Solar export rules attach to an electricity account, not just a place on a map. Two homes in the same state can have different suppliers, customer classifications or legacy arrangements. A country can also have several export payment systems.
Answer: To find your solar export rules, start with your utility and electricity supplier, then check the applicable regulator guidance, tariff and eligibility date. Net metering, net billing and feed-in payments can value exports differently. The selected jurisdictions below show why a state or country label alone cannot establish your rate, bill savings or credit expiry.
First identify what your program actually pays for
Electricity used directly in your home and electricity exported to the grid are separate flows. Self-consumption can reduce purchased energy; export compensation values the surplus that reaches the grid. Your production app and utility meter therefore need not report the same quantity.
| Arrangement | What to check in the actual terms |
|---|---|
| Net metering | Which imports and exports are netted, over what interval, and which bill components credits can offset |
| Net billing | The separate import and export schedules, including time-dependent values |
| Feed-in or export payment | The qualifying installation, measured exported energy, payment contract and applicable rate |
These labels are a starting point. They do not prove that every exported kilowatt-hour earns the full retail price. Nor does “net billing” mean the export price must always be lower than the import price.
For terminology, see the net metering definition. For a professional tariff record and import/export modeling checks, use the installer reference.
Selected US state examples: start with the utility
This is a navigation guide to selected arrangements, reviewed September 30, 2026. It is not a complete eligibility list for all states or a live price comparison. The linked authority or supplier is the next stop before accepting a quote.
California: distinguish legacy NEM from the Net Billing Tariff
The CPUC customer-generation guidance describes the Net Billing Tariff for PG&E, SCE and SDG&E. New applications from April 15, 2023 generally enter that framework, rather than NEM 2.0.
Legacy customers need to establish their own eligibility and remaining terms. Municipal and other utility territories cannot be inferred from these three utilities. For a new project, ask which export schedule the proposal uses and whether the calculation reflects the hours when your system exports. An average annual rate can hide important timing differences.
Arizona: an APS example is not an Arizona-wide rule
APS renewable-energy riders distinguish net-billing arrangements and legacy net-metering eligibility. APS guidance does not establish the rules for another Arizona utility.
Identify your service provider before using a statewide comparison. Then ask for the rider, import plan and any applicable legacy status. “Arizona pays this rate” is too broad to support a savings estimate.
Illinois: ComEd separates new and legacy customers
ComEd’s 2026 net-metering FAQ distinguishes customers interconnected before January 1, 2025 from later customers. For the residential and small-load categories it describes, new credits offset supply charges, while legacy arrangements can cover additional bill sections.
ComEd also distinguishes credit units, supplier choices and expiry. Later customers’ credits do not expire under the FAQ; some legacy fixed-price kilowatt-hour credits reset annually. Customer and standard meter charges remain payable. These are ComEd-specific checks, not a description of every Illinois account.
Massachusetts: facility class and credit calculation matter
The Massachusetts net-metering guide explains the framework for regulated Eversource, National Grid and Unitil customers. Credits are expressed in dollars, and the calculation depends on the facility and customer classifications and utility.
Do not substitute a single statewide retail price for the credit calculation. Check facility eligibility, applicable caps or exemptions, and the interaction with any other compensation arrangement. A headline about Massachusetts net metering does not establish the credit value for your roof.
Selected country examples: export payment is not one global policy
Great Britain: Smart Export Guarantee contracts
Ofgem’s Smart Export Guarantee supplier guidance explains that suppliers set tariff rates and terms, subject to program requirements including a positive export rate. There is no single national SEG price.
Compare the contract available to your installation, not just the supplier’s advertised headline. Check eligibility, payment intervals and any conditions on the import account or equipment. This example concerns Great Britain; it does not establish arrangements throughout the UK.
Germany: EEG payments depend on the installation
Bundesnetzagentur’s EEG remuneration guidance provides schedules linked to commissioning period and installed capacity. It distinguishes surplus export from full-feed-in arrangements.
