How much electricity do solar panels produce in Chicago, Illinois?

About 1,369 kWh a year for each kW of panels, for a roof-mounted, south-facing array at a 30° tilt with 14% system losses (PVWatts). A 7.9 kW system would make about 10,788 kWh in its first year. Shade, a different roof angle or an east or west-facing roof will change this.

How much could solar panels save in Chicago, Illinois?

At Illinois’s average residential price of 19.23¢ per kWh, a 7.9 kW system sized for an average US home would save about $2,075 in its first year and $70,724 over 25 years. That assumes the home uses all the power the panels make, electricity prices rise 3% a year and panel output falls 0.5% a year. Power sent to the grid is counted at zero. At the US average price of 18.19¢, the first-year figure would be $1,962.

How long do solar panels take to pay back in Chicago, Illinois?

It depends on the installed price on your quote, which varies by installer and system, and we do not have a verified US average to use. Enter your quote in the calculator on this page: Chicago’s solar output and Illinois’s electricity price are already filled in. Every $0.10 per watt adds about $790 to the price of a 7.9 kW system.

What do homes in Chicago, Illinois pay for electricity?

Illinois’s average residential price for January to August 2026 was 19.23¢ per kWh, against 18.19¢ for the US as a whole (EIA Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.B). Your own rate depends on your utility and plan, so use the figure from your bill in the calculator if you can.

How does Chicago compare with nearby cities?

Of the 5 nearest cities we cover, Phoenix (1,445 miles away) gets the most sun at 1,788 kWh per kW, and Philadelphia (667 miles away) the least at 1,385 kWh. Chicago gets 1,369 kWh, less than any of them. Within Illinois, it ranks 9th of the 9 cities we cover.

Where do these figures come from?

Solar output is from the PVWatts V8 tool for Chicago’s coordinates in the Census Bureau Gazetteer, checked on 2026-11-10. The electricity price is the EIA residential average for Illinois for January to August 2026, and household use is the EIA average for US homes. Each figure is listed with its source link at the bottom of this page.

Solar panels in Chicago, Illinois: output, savings and payback

Solar panels in Chicago produce about 1,369 kWh a year for each kW installed, 10% less than the average of the 400 US cities in our data (1,517 kWh). Among the 9 Illinois cities we cover, it ranks 9th of 9 for solar output, against an average there of 1,386 kWh.

Illinois’s average residential electricity price for January to August 2026 was 19.23¢ per kWh, 1.04¢ above the US average of 18.19¢, according to the Energy Information Administration.

For a home using the US average of 899 kWh a month, a 7.9 kW system would cover a year’s use and save about $2,075 in its first year, or $70,724 over 25 years. With the average sunshine of the 400 US cities in our data, the same home would need a 7.1 kW system. Because Chicago gets less sun, it needs 11% more capacity to cover the same use, so at any price per watt the system costs 11% more and pays for itself later.

There is no verified US installed-price figure yet, so add the price per watt from your installer’s quote in the calculator below to see the payback period for Chicago.

A typical home in Chicago

System size: 7.9 kW; Sized to cover 10,788 kWh a year
First-year generation: 10,788 kWh
First-year savings: $2,075; At 19.23¢ per kWh
Savings over 25 years: $70,724; Prices rising 3% a year
Payback: Needs your quote; No verified US installed price yet: enter yours below

Assumes all the electricity the panels make is used at home, up to the home’s yearly use, and that panel output falls 0.5% a year. Power sent to the grid is counted at zero.

How Chicago compares

Chicago compared with the Illinois and US averages
	Chicago	Illinois average	US average
Solar output, kWh per kW a year	1,369	1,386	1,517
Electricity price per kWh	19.23¢	19.23¢	18.19¢
System size for a typical home	7.9 kW	7.8 kW	7.1 kW
First-year savings	$2,075	$2,075	$1,962

Averages are of the 9 places in Illinois and the 400 US cities in our data, unweighted. The US column uses the US average price as well as the average sunshine.

Your home in Chicago

All amounts in US dollars.

Your home

Nearest city

Sets how much electricity each kW of panels makes in a year at your location.

Electricity use

kWh per month

Check your utility bill: most show monthly kWh. Average your last 12 months if you can.

Electricity price

cents per kWh

Starts at the Illinois residential average for January to August 2026. Your bill shows your own rate.

Solar system

System size

Leave blank to size the panels to cover your yearly use, or enter the size on your quote.

Installed price

Price per wattTotal quoted price

Price per watt

$per W

Enter the price from your installer quote to see cost, payback and return. Your quote divided by the system size in watts (for example, a 6 kW system is 6,000 W).

Assumptions you can change

Panel output loss

% per year

Starts at 0.5%, the median of nearly 2,000 reported rates in an NREL review.

Electricity price change

% per year

A scenario, not a forecast. Try 0% and 5% to see how much it matters.

Used directly at home

Share of the panels’ output your home uses as it is made. 100% assumes all of it offsets power you would otherwise buy, up to your annual use.

Add a home battery

A battery only adds savings when you use less than 100% of your solar power directly. Lower “Used directly at home” under assumptions to model that.

Results

Payback period

Add your installer’s quoted price to see payback

First-year savings: $2,075
Savings over 25 years: $70,724
System size: 7.9 kW; Sized to cover your yearly use
First-year generation: 10,788 kWh

Cumulative savings over 25 yearsAdd your quoted price to compare against the cost.

