Financial Incentives

Besides being exempt from sales tax in Washington state, solar panels may be eligible for the Washington Renewable Energy Production Incentive, which offers up to $5,000 per year based on production. The base incentive is $0.15/kilowatt-hour, but can be as high as $0.36/kWh if the system was manufactured in Washington.

Additionally, the federal government offers the Residential Renewable Energy Tax Credit, which is designed to cover up to 30 percent of the cost of the system and installation. You’ll need to file for this credit on the year in which you install the system. Filing information can be found on the incentive page.

More Info & Contractors

As for additional information, you can check out our Solar Panels and Systems topic page to learn more about solar in general. We also have a list of contractors in your area with descriptions of what services they provide.

Cost

According to gosolarcalifornia.org, the price of solar panels can range from $3.50 to $10 per watt of system capacity, but most calculators use the $9/W as the average price. So if you were looking to install a 3 kW system, you’d expect to pay around $27,000, according to the average calculator. However, you need to consider the federal tax credit, other incentives and the money the system will save on your utility bills to figure out the actual cost.