money you’ll save on electric bills over time.
• Subsequent-year degradation: After the first year of performance, your panels will continue to degrade, but at a much slower rate. Average degradation rates after year one are around 0.33%, and we give perfect scores to anything at or below 0.25%. For tier 1 panels, you’ll seldom see anything higher than 0.4%, but that still means a total loss of nearly 10% efficiency over 24 years, which is a big deal. For comparison, a degradation rate of 0.25% would lead to an efficiency loss of just 6%.
• Max wind load: The max wind load of a panel tells you the maximum upward force it can withstand — the force applied to the rear of the panel from the wind. In some areas, this isn’t a metric you need to worry much about, as the lowest max wind load rating for a tier 1 panel I’ve seen is 1,600 Pascals (Pa), which could withstand wind up to around 114 mph. The average load is more than double that at 3,500 Pa, which could resist wind speeds of about 170 mph. If you live in an area that sees hurricane activity, tropical storms, or tornadoes, this could be a crucial factor to consider. The highest max wind load I’ve seen is 5,400 Pa, which could resist wind speeds of over 200 mph. Anything over 3,000 gets perfect scores in this area.
• Max snow load: Max wind load tells you the maximum front load a panel can resist, which is important for considering the amount of heavy snow it will withstand before failing. As you might imagine, this often isn’t a metric you need to worry about in southern states that have minimal risk of snowfall, but it’s a crucial factor in northern states that see excessive snow. Panels with a max snow load of 7,000+ Pa get perfect scores, and the average for tier-one panels sits just under 5,900 Pa.
• Equipment warranty: All panel manufacturers offer an equipment warranty, also called a manufacturer’s warranty. This covers defects caused by the manufacturing process and can cover panel repairs and even replacements you might need if your panels run into issues. Most equipment warranties last for 25 years, but I’ve seen as high as 40 years from Maxeon. Anything over 30 years gets perfect marks here.
• Efficiency warranty: Manufacturers also provide an efficiency warranty, which tells you guaranteed maximum degradation rates for the first year and beyond, usually up to 25 years. This is an important guarantee to consider, as a good efficiency warranty will all but guarantee that you maximize your savings over the long run. Any efficiency warranty over 30 years gets a perfect score in this category, but it’s also important to consider the first-year and subsequent-year degradation rates. A 30-year warranty with high degradation rates isn’t going to be as worthwhile as a 20-year warranty with the lowest degradation rates in the industry, even though the warranty term is below average.

Now that you have an understanding of the panel metrics to look for and why they matter, we can look specifically at how Sunrun stacks up in these areas. Sunrun works primarily with four panel brands: REC, QCells, Canadian Solar, and SolarEdge. Below are the best-in-class numbers for each of the criteria above from these brands:

• Average efficiency: 22% (perfect score)
• Max efficiency: 23.1% (perfect score)
• Power tolerance: =0%/+10% (perfect score)
• First-year degradation: As low as 1% (perfect score)
• Subsequent-year degradation: As low as 0.25% (perfect score)
• Max wind load: 4,000 Pa (perfect score)
• Max snow load: 8,100 Pa (perfect score)
• Equipment warranty: 25 years
• Efficiency warranty: 30 years

As you can see, Sunrun’s panel offerings receive perfect scores in most individual metrics, with the only exceptions being the equipment and efficiency warranty coverage. These metrics aren’t available from a single brand from Sunrun. For example, the 23.1% max efficiency that gets perfect marks is Canadian Solar, but those same panels don’t get a perfect score in subsequent-year degradation — instead, that perfect score comes from REC panels. However, Sunrun offering panel brands that collectively score so high is a good sign that you can pick and choose to optimize for your specific needs.

Warranties and Guarantees

Like most solar installers, Sunrun passes the manufacturer’s warranty and the efficiency warranty from the panel manufacturers onto you as the customer. Depending on the brand of panel you choose from Sunrun, you get an equipment warranty that sits between 12 and 25 years and an efficiency warranty between 25 and 30 years.

As I mentioned before, it’s important to consider the degradation rates of the panels alongside the efficiency warranty you get, as a long warranty means less if it allows for a higher rate of degradation. Below is a breakdown of how the different panel brands available from Sunrun stack up against one another:

• Canadian Solar
  • 30-year efficiency warranty
  • 1% degradation first year
  • 0.4% degradation subsequent year
  • 89.4% efficiency remaining after 25 years

• QCells

• • 25-year efficiency warranty
  • 1.5% degradation first year
  • 0.33% degradation subsequent year
  • 90.6% efficiency remaining after 25 years
• REC
  • 25-year efficiency warranty
  • 2% degradation first year
  • 0.25% degradation subsequent year
  • 92% efficiency remaining after 25 years
• SolarEdge
  • 25-year efficiency warranty
  • 2% degradation first year
  • 0.55% degradation subsequent year
  • 84.8% efficiency remaining after 25 years

In my opinion, the REC panels from Sunrun are the best of the bunch, not only because they have the lowest overall degradation over 25 years but also because they have stellar efficiency ratings overall and are known for their durability.

