Solar panels in Bentonville: what they cost and what they make
A typical Bentonville home needs 22 solar panels. They would make about 12,826 kWh a year and cost $23k to $35k before incentives. At today's electricity prices they pay for themselves in about 15.5 yrs.
See panels on your own Bentonville roof
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What solar costs in Bentonville
At $3.00 a watt, the median price cash buyers pay nationally, a 9.2 kW system costs about $27,600. Quotes in Bentonville will usually fall between $23,000 and $34,500. Complex roofs, main-panel upgrades and financing push prices up.
The 30% federal tax credit no longer applies to systems homeowners buy. This estimate includes no state or utility incentives; check with your utility before you buy.
The number that decides whether solar pays in Bentonville is what your utility pays for the power you send back. Under full payback is about 15.5 yrs. Under net billing it is about 24.9 yrs, because only the ~43% of solar a typical home uses as it is made saves the full retail price.
Cash purchase, prices rising 2.5% a year, panels losing 0.5% a year, $25/kW a year for upkeep. No federal credit for homeowner-owned systems.
Every way to pay for a 9.2 kW system in Bentonville
Change any number →| Way to pay | Day one | Monthly payment | Monthly net, year 1 | Ahead after 25 years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pay cash Full price on install day | $27,600 | $0 | +$126 | $22k |
| Credit-union loan 8% APR, 20 years, no dealer fee | $0 | $231 | −$105 | −$5,300 |
| “1.99%” solar loan 1.99% APR, 25 years, 25% dealer fee | $0 | $146 | −$20 | $6,300 |
| Lease $125/mo, +2.9%/yr | $0 | $125 | +$20 | $1,800 |
| Power purchase (PPA) 11.6¢/kWh, +2.9%/yr | $0 | $124 | +$21 | $5,700 |
Under net metering, at 13.6¢/kWh rising 2.5% a year. The “1.99%” loan’s $6,900 dealer fee is included in its payments. Lease and PPA prices are typical offers, not quotes.
How much sunshine Bentonville gets
kWh per kW, 25° southJul is the best month for solar in Bentonville, and Dec the weakest: a Dec day makes 61% of a Jul day. A 6 kW system would make about 503 kWh in Dec and 829 kWh in Jul.
On June 21 the sun rises at 5:59 am and sets at 8:37 pm, 14 hours 38 minutes of daylight. On December 21 it is up from 7:24 am to 5:05 pm, just 9 hours 41 minutes.
Peak sun hours in Bentonville, month by month
| Month | Flat ground | Panels at 34° | kWh per kW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2.5 | 4.1 | 94 |
| Feb | 3.1 | 4.3 | 92 |
| Mar | 4.1 | 4.9 | 118 |
| Apr | 5.2 | 5.4 | 126 |
| May | 5.8 | 5.4 | 131 |
| Jun | 6.6 | 5.9 | 137 |
| Jul | 6.5 | 5.9 | 138 |
| Aug | 5.8 | 5.8 | 133 |
| Sep | 5.0 | 5.7 | 126 |
| Oct | 3.7 | 5.1 | 115 |
| Nov | 2.7 | 4.3 | 95 |
| Dec | 2.2 | 3.6 | 84 |
| Year | 4.4 | 5.0 | 1,388 |
A peak sun hour is one hour of sunlight at 1,000 W per m². Why sites disagree.
The best angle and direction for panels in Bentonville
| Roof faces (6/12 pitch) | Output vs south | kWh per kW |
|---|---|---|
| South | 100% | 1,388 |
| Southeast | 96% | 1,332 |
| Southwest | 95% | 1,319 |
| East | 84% | 1,166 |
| West | 83% | 1,152 |
| North | 62% | 861 |
Face panels south and tilt them 34° for the most energy over a year. East and west roofs keep about 84% of that. A north-facing roof keeps 62%, which is rarely worth the money. Try other angles.
Where the sun goes over Bentonville
The noon sun is lower in winter, which is why the best winter tilt (60°) is steeper than the best summer tilt (7°).
Bentonville's homes
Bentonville has 22,589 households. 50.4% own their home, and 11,255 of those owners live in single-family houses, the kind of home that usually gets rooftop solar.
The median home here was built in 2007. Most roofs this young have years of life left, which makes them good candidates for solar.
49.9% of homes heat with electricity and 48.2% with gas. If you switch to a heat pump or an electric car, plan for more panels or leave room on the roof.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020–2024 5-year estimates.
If the power goes out in Bentonville
Solar panels alone shut off in a blackout. Add a battery and they keep going. One Tesla Powerwall 3 (13.5 kWh) running a fridge, freezer, furnace fan, lights, Wi-Fi, TV and microwave (6.9 kWh a day):
Change the appliances, the battery and the weather in the battery calculator.
Questions people ask about solar in Bentonville
How much do solar panels cost in Bentonville?
A 9.2 kW system — enough for the average Arkansas home — costs about $23,000 to $34,500 before incentives, based on $2.50–$3.75 per watt. The 30% federal credit no longer applies to systems homeowners buy.
How many solar panels does a house in Bentonville need?
About 22 panels of 420 watts for a home using 1,048 kWh a month, the Arkansas average. Each kilowatt of panels here makes about 1,388 kWh a year on a south-facing roof.
Is solar worth it in Bentonville?
Over 25 years, solar power here costs about 11.1¢ per kWh, against 13.6¢ from the grid today. Payback is about 15.5 yrs if your utility credits exported power at the full retail rate, and 24.9 yrs if it pays about 30% of retail.
How many peak sun hours does Bentonville get?
5.0 a day on panels tilted to 34°, and 4.4 on flat ground. The best month is Jun; the weakest is Dec.
What is the best angle for solar panels in Bentonville?
34° for the most energy over a year, facing south. 60° is best in winter and 7° in summer. On a normal pitched roof, anything within 15° of 34° gives you about 95% of the maximum.
How long would a home battery last in a Bentonville power outage?
A Tesla Powerwall 3 running a fridge, freezer, furnace fan, lights, Wi-Fi, TV and microwave (6.9 kWh a day) lasts about 43 hours with no sun. With 7 kW of solar to recharge it, it gets through a three-day outage even in overcast January.
Solar near Bentonville
| City | Miles | kWh per kW | Sun hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rogers, AR | 5 | 1,399 | 5.0 |
| Springdale, AR | 12 | 1,397 | 5.0 |
| Fayetteville, AR | 20 | 1,395 | 5.0 |
| Joplin, MO | 52 | 1,425 | 5.0 |
| Fort Smith, AR | 70 | 1,387 | 5.0 |
Bentonville shares a weather-data neighbourhood with Fayetteville; their sunshine numbers differ by less than our data can resolve. Housing, prices and outage figures are specific to Bentonville.
Cities with the same sunshine as Bentonville
These far-away cities get almost exactly as much solar energy per panel.
- Greenville, SC 1,405 kWh per kW
- Grand Forks, ND 1,407 kWh per kW
- Newport News, VA 1,396 kWh per kW
Snow: NASA records about 9 cm of snow on the ground here in an average January. Covered panels make little until it slides off, and these figures (like PVWatts') don't subtract that.
Sources: NASA POWER 2001–2020 monthly climatology (grid cell 29 km from Bentonville's Census point), our PV model (within 1.6% of NLR PVWatts® on average), U.S. EIA prices and use, U.S. Census 2025 population estimates and ACS 2020–2024. Estimates for an average home, not a site survey. How we calculate.