Find the schedule for your commissioning date and installation category. A rate advertised for a newly commissioned full-feed-in system is not automatically the rate for a home using part of its production. This is an EEG payment example, not a claim that Germany operates US-style retail net metering.
Philippines: a Meralco example
Meralco’s net-metering FAQs describe surplus export credits using the monthly blended generation charge, excluding the specified adjustments. That is different from crediting the complete retail bill rate.
The Meralco local guide covers the connection pathway. Other distribution utilities require their own current terms. A national program name does not make every utility’s application or monthly export value identical.
Find the rules for an unlisted location
Start with a recent electricity bill. Identify both the network utility and the supplier where those are separate. Open their official solar, distributed-generation or export-tariff pages, then follow links to the regulator’s current program guidance.
Before accepting a proposal, obtain answers to these account-specific questions:
- Which tariff or contract applies, and which eligibility date determines it?
- What is the import price, and how is exported energy valued?
- Can credits offset delivery charges, taxes or fixed charges?
- Do unused credits roll over, expire or qualify for a payment?
- Is there an approved export limit or a condition that changes after adding storage?
- What connection approval and permission to operate must be received before exporting?
Save the tariff document and the quote’s assumptions together. If an installer provides only a country-level price or annual generation total, ask for the missing account details. Where rules have changed, distinguish an existing customer’s arrangement from the terms available to a new applicant.
Compare savings without assuming every solar unit is an export
A useful quote distinguishes solar used on site, energy exported, energy imported and charges that remain. Annual generation alone cannot show the bill reduction: production and household demand must be compared over the relevant intervals.
Compare proposals using the same consumption record, tariff version and equipment assumptions. Ask what happens if your supplier changes, your legacy period ends, or household demand shifts. Treat projected savings as a scenario with stated inputs, rather than a promised outcome.
Storage deserves a separate calculation. It can move energy to another time, but installation cost, losses, usable capacity, operating limits and tariff differences affect its value. A low export price does not establish battery payback, and backup capability is a separate equipment and installation question.
Solar professionals can use the generation and financial workflow to discuss project assumptions, then book a demonstration to evaluate the workflow with their own tariff records. The tariff authority remains the source for eligibility and payment terms.
Editorial scope and source checks
SurgePV publishes this guide as a solar software provider. It compares selected official regulator and utility explanations, rather than reporting customer outcomes or independent tariff testing. The aim is to help readers find the correct local source, not to rank jurisdictions by profitability.
The official ComEd, CPUC, APS, Ofgem, Bundesnetzagentur and Meralco material informed this review. The Massachusetts guide was available through indexed official text; direct retrieval was unavailable during the review. Verify the current full guide and your utility’s terms before relying on the Massachusetts example. Export rates and eligibility can change after this review date.
Frequently asked questions
Does my state determine my net metering rate?
Your state sets part of the framework, but your utility, electricity supplier, customer class, tariff and eligibility date determine the arrangement available to your account.
Is net billing always paid below the retail rate?
No. Export and import prices are calculated separately, and their relationship can change by tariff and time period. Read the actual export schedule instead of assuming a fixed discount.
Are solar export credits paid in cash?
Not necessarily. A program may provide bill credits, payments or a settlement at a specified interval. Credit rollover, expiry and cash-out rules must be checked separately.
Can new California customers still use NEM 2.0?
For the investor-owned utilities covered by the CPUC framework, new applications since April 15, 2023 generally use the Net Billing Tariff. Existing legacy arrangements and other utility territories require separate checks.
Should I buy a battery if export credits are low?
A low export price is one reason to evaluate storage, but it does not establish a financial return. Compare installation cost, usable energy, losses, import prices, operating restrictions and your actual load profile.
Where this fits
This article is part of SurgePV's Solar Incentives & Policy hub, which works through the topic from first principles to the decisions a project team actually has to make.