Sunrun Company Reputation

19.5/25

Sunrun scores quite high when it comes to company reputation, which takes into consideration a company’s customer review ratings on a few different sites, as well as the company’s rating with the Better Business Bureau (BBB). We also consider memberships with different organizations in the solar industry and the company’s overall availability.

First off, Sunrun was founded in 2007, so it has over 15 years of experience behind it. Longevity in the solar industry absolutely doesn’t guarantee that an installer will provide a positive experience. However, it is an important thing to consider. The demand for solar is on the up and up, with the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) reporting a bump in installations on the order of 51% from 2022 to 2023 alone. With that demand comes companies that are in the industry to capitalize.

Unfortunately, many new installers that enter the solar space just to turn a profit end up providing poor service and going out of business just a few years later, voiding the warranties they may have provided to customers in the process. Choosing an installer like Sunrun that has demonstrated some staying power is a good — although not guaranteed — way to avoid that.

After longevity, for which Sunrun gets perfect marks in our rating system, we look at industry memberships and associations, which are another good indication that a company is invested in the solar industry and is here to stay. Sunrun is a member of SEIA, which is a good sign, and its technicians are certified by the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners (NABCEP). This certification suggests that Sunrun’s installers — even the third-party teams — have the qualifications and experience to install your system safely.

Sunrun does lose some points here because of its availability. We give perfect scores to providers that service 40 or more states simply because they’ll appeal to a wider customer base. Sunrun only serves 20 states, plus Washington D.C. This is still a larger footprint than regional companies like Momentum Solar and Trinity Solar, but it pales in comparison to the reach of national providers like SunPower and Tesla Solar. It’s also important to note that a company’s coverage doesn’t suggest that it will or won’t provide good service in the areas it does serve. This is just a measure of how much a provider will appeal to the masses overall.

We also assess providers based on their BBB rating, which gives us a general picture of how the company handles complaints from customers. Sunrun maintains an A+ rating with the BBB, so it gets a perfect score in that regard. More important, in my opinion, is the customer rating with the BBB, which instead tells you the ratings customers specifically assign to the company based on their experiences. Sunrun has a surprisingly positive 3.66 stars out of 5 as of this writing, which is above the typical range of most solar installers — between 2 and 3 stars.

We also look at Trust Pilot, which is another good source of real customer ratings. Here, Sunrun maintains a rating of 1.4 stars out of 5, so this is an area where the provider loses quite a few points in our ranking system. The reviews are overwhelmingly negative, with 88% of them being a single star.

To be fair, most regional and national solar installers have relatively low ratings on customer review sites, in part because customers are more likely to take the time to write a review if they’ve had a negative experience than if they’ve had a positive one. Reviews are, therefore, bound to be a bit polarizing. While it’s important to consider this, the fact that Sunrun’s reviews on TrustPilot are almost all negative is a sign that the overall customer service can definitely leave a lot to be desired.

It’s increasingly important to choose a reputable solar installer, especially as the industry sees more growth and companies jumping into the space just to turn a profit. A reliable solar installer is less likely to cause issues with your installation that lead to system inefficiency and even property damage from roof leaks, and they’re more likely to honor their warranties and fix any problems that do arise. Sunrun has average reviews across platforms, although its very low score on Trust Pilot is worrisome. I will say that Sunrun’s poor reviews may be mostly due to the company’s outsourcing of installations, as having an additional contractor as an intermediary can cause issues with communication and the company taking responsibility for problems.

Consumer Reviews and Testimonials

In an effort to provide you with the most complete information possible, I’ve read through hundreds of Sunrun reviews to garner as much data and information as possible about the actual customer experience. After all, some solar companies get terrible reviews on some sites, but when you dig in and read the complaints, sometimes a lot of them have to do with aggressive sales tactics. That may not be admirable, but it also doesn’t suggest that the provider won’t deliver a high-quality system and good customer service if you seek them out yourself.

After reading through countless Sunrun reviews, I’ve noticed that a lot of the positive reviews mention ongoing savings on their electric bills and customer representatives that go above and beyond to explain things thoroughly and ensure the customer is pleased with their system. Below are some reviews that capture these sentiments:

“Got my system about a year ago and it saved me 500 dollars every month compared to what I would be paying, and the customer service is super quick and responsive! I’ve had 5 of my close friends and family also get Sunrun and they have all had similar if not better experiences!!! Only complaint is not getting it sooner!” —Bruce B. via BBB

“Elizabeth [at Sunrun] provided a completely seamless transition to solar! She followed the job from the start (helping with all the necessary documentation) to finish (obtaining all the necessary approvals & system energization). She followed closely to make certain there were no hiccups! The actual installation of panels, batteries, inverter & wiring took less than half a day! 

