APS E-12 vs SRP Time-of-Use Solar Plans: A Side-by-Side Monthly Bill Estimate for Phoenix Homeowners

Which Phoenix utility is better for solar: APS or SRP?

The honest answer is: it depends on where your electricity goes after your panels generate it. Both APS and SRP serve the Phoenix metro, and both have time-of-use solar rate plans, but the two utilities treat your solar production very differently. The utility you happen to be on, based on your neighborhood address, can shift your actual July bill by $30 to $60 or more on the same hardware.

This post builds a concrete monthly bill model for a typical 2,000 sq ft Phoenix home with a 7 kW solar system. The model runs through July, which is peak demand season in the Valley, and shows how export timing, on-peak usage, and demand charge exposure change the math between the APS Saver Choice (no demand charge) plan and SRP's TOU Export plan.

The goal is not to declare a winner. The right plan depends on how your household actually uses electricity. What the model does is show you which levers matter, so you can ask smarter questions before signing anything.

How does the APS solar export rate work in 2026?

APS customers who go solar are moved to a net billing plan, not the old net metering arrangement. Under net billing, your solar powers your home first. Any surplus that flows back to the grid earns a credit at the Resource Comparison Proxy (RCP) rate, which is currently $0.0617 per kWh. That rate is locked for 10 years from your interconnection date, so if you go solar this summer, you know exactly what your export credit is worth through 2036.

The retail rate you pay APS for grid power varies by time of use. On the Saver Choice plan, the on-peak window is 4 to 7 PM weekdays. Summer on-peak rates run roughly $0.18 to $0.30 per kWh depending on the specific Saver Choice tier you are on, while off-peak rates drop to around $0.08 to $0.11 per kWh. There is a monthly grid access fee of about $0.93 per kilowatt of system capacity, so a 7 kW system adds roughly $6.51 per month to your fixed charges.

The critical number: retail electricity from APS costs you about $0.14 per kWh on average, while the export credit pays you only $0.0617. That gap means self-consumption is worth roughly 2.3 times what exporting is. A system designed to max out export in a household that runs AC all evening will underperform a system sized for actual daily load.

How does the SRP TOU Export plan handle solar in 2026?

SRP's TOU Export plan is designed specifically for solar customers who want to avoid demand charges. There is no monthly demand charge on this plan, which is a meaningful departure from SRP's standard residential structure.

The trade-off is the export credit. SRP credits excess solar at 3.45 cents per kWh, which is roughly half what APS pays. That credit resets annually, so unlike the APS 10-year lock, SRP can adjust it each year.

SRP's on-peak window for summer runs 2 to 8 PM on weekdays. That is a full six-hour peak window, compared to APS's three hours from 4 to 7 PM. On-peak energy costs during July and August hit $0.2338 per kWh on the TOU Export plan, dropping to $0.1119 per kWh during off-peak hours. The monthly service charge for a standard single-family home is $30.

The wider peak window matters for solar. A 7 kW system in Phoenix typically generates its maximum output between 9 AM and 2 PM, tapering off as afternoon heat builds and panel temperature rises. By 3 PM, output is declining. Under SRP's 2 to 8 PM on-peak window, the tail end of your solar production may offset some on-peak draw, but a meaningful chunk of your evening usage from 4 to 8 PM is pure grid power at the higher on-peak rate.

What does a modeled July bill actually look like?

Here is a reasonable model for a 2,000 sq ft Phoenix home with a 7 kW solar system in July. The home uses about 1,800 kWh per month in summer, which is typical for a household of three to four people running central AC, a pool pump, and normal appliances. The 7 kW system produces roughly 1,050 kWh in July given Phoenix's average 6.5 peak sun hours per day and accounting for heat-related efficiency loss of around 10 to 15 percent at typical July temperatures.

On the APS Saver Choice plan, the household self-consumes about 600 kWh directly from solar during daylight hours and exports the remaining 450 kWh to the grid. In the evening and early morning, it pulls about 1,200 kWh from the grid. The 450 exported kWh earn $27.77 in credits at $0.0617. The 1,200 kWh of grid usage costs roughly $157 blended across peak and off-peak hours. Add the $6.51 grid access fee and the net bill lands around $135 before taxes and other adjustors.

