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Does ComEd still have net metering in 2026 — and how does it work now?

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Published July 18, 2026 · Facts verified July 2026 · By The Day Company Editorial Team

What is supply-only net metering?

Supply-only netting is the rule for every ComEd system interconnected on or after January 1, 2025: electricity you export earns credits against the supply portion of your bill — the Price to Compare, currently 10.399¢/kWh — but not against delivery charges. Full retail net metering, which credited supply and delivery together, closed to new customers at the end of 2024.

Three buckets make up a ComEd bill: supply (the electricity itself), delivery (wires, poles, meters), and taxes and fees. Exported solar now touches only the first one. Solar you use directly, on the other hand, still avoids both supply and the usage-based part of delivery — you simply buy fewer kilowatt-hours. That asymmetry is the single most important thing to understand about Illinois solar economics in 2026, and it's why self-consumption matters more than it used to.

Fixed charges don't disappear either way. Per ComEd's net metering FAQ, the customer charge and standard metering charge appear on every bill regardless of how much solar you produce — so on the standard fixed-price rate, solar can cut a ComEd bill hard but not zero it. The one documented exception, Hourly Pricing, is covered below.

I installed solar before 2025 — do I keep full retail net metering?

Generally yes. ComEd's official net metering FAQ states that customers who interconnected by December 31, 2024 keep full-retail netting — credits across supply, delivery, and taxes — for the life of the system (i.e., 30 years). The rules changed for new interconnections; they did not reach back and strip existing ones.

Buying a home with existing panels? The interconnection date decides which regime applies — so it's a document worth verifying before closing, not after.

How do net metering credits show up on a ComEd bill?

As credits in the supply section, not as a payment. Per ComEd's FAQ, fixed-price customers who interconnected from 2025 on can choose kWh credits or monetary credits, and those credits do not expire. Hourly-pricing customers receive monetary credits based on the market price during the hours they actually exported.

The practical read: in high-production months you bank credits, in winter you draw them down, and the balance carries forward rather than resetting. That's a meaningful improvement over the legacy annual reset — even though the legacy credit itself was worth more per kilowatt-hour. Your monthly bill will still show the customer charge, standard metering, and the delivery components exports don't touch.

Can net metering credits ever zero out a ComEd bill?

For post-2024 systems on the standard fixed-price rate, no — credits live in the supply section and the fixed charges remain. On Hourly Pricing, ComEd's own materials say it's possible: credits are calculated as a dollar value at the hourly market price and applied against the cost of your bill — and when credits exceed the cost of your bill, the excess is applied to the following billing cycle.

Read that carefully — it's one of the least-known mechanics in Illinois solar. Because Hourly Pricing credits are money, not kilowatt-hours, a large enough credit balance can cover the entire bill for that period — supply, delivery, and the fixed charges. ComEd adds that on sunny days, when hourly market prices tend to be high, exports earn higher-value credits. And per CUB, Hourly Pricing credits never expire — strong summer months can bank against weak winter ones.

Three catches keep this honest:

• "Enough credits" is the whole condition. Your exports' dollar value has to exceed everything else on the bill — realistic in high-production months for a well-sized, owned system; not a year-round outcome, and never a guarantee.
• It's never a check. A credit balance beyond the bill rolls forward to future cycles. ComEd doesn't pay cash out — see the next section.
• Hourly Pricing floats both ways. Your supply price changes with the market every hour, so whether the rate fits your household's usage pattern is its own decision — ComEd's Hourly Pricing team (1-888-202-7787) exists for exactly that question. It's also the same rate (Rate BESH) that ComEd's $300/kWh battery rebate requires.

None of this is a savings promise — it's ComEd's published mechanics. Whether your roof, your usage, and the hourly rate line up is exactly what a real review checks.

Does ComEd pay cash for excess solar power?

No. The value arrives as credits against your ComEd charges — never as a check or as income. Post-2024 fixed-price customers may elect a monetary bill credit rather than a kWh credit, but it still offsets what you owe ComEd. Nobody is getting paid by the utility for their roof.

This is where net metering gets confused with Illinois Shines, which is a genuinely separate program that pays for your system's renewable energy credits — and pays them to your Approved Vendor, not to you. Two different programs, two different mechanisms, both applying to the same system: how Illinois Shines actually works and pays.

How does supply-only netting change what size system I need?

It rewards matching your usage instead of maximizing exports. Since exported kilowatt-hours now earn supply-level credits while self-consumed kilowatt-hours avoid the full retail cost, the system that pencils best is the one sized to what you actually use — not the biggest one that fits on the roof.