It’s so nice not getting an electric bill, particularly when they have been constantly on the rise!” —Richard P. via Trust Pilot

Of course, a good portion of the Sunrun reviews are negative, too, and you should consider these as well before deciding if Sunrun is right for you. Let’s take a look at some negative Sunrun reviews that are indicative of some ongoing issues Sunrun has with customer service:

“Sunrun is absent after the papers are signed. Promised a huge check from the government for the “REBATE.” Described as a REBATE numerous times. Just send the check to the finance company to retain the low monthly payment for the rest of my life. There is no “rebate.” The guaranteed check never came. And I’m out another $26k! They do not care. I am disgusted with Sunrun! Our panels already appear to be delaminating. They are also improperly attached and secured. The roof looks like a flapping wing, pulling up on either side.” —Jeffrey D. via Trust Pilot

“Sunrun is horrible to work with. It has been five months, paying on the solar system and yet to have the panels/battery operating. I get the same story “We are waiting on” insert excuse here. If you want Solar Panels and hear Sunrun, just RUN FAR AWAY! 

The Tesla Battery also fell off my house, while I am waiting for it to start operating. So if you actually decide to use Sunrun be prepared to be intensely disappointed.” —Matt A. via Trust Pilot

Sunrun Customer Service

4/10

Our last scoring metric at EcoWatch is an editorial score for customer service, and in that area, I scored Sunrun a 4/10.

Some of the things I often see in negative Sunrun reviews include complaints about misrepresented savings, reports of aggressive sales tactics, and delays in getting responses from the company, particularly after the installation is completed and warranty claims are filed.

I should mention that Sunrun has been cited in a class action lawsuit regarding aggressive and deceptive sales tactics. Sunrun uses a door-to-door sales model and has been known to ignore “no solicitation” signs and use high-pressure sales strategies. Obviously, I’m not a fan of that, but it doesn’t suggest that the company has poor customer service overall.

More importantly, Sunrun’s lawsuit included claims of deception in its sales process, and many customer reviews mention this as well. A big portion of those negative reviews mentions that Sunrun represents the ITC as a “rebate” that’s guaranteed savings, when in fact, it’s a “tax credit” that you can only take full advantage of if you owe more than 30% of your system cost in income taxes over five years from your installation date. To avoid falling victim to this kind of deception, I recommend you read through our guide on how the federal investment tax credit works.

Over years of seeing these same comments in negative Sunrun reviews, I have to conclude that, to some extent, Sunrun puts its growth and profits above its customers. Large companies like Sunrun are bound to have complaints like this at some point, but I’ve seen them across reviews in multiple states and from far too many customers to believe that this type of aggressive sales behavior isn’t, at least on some level, promoted by the company itself.

I suspect that the wide range of reviews for Sunrun installations and customer service after the panels are installed has a lot to do with the fact that the company outsources all of its installations to third parties. This often leads to delays in responses and issues if and when either Sunrun or the installer needs to take responsibility for problems and delays that arise. It seems that a lot depends on the local installer Sunrun assigns your solar project to, as is the case with most providers that outsource installation labor.

Overall, Sunrun probably isn’t the best company if you’re looking for high-quality customer service. I personally wouldn’t recommend the provider unless you’re dead set on a solar lease option or PPA, in which case the added warranty coverage Sunrun provides might be enough to outweigh the negatives and risk of poor customer service.

Sunrun Comparison

The table below compares Sunrun with two solar companies of similar size that service some of the same areas.

Who is Sunrun Best For?

I think Sunrun is best for homeowners who know they want or need a solar lease or PPA and want solid warranty coverage for their system and the installation labor. I’ll say it again: I don’t recommend leases or PPAs if you can swing a cash purchase or qualify for a solar loan, but if you know you absolutely don’t want to or can’t put any money down, then these low-cost options could work for you. In that case, Sunrun is a solid option because it offers added roof leak protection at no cost for leases and PPAs, and it also includes professional system monitoring at no added cost to identify problems with production early.

Sunrun is also an optimal option for homeowners who live in areas that don’t have access to net metering programs or have sub-par net metering policies. It has three different battery options that can help you maximize your savings in lieu of a one-to-one net metering program, including its own battery available in California and Hawaii specifically designed for savings for customers who have time-of-use electricity plans and high energy costs.

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What’s Next?

I always recommend that homeowners educate themselves on whether or not solar is worth it in their area, but I think that’s especially important if you’re considering Sunrun. The company has a history of misrepresenting savings and the value of its systems during the sales process, so arming yourself with knowledge is a good strategy so that you’re not misled. I also suggest learning about how the ITC and other solar incentives in your area work, as Sunrun representatives have also been known to get those details wrong.

If you’re considering Sunrun, I have to imagine that you know you want a lease or PPA. Before committing, I’d recommend learning about all of your solar financing options first to make sure the no-money-down options are really what you want, as they’re often far less beneficial than paying with cash or taking out a loan.

Finally, lots of other solar installers provide access to leases and PPAs, so even if that is the route you want to go, I’d recommend looking at some of our other solar company reviews. I suggest reading through our Sunrun vs. SunPower comparison, as well as our Sunrun vs. Momentum Solar comparison, as both SunPower and Momentum also offer leases and PPAs and outperform Sunrun — in my opinion — in many other areas.