Complete Guide to Solar Energy in Idaho
Your complete resource for solar energy. Everything you need to know about solar laws, solar costs, solar financing, and solar installation in Idaho.
Why Solar Makes Sense in Idaho
Growing Solar Market
Solar is now an established part of Idaho’s energy mix. Idaho’s Office of Energy and Mineral Resources reports 619 MW of installed solar generation in the state, and utility-scale solar has expanded significantly since it first came online in 2016.
Strong Value for Daytime Self-Supply
In Idaho, solar works best when a system is designed to offset your own on-site electricity use during the day. That makes system sizing, household load timing, and realistic export assumptions especially important for homeowners.
State-Level Financing and Tax Benefits
Idaho homeowners can combine state-level financing tools with the Idaho alternative energy tax deduction to reduce upfront cost and improve long-term project economics.
Battery Backup Adds Resilience
Most standard grid-tied solar systems do not keep your home powered during an outage on their own. Homeowners who want backup power should plan for battery storage or another backup solution from the beginning.
Quick Solar Facts
Explore Solar Topics
Laws & Regulations
Customer generation tariffs, utility export credit structures, Idaho disclosure rules for solar retailers, solar easements, and current federal incentive status.
Residential Solar
A guide for homeowners in Idaho covering roof suitability, shading, inverter choices, battery storage, and system sizing based on household energy use.
Costs & Savings
How Idaho’s relatively low electricity prices affect payback, why self-consumption matters, and how export credits influence long-term solar value.
Financing Options
Cash purchase, solar loans, OEMR low-interest loan programs, and Idaho state tax deduction considerations for homeowners.
Installation Guide
How to choose an installer, understand local permitting, prepare for utility interconnection, and plan for inverter, meter, and shutdown requirements.
Solar 101
How photovoltaic systems work, when solar produces the most power, how orientation and shading affect output, and what to expect seasonally in Idaho.
Community Solar
Solar considerations for rural properties, barns, shops, and irrigation-related loads, including when larger on-site generation schedules may apply.
Solar Calculator
Estimate your solar savings and system requirements.
Quick Solar Savings Calculator
Important 2026 Updates
Idaho Power Export Credit Rates Remain in Effect Until the 2028 Filing
For Idaho Power on-site generation customers, excess exported energy is credited through net billing at the Export Credit Rate rather than a traditional 1:1 retail net metering structure. Idaho Power states that the current ECR will remain in place until the utility proposes updates as part of an April 1, 2028 filing, and later updates may occur annually after that.
Idaho Power Customer Generation
Idaho State Energy Loan Program Remains Available for Qualified Home Projects
Idaho’s Office of Energy and Mineral Resources continues to offer the State Energy Loan Program for single-family homes. The program provides low-interest financing for qualifying energy projects, including eligible renewable energy improvements, and can help homeowners spread out upfront project costs.
Idaho OEMR State Energy Loan Program
Idaho Solar Laws & Regulations
Customer Generation and Export Credits
Idaho does not operate under a single statewide retail-rate net metering structure for all homeowners. For Idaho Power customers, on-site solar is governed by customer generation tariffs, and exported electricity is compensated at the applicable Export Credit Rate under net billing rules.
Idaho Power Customer Generation
Idaho Residential Solar Disclosure Requirements
Idaho’s Residential Solar Energy System Disclosure Act requires solar retailers to provide written disclosures before a customer signs an agreement. These disclosures are intended to give homeowners clearer information about system cost, projected savings, warranties, and the possibility that future legislative or regulatory changes could affect the value of exported power.
Idaho Residential Solar Energy System Disclosure Act
Idaho Alternative Energy Tax Deduction
Idaho law allows an income tax deduction for qualifying residential alternative energy devices, including certain solar systems. The deduction is 40% of eligible cost in the year the system is placed in service, followed by 20% per year for the next three years, subject to a maximum deduction of $5,000 in any one tax year.
Idaho Code 63-3022C