Utilities · Solar in California
Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD): how it credits the solar power you send to the grid
9.6 cents per kWh for every kWh sent to the grid, at any hour, on the Solar and Storage Rate from June 1, 2026 (up from 7.4 cents).
Checked November 12, 2026. Utilities change these rules; check the current tariff before you sign.
How it works
Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) credits exported power at 9.6 cents per kWh, about 31% of California's average electricity price.
SMUD pays one flat export price day and night, all year, which is simpler than the hourly credits at California's investor-owned utilities and, at 9.6 cents, higher than their averages.
SMUD resets the price every four years from public cost data and its own costs, and can't move it more than 30% up or down at a time.
Export credits can only pay for electricity usage charges; any left over carries forward to later bills.
Tip: With a flat export price, a battery earns its keep through SMUD's 5 to 8 p.m. peak prices, not by timing exports.
What it means for a typical California home
An average California home uses about 5,928 kWh a year. A 3 kW system costs about $7,710 at the 2026 median price and makes about 5,031 kWh in its first year, of which we assume about 3,019 kWh goes out to the grid because no one is home to use it.
| First-year savings | Payback | 25-year savings, after the price | |
|---|---|---|---|
| With SMUD's credit | $921 | 8 years | $19,108 |
| If every exported kWh earned the full price | $1,577 | 5 years | $40,104 |
The difference, about $20,996 over 25 years, is what SMUD's rules cost a typical system compared with full net metering. Using more of the power at home, while the sun is up, closes some of that gap. Uses California's average electricity price; SMUD's own prices may be higher or lower. Paid in cash, no federal credit, prices rising 2.5% a year, one inverter replacement.
Also in California: PG&E (4.9¢), Southern California Edison (SCE) (6.6¢), SDG&E (3.7¢), LADWP (full retail credit).
All 55 utilities · Solar in California · Lease and PPA terms by company
Sources: SMUD: Solar and Storage Rate schedule, effective June 1, 2026; SMUD: Solar and Storage Rate; U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), final 2025 data: Annual State Historical Spreadsheets (Form EIA-861, released October 7, 2026) and Electric Power Annual (October 21, 2026); EnergySage: median quoted price, first half of 2026.