Wisconsin Solar Buyback Rates Vary by Utility and System Size

A Wisconsin solar proposal should name the utility tariff behind its savings estimate. “Wisconsin has net metering” is not enough to explain what a particular homeowner will receive for exported electricity.

The Public Service Commission points customers toward utility-specific buyback arrangements. Its interconnection framework and a utility's compensation schedule answer different questions: being eligible to connect does not establish the price for power.

Two current examples show why a sales model needs more than a state name.

WPS: distinguish monthly netting from net excess

Wisconsin Public Service's PG-4 tariff generally covers eligible renewable systems at or below its defined 20 kW limit, subject to the tariff's capacity calculation and exceptions. For monthly net excess, its current energy credit is $0.03584 per kWh effective January 1, 2026. The tariff provides an annual update mechanism. That figure is not the value of every kilowatt-hour the panels produce.

Suppose a proposal predicts more electricity than the household needs in a sunny billing period. The financial review should identify the surplus separately from energy that offsets purchases under the monthly arrangement. An estimate that assigns the retail price to the entire surplus can overstate what that month's excess is worth.

Ask which tariff-defined capacity figure was used. Panel marketing specifications and the number used for tariff eligibility may not be interchangeable. Get the utility's classification in writing rather than attempting to settle an eligibility question from a sales brochure.

MGE: prior exports can change the treatment

Madison Gas and Electric's Pg-2 schedule, effective January 1, 2026, covers qualifying facilities with aggregate capability of 100 kW AC or less. Its net-seller test looks back over the preceding 12 months. Net purchasers and net sellers have different credit treatment for net excess; the latter use the parallel-generation buyback schedule.

MGE explains that net-seller status is reassessed monthly, beginning after the initial 12 months of net-metering service. A customer's first year is therefore not necessarily a complete demonstration of future excess-credit treatment.

That matters when a seller relies on a new customer's bills to support a long-term promise. Ask for an estimate that applies the status test beyond the introductory period. A household that exports persistently should not be shown only the results for one that purchases more energy over the relevant period.

Put the comparison in writing

Request a simple explanation of the utility, tariff, qualifying system size, monthly calculation and treatment of remaining credits. Ask whether unused value is an energy balance or a dollar balance, and when it can be paid out. These details affect household cash flow even when a sales chart shows the same annual production.

Neither example establishes the rules for every Wisconsin cooperative, municipal utility or investor-owned utility. A quote prepared for WPS should not be reused for MGE without changing the compensation assumptions, and neither should be copied into another provider's territory.

The PSC's general guidance is a starting point. The applicable tariff and account classification are the documents needed to check a particular bill.

Compare the promise with the whole cost

Save the forecast and the version of the tariff used to prepare it. Gather enough bills to examine seasonal production and, where applicable, the net-seller lookback. Keep the financing payment separate from the utility calculation so an export credit is not mistaken for total household savings.

If you are considering selling the home, retain these records for questions about the remaining agreement and the buyer's expected bills. Avoid presenting your best production month as a normal year.

Solar Exit's utility-billing review and document review can help organize the evidence. A shortfall deserves a specific explanation, not an unsupported promise that more panels will solve it.

General consumer information, not legal, tax, mortgage or electrical advice. Contract remedies and savings depend on the facts.