Solar Installers in San Francisco, CA

San Francisco is one of the most distinctive solar markets in California — and one of the most misunderstood. The city’s famous fog is the first thing most homeowners think about when considering solar, but it’s rarely the limiting factor people imagine. What matters more: which neighborhood you’re in, who supplies your electricity, and how your system is sized for SF’s unusually low energy usage. Most San Francisco residents are automatically enrolled in CleanPowerSF, the city’s community choice electricity program — which means solar permitting, interconnection, and billing have some important differences from what PG&E customers in the rest of Northern California experience.

Does Fog Affect Solar in San Francisco?

The short answer is yes — but less than you’d think, and it depends heavily on where you live.

San Francisco’s famous fog is not uniform. The city’s 40-plus hills create distinct microclimates that can vary by 20+ degrees and dramatically different solar exposure within just a few miles. The western neighborhoods — the Outer Sunset, Outer Richmond, and areas near the Pacific coast — experience the most fog, particularly during summer mornings. Eastern and central neighborhoods — the Mission, Noe Valley, Bernal Heights, Potrero Hill, and SoMa — receive significantly more sunshine year-round and are among the best solar locations in the Bay Area.

The good news for everyone: modern solar panels convert both direct sunlight and diffuse light. On foggy days, panels still produce electricity — typically at 10–25% of their clear-sky output. Because SF’s fog usually burns off by midday or early afternoon, annual production is often better than residents expect. The right response to fog isn’t to skip solar; it’s to work with an experienced local installer who knows your specific microclimate, sizes the system appropriately for SF’s lower energy usage, and orients panels to capture maximum afternoon sun once the fog clears.

Your Utility: CleanPowerSF and PG&E

San Francisco has an unusually layered utility structure that every solar buyer needs to understand before signing a contract.

**CleanPowerSF (default for most SF residents):** If you’re a residential customer in San Francisco, you are almost certainly enrolled in CleanPowerSF — the city’s community choice aggregation program, operated by the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission. CleanPowerSF supplies your electricity generation (currently 100% renewable on its default Green plan); PG&E continues to own and deliver power through the grid and issues your monthly bill. The two entities appear as line items on the same PG&E bill.

For solar, this distinction matters significantly. CleanPowerSF currently operates its own NEM program and is in the process of transitioning to its own Solar Billing Plan (a NEM 3.0 successor), which is proposed to include a local renewable energy bonus credit for SF generation. The export compensation structure, bonus credits, and billing terms are set by CleanPowerSF — not PG&E. As of early 2026, CleanPowerSF NEM customers receive net surplus compensation at ~$0.089/kWh for annual excess generation, higher than PG&E’s rate. CARE, FERA, and Medical Baseline discounts are available through CleanPowerSF at the same eligibility thresholds as PG&E.

In January 2026, CleanPowerSF approved a 20–25% reduction in its generation supply charges to help offset PG&E’s delivery rate increases that took effect at the same time — leaving most CleanPowerSF customers’ total bills relatively stable despite the PG&E increases.

**PG&E Solar Billing Plan (NEM 3.0):** Customers who have opted out of CleanPowerSF or whose interconnection falls under PG&E’s direct jurisdiction operate under PG&E’s Solar Billing Plan — the same NEM 3.0 structure as the rest of PG&E territory. Export credits average $0.05–$0.08/kWh, peak pricing runs 4–9 PM on the required E-ELEC rate, and annual True-Up is replaced by monthly billing with rolling credit carryover. PG&E customers in SF also receive the NEM 3.0 export compensation adder through 2027 (unlike SDG&E customers). The one-time PG&E interconnection fee is $145. Your installer submits the interconnection application to PG&E, and PG&E issues Permission to Operate after installation passes city inspection.

What Solar Costs in San Francisco

San Francisco solar installation costs run approximately $3.00–$3.20/watt — among the higher ranges in California, reflecting the Bay Area’s labor market and the logistics of urban rooftop access. A system sized for San Francisco’s typical energy usage is smaller than in most California cities: the average SF residential customer uses roughly 250–280 kWh/month, significantly less than inland cities where summer air conditioning drives higher consumption. That means a 3–5kW system is often appropriate for an SF home, costing $9,000–$15,000 before incentives. City of San Francisco permits are processed through the Department of Building Inspection; residential solar permits typically take 1–2 weeks. PG&E interconnection review adds 2–4 weeks. Total timeline from contract to activation generally runs 8–12 weeks.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do solar panels work in San Francisco's fog?

Yes — modern panels generate electricity from diffuse light, not just direct sunlight. On fully overcast or foggy days, a system might produce 10–25% of its clear-sky output, but SF’s fog typically burns off by midday or early afternoon, especially in spring and fall. Your annual production will be lower than in a sun-rich Inland Empire city, but the combination of high PG&E/CleanPowerSF rates and SF’s mild climate (no summer A/C load, meaning lower electricity use) actually makes payback math work reasonably well. The key is working with an installer who understands your specific neighborhood’s solar resource and sizes the system appropriately for SF’s lower consumption.

I'm on CleanPowerSF. Does my solar connect through CleanPowerSF or PG&E?

Both — in different ways. PG&E owns and operates the physical grid, so your solar panels interconnect physically through PG&E. PG&E issues your Permission to Operate and handles meter installation. However, the generation portion of your billing — including export credits and NEM compensation — is governed by CleanPowerSF’s NEM tariff (not PG&E’s Solar Billing Plan), as long as you remain a CleanPowerSF customer. Your installer should be familiar with this split structure; experienced SF solar installers navigate it routinely.

What is CleanPowerSF's Solar Billing Plan, and when will it replace NEM?

CleanPowerSF is developing its own Solar Billing Plan to eventually replace NEM 2.0 — similar to how PG&E transitioned to NEM 3.0 in 2023. As of early 2026, CleanPowerSF is still in the process of finalizing and gaining approval for its Solar Billing Plan. The proposed plan includes avoided-cost-based export compensation (similar to NEM 3.0) plus a local renewable energy bonus credit for generating clean power in San Francisco. Current CleanPowerSF NEM customers with existing systems are expected to be grandfathered for a period. If you’re considering going solar now, confirm the current status of CleanPowerSF’s NEM program directly with your installer or at cleanpowersf.org/solarbillingplan.

Which San Francisco neighborhoods get the most sun for solar?

SF’s famous microclimates create real differences in solar potential across the city. The eastern and central neighborhoods — Mission District, Noe Valley, Bernal Heights, Potrero Hill, the Castro, SoMa, and Mission Bay — receive the most sunshine and are generally the strongest solar locations. The Outer Sunset and Outer Richmond, closest to the Pacific coast, experience the most persistent fog and lowest solar production. Most neighborhoods in between (including the Inner Sunset, Haight-Ashbury, Cole Valley, and Excelsior) fall somewhere in the middle depending on their specific hillside position. A reputable local installer will pull irradiance data for your exact address — not just neighborhood averages.

What system size makes sense for a San Francisco home?

San Francisco’s mild climate means most households use far less electricity than comparable-sized homes in other California cities — typically 250–280 kWh/month, versus 600–1,000 kWh/month in places like Riverside or Fresno. As a result, appropriately sized SF systems are usually 3–5kW, smaller and less expensive than most other California markets. Oversizing is a real risk under NEM 3.0/CleanPowerSF’s Solar Billing Plan: you won’t get full retail credit for large amounts of exported electricity, so a system that matches your actual usage will outperform a larger system that exports heavily.