Solar panels in Lowell: what they cost and what they make
A typical Lowell home needs 14 solar panels. They would make about 7,329 kWh a year and cost $15k to $22k before incentives. At today's electricity prices they pay for themselves in about 7.5 yrs.
See panels on your own Lowell 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 Lowell
At $3.00 a watt, the median price cash buyers pay nationally, a 5.9 kW system costs about $17,700. Quotes in Lowell will usually fall between $14,750 and $22,125. Complex roofs, main-panel upgrades and financing push prices up.
The 30% federal tax credit no longer applies to systems homeowners buy. Massachusetts residential renewable energy credit: 15% up to $1,000. On this system that is worth about $1,000, and it is included below.
The number that decides whether solar pays in Lowell is what your utility pays for the power you send back. Under full payback is about 7.5 yrs. Under net billing it is about 12.8 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 5.9 kW system in Lowell
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 | $16,700 | $0 | +$172 | $50k |
| Credit-union loan 8% APR, 20 years, no dealer fee | $0 | $148 | +$24 | $32k |
| “1.99%” solar loan 1.99% APR, 25 years, 25% dealer fee | $0 | $94 | +$78 | $40k |
| Lease $155/mo, +2.9%/yr | $0 | $155 | +$29 | $3,700 |
| Power purchase (PPA) 25.6¢/kWh, +2.9%/yr | $0 | $156 | +$28 | $7,500 |
Under net metering, at 30.1¢/kWh rising 2.5% a year. The “1.99%” loan’s $4,425 dealer fee is included in its payments. Lease and PPA prices are typical offers, not quotes.
How much sunshine Lowell gets
kWh per kW, 25° southJul is the best month for solar in Lowell, and Dec the weakest: a Dec day makes 46% of a Jul day. A 6 kW system would make about 367 kWh in Dec and 800 kWh in Jul.
On June 21 the sun rises at 5:07 am and sets at 8:26 pm, 15 hours 19 minutes of daylight. On December 21 it is up from 7:12 am to 4:14 pm, just 9 hours 2 minutes.
Peak sun hours in Lowell, month by month
| Month | Flat ground | Panels at 38° | kWh per kW |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 1.8 | 3.3 | 74 |
| Feb | 2.6 | 4.0 | 86 |
| Mar | 3.7 | 4.7 | 114 |
| Apr | 4.7 | 5.1 | 121 |
| May | 5.3 | 5.1 | 126 |
| Jun | 5.7 | 5.2 | 124 |
| Jul | 6.0 | 5.5 | 133 |
| Aug | 5.3 | 5.4 | 128 |
| Sep | 4.3 | 5.2 | 114 |
| Oct | 2.8 | 4.1 | 91 |
| Nov | 1.9 | 3.4 | 73 |
| Dec | 1.5 | 2.8 | 61 |
| Year | 3.8 | 4.5 | 1,246 |
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 Lowell
| Roof faces (6/12 pitch) | Output vs south | kWh per kW |
|---|---|---|
| South | 100% | 1,246 |
| Southeast | 95% | 1,184 |
| Southwest | 95% | 1,184 |
| East | 82% | 1,022 |
| West | 81% | 1,009 |
| North | 59% | 735 |
Face panels south and tilt them 38° for the most energy over a year. East and west roofs keep about 82% of that. A north-facing roof keeps 59%, which is rarely worth the money. Try other angles.
Where the sun goes over Lowell
The noon sun is lower in winter, which is why the best winter tilt (64°) is steeper than the best summer tilt (13°).
Lowell's homes
Lowell has 43,183 households. 43.2% own their home, and 13,463 of those owners live in single-family houses, the kind of home that usually gets rooftop solar.
The median home here was built in 1953. Many roofs that age are due for replacement. Replace the roof first, then add solar: taking panels off and putting them back later costs thousands.
24.3% of homes heat with electricity and 67.1% 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 Lowell
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 Lowell
How much do solar panels cost in Lowell?
A 5.9 kW system — enough for the average Massachusetts home — costs about $14,750 to $22,125 before incentives, based on $2.50–$3.75 per watt. Massachusetts's state tax credit takes off about $1,000. The 30% federal credit no longer applies to systems homeowners buy.
How many solar panels does a house in Lowell need?
About 14 panels of 420 watts for a home using 570 kWh a month, the Massachusetts average. Each kilowatt of panels here makes about 1,246 kWh a year on a south-facing roof.
Is solar worth it in Lowell?
Over 25 years, solar power here costs about 11.8¢ per kWh, against 30.1¢ from the grid today. Payback is about 7.5 yrs if your utility credits exported power at the full retail rate, and 12.8 yrs if it pays about 30% of retail.
How many peak sun hours does Lowell get?
4.5 a day on panels tilted to 38°, and 3.8 on flat ground. The best month is Jul; the weakest is Dec.
What is the best angle for solar panels in Lowell?
38° for the most energy over a year, facing south. 64° is best in winter and 13° in summer. On a normal pitched roof, anything within 15° of 38° gives you about 95% of the maximum.
How long would a home battery last in a Lowell 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 Lowell
| City | Miles | kWh per kW | Sun hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lawrence, MA | 9 | 1,278 | 4.5 |
| Methuen, MA | 10 | 1,276 | 4.5 |
| Nashua, NH | 11 | 1,266 | 4.5 |
| Haverhill, MA | 15 | 1,279 | 4.5 |
| Waltham, MA | 18 | 1,288 | 4.5 |
Lowell shares a weather-data neighbourhood with Boston; their sunshine numbers differ by less than our data can resolve. Housing, prices and outage figures are specific to Lowell.
Cities with the same sunshine as Lowell
These far-away cities get almost exactly as much solar energy per panel.
- Fort Wayne, IN 1,271 kWh per kW
- Spokane, WA 1,274 kWh per kW
- Chicago, IL 1,269 kWh per kW
Snow: NASA records about 16 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 21 km from Lowell'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.