Ohio
Net metering in Ohio, provider by provider.
Every provider in the state, and every figure below read from the published tariff or interconnection document rather than a comparison site. Some credit you the full retail rate for the power you send back. Most do not, and that difference is the whole reason this page exists.
Meter reading falling from 41926 to 41690 kilowatt hours. A 846 kilowatt hour month against 1,082 kilowatt hours produced leaves 0 kilowatt hours billed and 236 banked for next month, so the energy charge falls from $162.35 to $0.00 at 19.19 cents per kilowatt hour.
Ohio average household use, 846 kWh a month, at the current published residential price of 19.19¢ per kWh. Your utility still bills a fixed monthly customer charge that no system offsets, so this is the energy part of the bill, which is the part that goes away.
Solar buyback rates in Ohio, utility by utility
Ohio requires net metering but not payment: surplus becomes a monetary credit at the energy component of the utility’s standard service offer, carried to future bills, cannot be demanded as cash, and may be lost if unused or if service ends.
Credits you below retail
- AEP OhioInvestor owned/1.5M accountsFuel cost onlyRetail behind the meter, the energy price for exports
- Duke Energy OhioInvestor owned/750K accountsFuel cost onlyNetted monthly; surplus at the energy price, refundable once a year
- Ohio EdisonInvestor owned/1.0M accountsFuel cost onlyRetail behind the meter, the energy price for exports
- The Illuminating CompanyInvestor owned/750K accountsFuel cost onlyRetail behind the meter, the energy price for exports
- Toledo EdisonInvestor owned/310K accountsFuel cost onlyRetail behind the meter, the energy price for exports
Ohio net metering rules
Bill credit only, and it can expire.
- Who it binds
- The electric distribution utilities regulated by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio. Cooperatives and municipal systems are outside the rule.
- What happens to a surplus
- Credits go to future bills. The rule permits the credit to be lost if it is not used or if the customer stops taking service.
- How big a system you may build
- The system must use an eligible technology under the rule; size limits come from interconnection standards.
Ohio Admin. Code 4901:1-10-28 — checked 2026-09-05
What actually happens after you pick
Most sites in this business hand your number to a sales team and disappear. We do the preparation first, so the company that turns up already knows your situation.
You see your real terms
Your provider page shows what that specific utility credits you, when it trues up, and where the catch is. Sourced and dated, not a sales page.
You choose the company
Companies serving your territory in Ohio, with the reviews, years trading and BBB grade we found for each. You pick. Not a call center, not an auction.
We set the whole thing up
We call you, go through your bill and your last twelve months of use, work out what your utility owes you, and get the program paperwork in order.
They arrive prepared
The company you chose turns up to a job that is already understood, with your figures in hand. No cold pitch on your doorstep.
Solar installers in Ohio
Every company we list for at least one Ohio utility. Each profile shows the utilities it covers and what each one pays for the power you export.
Net metering in Ohio: the questions people ask
- Does Ohio have net metering?
- Ohio requires net metering but not payment: surplus becomes a monetary credit at the energy component of the utility’s standard service offer, carried to future bills, cannot be demanded as cash, and may be lost if unused or if service ends.
- What is the solar buyback rate in Ohio?
- It is set utility by utility, not by the state. How the 5 providers we list in Ohio credit the power you export: 5 at a rate below retail. Each one’s own page gives its figure and the date we read it.
- Is solar worth it in Ohio in 2026?
- It depends mostly on what your utility pays for the power you export, because the 30% federal credit ended for systems completed after 31 December 2025. Ohio homes use about 846 kWh a month at an average of 19.19 cents per kWh, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Where exports are credited at the full retail rate, each kilowatt hour your panels send back is worth about that much; where they are credited below retail, size the system to what you use while the sun is up. Check your own utility on this page before you get a quote for solar panels.
- Is there a solar tax credit in Ohio in 2026?
- Not a federal one. The 30% federal credit, IRC Section 25D, ended for systems completed after 31 December 2025, and a deposit paid in 2025 does not preserve it. Anyone still quoting it is working from an old script. Any incentive left in Ohio comes from the state or your utility, and what your utility pays for exported power is now most of the financial case.
- Which providers does the Ohio rule cover?
- The electric distribution utilities regulated by the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio. Cooperatives and municipal systems are outside the rule.
- What happens to credits you do not use in Ohio?
- Credits go to future bills. The rule permits the credit to be lost if it is not used or if the customer stops taking service. No cash-out right. The utility is not required to pay the monetary credit directly.
- How big a solar system can you install in Ohio?
- The system must use an eligible technology under the rule; size limits come from interconnection standards.
- Which electricity providers does this cover in Ohio?
- We have read the published terms of 5 providers in Ohio: AEP Ohio, Duke Energy Ohio, Ohio Edison, The Illuminating Company, Toledo Edison. Each has its own page with the figures taken from its own tariff or from the state’s own order.
Source: Ohio Admin. Code 4901:1-10-28, checked 2026-09-05.
Not sure which one you are on?
It is the name at the top of your bill. Find it on the schedule and we will show you what it pays.
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