On the SRP TOU Export plan, the same household exports 450 kWh but earns only $15.53 in credits at $0.0345. The 1,200 kWh of grid usage, with SRP's wider 2 to 8 PM on-peak window, costs closer to $175 because more of the evening draw falls in the on-peak tier. Add the $30 monthly service charge and the net bill runs around $190 before adjustors.

That is a $55 gap for the same home, same system, same usage, in July. The gap compresses in winter when SRP's peak windows split into morning and evening, and solar production is better matched to the off-peak window. But in summer, the combination of a shorter APS peak window, a higher export credit, and a lower fixed charge consistently favors APS for this type of household.

If your household can shift laundry, the dishwasher, and the pool pump outside the peak window, and you are willing to run the AC at 78 instead of 76 from 4 to 7 PM, you might look at the APS TOU with Demand Charge plan. The demand charge is $16.88 per kW of peak demand in summer, measured at the highest hour in the on-peak window. If you can keep that peak under 3 kW, the demand plan can be cheaper than Saver Choice. But one hot afternoon where you run the AC, the oven, and the dryer simultaneously at 5 PM will spike your demand charge and erase months of savings. For most families, Saver Choice is the safer default on APS territory.

How does export timing shift the math between APS and SRP?

Export timing is the variable that most installers underemphasize in their sales quotes. Your solar panels do not know what time it is. They generate power based on sunlight. The question is whether that power lands in your home during the hours you need it, and whether what you export is credited at a useful rate.

Phoenix gets about 6.5 peak sun hours per day on average, but solar output is not evenly distributed. Production ramps up around 8 AM, hits its maximum around solar noon, and declines by mid-afternoon. A west-facing array can shift the production curve an hour or two later, which helps on APS territory where the peak window starts at 4 PM. An east or south-facing array will front-load production into the morning, maximizing self-consumption for daytime loads but exporting more during midday when you do not need it.

On SRP territory, where the peak window runs 2 to 8 PM, a west-facing array actually works against you: you export midday surpluses at 3.45 cents and then pull peak-priced grid power in the late afternoon. A battery storage system changes this equation entirely. You can charge the battery from solar between 9 AM and 1 PM, then discharge it from 2 to 8 PM to displace on-peak grid purchases. On SRP territory with a battery, the TOU Export plan becomes more competitive.

For an independent read on how the plans stack up with and without storage, the APS vs SRP Solar Export Rates post covers the export credit mechanics in detail. And if you are trying to size a system for your specific usage pattern, the APS Solar Rate Plans post walks through the Saver Choice tiers in depth.

How do demand charges affect the comparison?

APS's Saver Choice plan has no demand charge. SRP's TOU Export plan also has no demand charge. Both of these are the demand-free options for solar customers at each utility.

Where demand charges come into play is on the APS TOU with Demand Charge plan (sometimes called Saver Choice Max) and on SRP's Customer Generation Plan, which is SRP's other solar option. SRP's Customer Generation Plan requires a $32 monthly solar charge and has a demand component, making it better suited to high-usage homes that can aggressively manage peak draw, usually with a battery.

For most Phoenix homeowners on a 7 kW system, the no-demand plans, APS Saver Choice and SRP TOU Export, are the right starting point. You give up some potential savings from the demand plan's lower energy rates, but you avoid the volatility of a spike month wiping out your savings.

That said, every household's usage profile is different. A home with a single-speed pool pump running at 5 PM, an EV charging after dinner, and three people showering in the evening will have a very different demand profile than a home where nobody is there until 7 PM. The right plan depends on your specific data, not a generic comparison.

Which Phoenix Valley cities are on APS and which are on SRP?

This is the question with the most misleading answers on the internet. APS and SRP divide the Phoenix metro by neighborhood, not by city. There are streets in Tempe where one side is APS and the other is SRP. The same is true in Chandler, Gilbert, Mesa, and Scottsdale.

In Scottsdale, most central and north Scottsdale neighborhoods are on APS, but pockets of south Scottsdale are SRP. In Gilbert, both utilities operate, and your specific subdivision matters more than the city name. In Mesa, there are large APS-served areas in the northern and western parts of the city and SRP-served areas throughout the eastern sections. Peoria, Glendale, and Surprise are predominantly APS territory, but checking your bill is the only reliable way to confirm.

This distinction matters for comparing solar quotes, because the rate plan math is completely different between the two utilities. An installer quoting you savings based on SRP rates when you are actually on APS territory, or the reverse, will give you a number that is off by 20 to 40 percent.

