28.18¢28.18¢28.18¢ per kWh (August 2026)Average RI home electric price, latest monthAn early estimate. It is the all-in average: supply plus delivery.U.S. EIA, Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.ATable 5.6.A, Rhode Island row, Residential, August 2026 (released Oct 23, 2026)Verified Oct 28, 2026
It can be, for a home you own with a sunny roof. It depends most on your quote and on how much power your home uses. Each kW makes about 1,318 kWh1,318 kWh/kW/yrabout 1,318 kWh a year per kWPower one kW of panels makes in a year in ProvidenceModeled, not measured. East or west roofs and shade make less.National Laboratory of the Rockies (formerly NREL), PVWatts v8PVWatts v8 API: lat 41.824, lon -71.413, 1 kW, south-facing (180°), 25° tilt, 14% losses, NSRDB PSM V3 TMY weatherVerified Sep 28, 2026 a year, worth about $363$363Worked out from sourced numbers: 1,318 kWh × 27.553¢Power one kW of panels makes in a year in Providence: about 1,318 kWh a year per kW. Verified Sep 28, 2026.Home solar credit per kWh, standard home rate A-16: 27.553¢ per kWh (Oct 2026, standard home rate A-16). Verified Oct 28, 2026. on your bill at this month's home credit of 27.553¢27.553¢27.553¢ per kWh (Oct 2026, standard home rate A-16)Home solar credit per kWh, standard home rate A-16This changes when supply rates change. It shows on your bill as the renewable generation credit.RI Energy, Addendum to RIPUC Tariff No. 2095, Net Metering Credit by Rate Class, Oct 2026For the Month of October 2026. Row (21) Renewable Net Metering Credit, column A-16 (Fixed LRS): $(0.27553)Verified Oct 28, 2026.
The state's REF grant pays $1.65$1.65$1.65 per wattState grant per watt of solarThe state can change funding levels. It gives notice one round ahead.RI Commerce, Renewable Energy Fund, Small-Scale Request for Projects (rev. 4/6/26)Project Funding table, 'Starting Funding Year 2026', row D.O (Direct Ownership); also Small Scale Flyer, 'Current REF Incentive Levels'Verified Oct 28, 2026 per watt, up to $14,500$14,500The most the solar grant can payThe grant is paid to your installer, who takes it off your contract price.RI Commerce, Renewable Energy Fund, Small-Scale Request for Projects (rev. 4/6/26)Project Funding table, Max column: '$14,500/project'Verified Oct 28, 2026. A battery adds $5,000$5,000Extra grant for adding a home batteryOnly with a solar project that also gets the grant. The battery money has its own pot and can run out on its own. Battery projects get 18 months to finish.RI Commerce, REF Energy Storage Adder Request for Projects (v6, rev. 4/6/2026)Project Funding, 'Small Scale Program' rowVerified Oct 28, 2026. You must own the home and the system. Leases and PPAs don't qualify.You must own the home and the system. Leases and PPAs don't qualify.Who can get the grantYou must also own the property, and it must be in Rhode Island.RI Commerce, Renewable Energy Fund, Small-Scale Request for Projects (rev. 4/6/26)Things to know, bullet 6Verified Oct 28, 2026
No. The credit cut you may have read about covers remote ground-mount projects, not rooftops on your own meterNo. The 20% cut is for remote ground-mount projects, not rooftops on your own meter.Does the 20% credit cut hit a new home rooftop system?The law ties the cut to a cap on remote ground-mount projects, and systems on a home's own meter are left out of that cap. The utility's September home credit shows no reduced rate.R.I. Gen. Laws § 39-26.4-2(22) and § 39-26.4-3(a)(1)(vi); RI Energy Net Metering Provision RIPUC No. 2279 §3.3 and §4.33§ 39-26.4-3(a)(1)(vi), last sentence, exception (A); § 39-26.4-2(22) 20% sentenceVerified Sep 28, 2026. Your credit covers the supply and delivery parts of your bill. Fixed monthly charges stay.
No. The federal credit for home solar is gone for systems finished after Dec 31, 2025Gone for systems finished after Dec 31, 2025Federal solar tax credit for homeowners (section 25D)A system counts as finished when it is installed, not when you sign or pay.IRS, FAQs for modification of sections 25C, 25D ... under Public Law 119-21 (FS-2025-05, Aug 21, 2025)Termination table row 25D; Q&A citing § 25D(e)(8)(A)Verified Sep 28, 2026. Any page that still counts it is out of date.
What you will read elsewhere, and what the source says
Often said, but wrong
What the source says
Source
Wrong: REG, the state program that pays per kWh, pays on top of net metering.
REG replaces net metering.REG replaces net metering. You get one or the other.Does REG work with net metering?A system already on net metering can't join REG. Ask in writing who receives REG's cash part; RI Energy's documents differ on it.RI Energy, RE Growth Program Tariff for Residential Customers, RIPUC No. 2151-M (effective 4/1/2026)Sheets 6-7, project segmentation paragraphVerified Sep 28, 2026
Not for rooftops on your own meter.No. The 20% cut is for remote ground-mount projects, not rooftops on your own meter.Does the 20% credit cut hit a new home rooftop system?The law ties the cut to a cap on remote ground-mount projects, and systems on a home's own meter are left out of that cap. The utility's September home credit shows no reduced rate.R.I. Gen. Laws § 39-26.4-2(22) and § 39-26.4-3(a)(1)(vi); RI Energy Net Metering Provision RIPUC No. 2279 §3.3 and §4.33§ 39-26.4-3(a)(1)(vi), last sentence, exception (A); § 39-26.4-2(22) 20% sentenceVerified Sep 28, 2026
Wrong: Every town gives solar a property tax break.
Each town decides, by local ordinance.Up to your townProperty tax on solarAsk your town hall whether your town has an ordinance.R.I. Gen. Laws § 44-3-21§ 44-3-21 (full text, one sentence)Verified Sep 28, 2026
We read the source itself: the law, the utility's rate sheet, the state program rules. Not another blog. Every number links back to the exact section it came from, with the day we read it. When a rule changes, the page changes, and a number we can't confirm doesn't go up.