Solar panels in Commerce City: what they cost and what they make
A typical Commerce City home needs 13 solar panels. They would make about 8,727 kWh a year and cost $14k to $21k before incentives. At today's electricity prices they pay for themselves in about 11.1 yrs.
See panels on your own Commerce City roof
Type your address. You get your roof from above, the panels that fit, a month-by-month forecast and a battery test. No phone number.
What solar costs in Commerce City
At $3.00 a watt, the median price cash buyers pay nationally, a 5.5 kW system costs about $16,500. Quotes in Commerce City will usually fall between $13,750 and $20,625. 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 Commerce City is what your utility pays for the power you send back. Under full payback is about 11.1 yrs. Under net billing it is about 18.6 yrs, because only the ~40% 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 5.5 kW system in Commerce City
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 | $16,500 | $0 | +$110 | $27k |
| Credit-union loan 8% APR, 20 years, no dealer fee | $0 | $138 | −$28 | $10k |
| “1.99%” solar loan 1.99% APR, 25 years, 25% dealer fee | $0 | $87 | +$23 | $17k |
| Lease $105/mo, +2.9%/yr | $0 | $105 | +$17 | $1,300 |
| Power purchase (PPA) 14.2¢/kWh, +2.9%/yr | $0 | $103 | +$18 | $5,000 |
Under net metering, at 16.7¢/kWh rising 2.5% a year. The “1.99%” loan’s $4,125 dealer fee is included in its payments. Lease and PPA prices are typical offers, not quotes.
How much sunshine Commerce City gets
kWh per kW, 25° southJun is the best month for solar in Commerce City, and Dec the weakest: a Dec day makes 62% of a Jun day. A 6 kW system would make about 575 kWh in Dec and 929 kWh in Jun.
On June 21 the sun rises at 5:30 am and sets at 8:31 pm, 15 hours 0 minutes of daylight. On December 21 it is up from 7:17 am to 4:37 pm, just 9 hours 20 minutes.
Peak sun hours in Commerce City, month by month
| Month | Flat ground | Panels at 39° | kWh per kW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 2.6 | 4.7 | 105 |
| Feb | 3.5 | 5.4 | 114 |
| Mar | 4.7 | 6.1 | 146 |
| Apr | 5.7 | 6.0 | 147 |
| May | 6.3 | 5.9 | 152 |
| Jun | 7.2 | 6.3 | 155 |
| Jul | 6.9 | 6.2 | 154 |
| Aug | 6.1 | 6.2 | 149 |
| Sep | 5.3 | 6.4 | 143 |
| Oct | 3.9 | 5.8 | 130 |
| Nov | 2.8 | 5.0 | 107 |
| Dec | 2.2 | 4.3 | 96 |
| Year | 4.8 | 5.7 | 1,598 |
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 Commerce City
| Roof faces (6/12 pitch) | Output vs south | kWh per kW |
|---|---|---|
| South | 100% | 1,598 |
| Southeast | 95% | 1,518 |
| Southwest | 94% | 1,502 |
| East | 81% | 1,294 |
| West | 81% | 1,294 |
| North | 57% | 911 |
Face panels south and tilt them 39° for the most energy over a year. East and west roofs keep about 81% of that. A north-facing roof keeps 57%, which is rarely worth the money. Try other angles.
Where the sun goes over Commerce City
The noon sun is lower in winter, which is why the best winter tilt (65°) is steeper than the best summer tilt (11°).
Commerce City's homes
Commerce City has 22,415 households. 77.2% own their home, and 16,681 of those owners live in single-family houses, the kind of home that usually gets rooftop solar.
The median home here was built in 2005. Most roofs this young have years of life left, which makes them good candidates for solar.
21.6% of homes heat with electricity and 75.3% 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 Commerce City
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 Commerce City
How much do solar panels cost in Commerce City?
A 5.5 kW system — enough for the average Colorado home — costs about $13,750 to $20,625 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 Commerce City need?
About 13 panels of 420 watts for a home using 674 kWh a month, the Colorado average. Each kilowatt of panels here makes about 1,598 kWh a year on a south-facing roof.
Is solar worth it in Commerce City?
Over 25 years, solar power here costs about 9.6¢ per kWh, against 16.7¢ from the grid today. Payback is about 11.1 yrs if your utility credits exported power at the full retail rate, and 18.6 yrs if it pays about 30% of retail.
How many peak sun hours does Commerce City get?
5.7 a day on panels tilted to 39°, and 4.8 on flat ground. The best month is Sep; the weakest is Dec.
What is the best angle for solar panels in Commerce City?
39° for the most energy over a year, facing south. 65° is best in winter and 11° in summer. On a normal pitched roof, anything within 15° of 39° gives you about 95% of the maximum.
How long would a home battery last in a Commerce City 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 Commerce City
| City | Miles | kWh per kW | Sun hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thornton, CO | 8 | 1,631 | 5.7 |
| Denver, CO | 10 | 1,642 | 5.7 |
| Aurora, CO | 13 | 1,648 | 5.7 |
| Westminster, CO | 14 | 1,631 | 5.7 |
| Broomfield, CO | 14 | 1,627 | 5.6 |
Commerce City shares a weather-data neighbourhood with Denver; their sunshine numbers differ by less than our data can resolve. Housing, prices and outage figures are specific to Commerce City.
Cities with the same sunshine as Commerce City
These far-away cities get almost exactly as much solar energy per panel.
- Santa Rosa, CA 1,636 kWh per kW
- Yuba City, CA 1,636 kWh per kW
- Oakland, CA 1,628 kWh per kW
Snow: NASA records about 17 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 49 km from Commerce City'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.