Check the top of your most recent electricity bill. It will say either Arizona Public Service or Salt River Project. That is the only way to be sure.

How does the prepaid solar lease work on either utility?

If you are comparing APS and SRP plans, you are probably also getting quotes for owned systems financed with a loan or paid cash. There is a third option worth modeling: the prepaid solar lease.

The federal residential solar tax credit, Section 25D, expired at the end of 2025 for homeowners buying or financing their own systems. Homeowners who go solar in 2026 under a cash purchase or loan do not receive a federal credit. That changed the economics for ownership considerably.

A prepaid solar lease works differently. The leasing company owns the system, so it can claim the 48E commercial investment tax credit, which remains active through 2027. The company passes that savings to you as a reduced upfront price, effectively giving you the same 30% discount that owner-buyers received in 2025. You pay a fixed upfront amount, own the use of the system for 25 years, and the lease company handles maintenance. This is not tax advice, and the specifics vary by provider; consult a tax professional about your own situation.

For homeowners who either do not have strong federal tax liability or just prefer the simplicity of a fixed prepaid cost, the prepaid lease can be an excellent way to get solar savings at competitive economics regardless of which utility serves your home. Our Solar Calculator can model both ownership and prepaid lease costs side by side for your actual usage. And if you want independent quotes from vetted installers without a high-pressure sales conversation, reach out through our contact page or read about how Phoenix Valley Solar works as a broker.

A broker compares multiple installer bids for your specific home and utility territory. That is especially useful when you are crossing between APS and SRP territory, or when installers are quoting savings based on assumptions that do not match your actual bill.

How do I choose a solar installer in Phoenix for APS or SRP territory?

Choosing the right installer when you are comparing APS and SRP territory requires finding someone who models both utilities honestly and uses your actual utility data, not generic averages.

The key questions to ask any installer: Can you show me a bill projection using my last 12 months of APS or SRP usage data? Which rate plan are you recommending, and why? What system size and orientation maximizes my self-consumption for my specific load profile?

Installers who quote savings without pulling your actual usage data are guessing. A 7 kW system that makes sense for a household that is home during the day, running loads when solar is producing, may be oversized for a household where two people commute and the home sits empty from 8 AM to 6 PM.

Getting competing solar quotes in Phoenix from independent installers, rather than going with the first company that knocks on your door, is usually worth several thousand dollars on a purchase and meaningful monthly savings over 25 years.

FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Is APS or SRP better for solar in Phoenix?

APS is often better for solar homeowners because it credits exports at $0.0617 per kWh, locked for 10 years, while SRP's TOU Export plan credits only 3.45 cents per kWh with no rate lock. In July, a typical 7 kW system on APS Saver Choice can save $40 to $60 more per month than the same system on SRP's plan.

What is the APS solar export rate in 2026?

APS credits solar exports at $0.0617 per kWh under the Resource Comparison Proxy (RCP) rate. This rate is locked for 10 years from your interconnection date, meaning if you go solar now, your export credit stays fixed through 2036 regardless of future utility rate changes.

Does SRP have a solar plan without a demand charge?

Yes. SRP's Time-of-Use Export plan has no monthly demand charge. Solar customers pay only for energy drawn from the grid and receive a credit of 3.45 cents per kWh for surplus solar exported back. The plan has a $30 monthly service charge for standard single-family homes.

How much does a 7 kW solar system produce in Phoenix in July?

A 7 kW system in Phoenix typically produces around 1,050 kWh in July. Phoenix averages 6.5 peak sun hours per day, but July heat reduces panel efficiency by 10 to 15 percent compared to nameplate output, so real-world production is somewhat lower than the peak-hours calculation alone would suggest.

Can I still get a 30% solar discount without the federal tax credit?

Yes, through a prepaid solar lease. The federal 25D residential credit expired after 2025 for owned systems, but leasing companies can still claim the 48E commercial credit and pass the 30% savings to homeowners as a reduced upfront price. This is not tax advice; consult a tax professional for your situation.

How do I find out if I'm on APS or SRP in Phoenix?

Check the top of your most recent electricity bill. It will clearly say either Arizona Public Service or Salt River Project. APS and SRP divide the Phoenix metro by neighborhood, not by city, so your utility depends on your specific address, not which city you live in.