• Start from your own 12 months of usage, available from your ComEd account — not a state average.
• There's a ceiling anyway: ComEd's project guide notes netting credits up to 110% of historical usage.
• West-facing arrays age well here — late-afternoon production lines up with evening consumption, which is worth more than exporting it.
• Batteries earn their keep differently now — storing midday solar for evening use beats exporting it. The $300/kWh battery rebate requires enrolling in Hourly Pricing (Rate BESH).
• Demand a production model built on supply-only rules and your real usage. A generic savings curve isn't one.

Full rate context and the ComEd-specific numbers: our ComEd Solar Guide.

How do I apply for ComEd net metering?

Usually, you don't — not separately. Per ComEd's FAQ, the interconnection application typically includes net metering, and participation begins once that application is approved and the Certificate of Completion confirming permission to operate is signed. Your installer normally files it; your job is confirming it happened.

1. Interconnection application submitted to ComEd — stating intent to generate covers net metering enrollment.
2. ComEd reviews and approves; installation proceeds.
3. Local inspection, then the Certificate of Completion is signed off with ComEd.
4. PTO granted — the system may be energized, and netting participation is effective.

Two things worth knowing about the meter: ComEd's smart meter records flow in both directions, and — per ComEd's FAQ — it does not measure your panels' production. Use your installer's monitoring app for that. You can track application status yourself through ComEd's MyGeneration portal rather than relying on status updates from a salesperson.

What happens to net metering when I sell my house?

The system and its status attach to the home, not to you. ComEd's application materials note that someone moving into a solar-ready premise doesn't file a new net metering application. Buyers and sellers should still confirm the account transfer — and any legacy full-retail status — directly with ComEd rather than assuming it carries.

Keep the interconnection approval and PTO documents permanently. On a pre-2025 system, that paperwork is what proves a buyer is inheriting full-retail netting — which is a real, transferable asset worth naming in the listing.

ComEd net metering FAQ

Does ComEd still offer net metering in 2026?

Yes. Systems interconnected on or after January 1, 2025 receive supply-only net metering — exported energy credits the supply section of the bill. The program is active; what changed is the credit structure, not its existence.

What is supply-only net metering?

Exports earn credits against supply charges — the electricity itself, currently 10.399¢/kWh at ComEd — rather than against delivery charges. Per the Illinois Shines FAQ and ComEd's own materials, it's the standard for all new residential interconnections since January 1, 2025.

I installed solar before 2025 — do I keep full retail net metering?

Generally yes. ComEd's net metering FAQ states customers who interconnected by December 31, 2024 keep full-retail netting — credits across supply, delivery, and taxes — for the life of the system (i.e., 30 years).

Can I lose my legacy net metering by accident?

Yes — one way. Taking ComEd's generation (smart-inverter) rebate on a pre-2025 system permanently converts it to supply-only netting, and it isn't reversible. Per CUB's fact sheet, taking only the storage rebate does not trigger the conversion.

Do ComEd net metering credits expire?

Not for systems interconnected on or after January 1, 2025 — ComEd's FAQ states those credits, kWh or monetary, do not expire. Legacy fixed-price customers' kWh credits do reset annually, in April or October, as elected on their net metering form.

Can solar ever bring a ComEd bill to zero?

Not for a post-2024 system on the standard fixed-price rate, where credits apply in the supply section and fixed charges remain. On Hourly Pricing, ComEd states credits are applied against the cost of your bill and excess credits roll to the following billing cycle — so a large enough credit balance can cover an entire bill. It's never paid out as cash.

Does ComEd pay cash for excess solar power?

No — the value arrives as credits on your bill, not checks. Post-2024 fixed-price customers may elect a monetary bill credit, but it offsets your ComEd charges rather than being paid out as income.

Do I apply for ComEd net metering separately?

Usually not. Per ComEd's FAQ, the interconnection application typically includes net metering, and participation begins once the application is approved and the Certificate of Completion confirming permission to operate is signed.

What happens to net metering if I sell my house?

The system and its status attach to the home — ComEd's materials note that someone moving into a solar-ready premise doesn't file a new net metering application. Confirm the account transfer and any legacy status with ComEd directly.

Related answers

Sources

• ComEd — Green Power Connection Net Metering FAQ (PDF)
• ComEd — MyGeneration solar project steps
• ComEd — Solar Rebates
• ComEd Hourly Pricing — Solar (credits applied to your bill; excess rolls to the following billing cycle)
• ComEd Hourly Pricing — FAQs (dollar-value credits at the hourly market price; excess applied to the following billing cycle)
• Plug In Illinois (ICC) — ComEd Price to Compare
• Illinois Shines — Consumer FAQs
• CUB — Q&A: What's happening to solar power in Illinois?
• CUB — Illinois Net Metering fact sheet (PDF) (Hourly Pricing credits do not expire)
• CUB — Solar & Storage Rebates fact sheet (March 2026, PDF)