Year-by-year table

Generation and savings for each of the 25 years
Year	Generation (kWh)	Price per kWh	Saved that year	Saved so far
1	10,788	$0.192	$2,075	$2,075
2	10,734	$0.198	$2,126	$4,201
3	10,680	$0.204	$2,179	$6,380
4	10,627	$0.210	$2,233	$8,613
5	10,574	$0.216	$2,289	$10,901
6	10,521	$0.223	$2,345	$13,247
7	10,468	$0.230	$2,404	$15,650
8	10,416	$0.237	$2,463	$18,114
9	10,364	$0.244	$2,525	$20,638
10	10,312	$0.251	$2,587	$23,226
11	10,261	$0.258	$2,652	$25,877
12	10,209	$0.266	$2,718	$28,595
13	10,158	$0.274	$2,785	$31,380
14	10,107	$0.282	$2,854	$34,235
15	10,057	$0.291	$2,925	$37,160
16	10,007	$0.300	$2,998	$40,158
17	9,957	$0.309	$3,072	$43,230
18	9,907	$0.318	$3,149	$46,379
19	9,857	$0.327	$3,227	$49,606
20	9,808	$0.337	$3,307	$52,913
21	9,759	$0.347	$3,389	$56,303
22	9,710	$0.358	$3,474	$59,776
23	9,662	$0.368	$3,560	$63,336
24	9,613	$0.380	$3,648	$66,985
25	9,565	$0.391	$3,739	$70,724

Savings count only electricity your home no longer buys. Power sent to the grid is valued at zero. Grid emissions data has not been verified yet, so no carbon figure is shown. See the methodology for every formula and source.

Nearby cities

City	Distance	kWh per kW a year	Price per kWh	System size	First-year savings
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	667 miles	1,385	21.13¢	7.8 kW	$2,280
New York, New York	718 miles	1,395	29.26¢	7.7 kW	$3,157
Houston, Texas	937 miles	1,428	16.03¢	7.6 kW	$1,729
San Antonio, Texas	1,048 miles	1,512	16.03¢	7.1 kW	$1,729
Phoenix, Arizona	1,445 miles	1,788	15.36¢	6.0 kW	$1,657

Solar panels in Chicago: questions

How much electricity do solar panels produce in Chicago, Illinois?: About 1,369 kWh a year for each kW of panels, for a roof-mounted, south-facing array at a 30° tilt with 14% system losses (PVWatts). A 7.9 kW system would make about 10,788 kWh in its first year. Shade, a different roof angle or an east or west-facing roof will change this.
How much could solar panels save in Chicago, Illinois?: At Illinois’s average residential price of 19.23¢ per kWh, a 7.9 kW system sized for an average US home would save about $2,075 in its first year and $70,724 over 25 years. That assumes the home uses all the power the panels make, electricity prices rise 3% a year and panel output falls 0.5% a year. Power sent to the grid is counted at zero. At the US average price of 18.19¢, the first-year figure would be $1,962.
How long do solar panels take to pay back in Chicago, Illinois?: It depends on the installed price on your quote, which varies by installer and system, and we do not have a verified US average to use. Enter your quote in the calculator on this page: Chicago’s solar output and Illinois’s electricity price are already filled in. Every $0.10 per watt adds about $790 to the price of a 7.9 kW system.
What do homes in Chicago, Illinois pay for electricity?: Illinois’s average residential price for January to August 2026 was 19.23¢ per kWh, against 18.19¢ for the US as a whole (EIA Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.6.B). Your own rate depends on your utility and plan, so use the figure from your bill in the calculator if you can.
How does Chicago compare with nearby cities?: Of the 5 nearest cities we cover, Phoenix (1,445 miles away) gets the most sun at 1,788 kWh per kW, and Philadelphia (667 miles away) the least at 1,385 kWh. Chicago gets 1,369 kWh, less than any of them. Within Illinois, it ranks 9th of the 9 cities we cover.
Where do these figures come from?: Solar output is from the PVWatts V8 tool for Chicago’s coordinates in the Census Bureau Gazetteer, checked on 2026-11-10. The electricity price is the EIA residential average for Illinois for January to August 2026, and household use is the EIA average for US homes. Each figure is listed with its source link at the bottom of this page.

Sources for this page

Solar output for Chicago: developer.nlr.gov (checked 2026-11-10)PVWatts V8.5.0 outputs.ac_annual for a 1 kW system. Weather data: 902141.csv, station at 41.84999847412109, -87.69999694824219 (1,908 m away).
Illinois electricity price: www.eia.gov (checked 2026-11-11)Illinois, residential sector, year-to-date through August 2026. Published as 19.23 cents per kilowatthour.
US average price: www.eia.gov (checked 2026-11-11)U.S. Total, residential sector, year-to-date through August 2026. Published as 18.19 cents per kilowatthour.
Typical household use: www.eia.gov (checked 2026-11-10)Average annual electricity sold to a U.S. residential utility customer in 2022: 10,791 kWh ("an average of about 899 kWh per month").
Panel output loss: docs.nlr.gov (checked 2026-11-10)Median of nearly 2,000 reported degradation rates: "a median value of 0.5%/year" (average 0.8%/year).
Location: www2.census.gov (checked 2026-11-10)Census Gazetteer INTPTLAT/INTPTLONG (internal point) for GEOID 1714000, "Chicago city".

Methods and every other figure are on the methodology page.