These benchmarks help measure progress toward goals for reducing solar electricity costs and guide SETO research and development programs. Read more to find out how these cost benchmarks are modeled and download the data and cost modeling program below.
Another measure of the relative cost of solar energy is its price per kilowatt-hour (kWh). Whereas the price per watt considers the solar system's size, the price per kWh shows the price of the solar system per unit of energy it produces over a given period of time. Net cost of the system / lifetime output = cost per kilowatt hour
Concerning solar power, the estimate of €293/MWh is for a large plant capable of producing in the range of 50–100 GWh/year located in a favourable location, such as in Southern Europe. For a small household plant that can produce around 3 MWh/year, the cost is between 400 and €700/MWh, depending on location.
The International Energy Agency and EDF have estimated the following costs. For nuclear power, they include the costs due to new safety investments to upgrade the French nuclear plant after the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster; the cost for those investments is estimated at €4/MWh.
The average cost per unit of energy generated across the lifetime of a new power plant. This data is expressed in US dollars per kilowatt-hour. It is adjusted for inflation but does not account for
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Solar power was by far the most expensive renewable source of electricity among the technologies studied, although increasing efficiency and longer lifespan of photovoltaic panels together with
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NLR analyzes the total costs associated with installing photovoltaic (PV) systems for residential rooftop, commercial rooftop, and utility-scale ground-mount systems. This work has grown
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Watch these six video tutorials to learn about NLR''s techno-economic analysis—from bottom-up cost modeling to full PV project economics.
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Each quarter, NREL conducts a presentation of technical trends within the solar industry.
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Wind and solar cost declines and wholesale power price fluctuations have once again brought the “hedge value” of renewable energy to front of mind. Meanwhile, recent research has found that cost
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Find statistics on electric power plants, capacity, generation, fuel consumption, sales, prices and customers. See more
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A quick visual snapshot of how prices for different generating resources is expected to change in the coming decades.
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Prices have ticked upward slightly in 2025 due to tariffs and a rush for solar before the 30% consumer solar tax credit expires on December 31, 2025. As a general trend, we expect U.S. solar prices to
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OverviewRegional studiesCost metricsCost factorsGlobal studiesSee alsoFurther readingNotes
In 2020, BNEF estimated the following costs for electricity generation in Australia: It can be seen from the following table that the cost of renewable energy, particularly photovoltaics, is falling very rapidly. As of 2017, the cost of electricity generation from photovoltaics, for example, has fallen by almost 75% within 7 years. In the United Kingdom, a feed-in tariff of £92.50/MWh at 2012 prices (currently the equivalent of €131/
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These benchmarks help measure progress toward goals for reducing solar electricity costs and guide SETO research and development programs. Read more to find out how these cost benchmarks are
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