Solar Answers → Buying & Financing
How do I know if my Illinois solar quote is a good deal?
Four checks tell you fast. A 2026 Illinois quote should show no 30% federal credit on a system you'll own (that credit ended December 31, 2025), a production estimate you can reproduce free in NREL's PVWatts, a signed Illinois Shines Disclosure Form before any contract, and a price you can state in dollars per watt. Anything failing one deserves answers before a signature.
Independent public sources we cite and link — The Day Company is not affiliated with or endorsed by any of them.
What should a legitimate Illinois solar quote include?
Everything checkable, in writing. Illinois law requires a written, signed contract for any home-improvement job over $1,000, and the Illinois Shines program requires a signed Disclosure Form before any installation contract. Beyond that legal floor, a serious quote itemizes the equipment, the production assumptions, the price, the financing terms, and who keeps the renewable energy credits.
Required by law or by the program: a written, signed contract for work over $1,000 plus the "Home Repair: Know Your Consumer Rights" pamphlet before signing (Illinois Home Repair and Remodeling Act, 815 ILCS 513); the signed Illinois Shines Disclosure Form before the installation contract; and, if you were solicited at home, written notice of your three-business-day cancellation right in two copies.
What a serious quote adds: panel make, model and wattage; the inverter and any battery; system size in kilowatts; projected year-one production with the assumptions behind it; the cash price and the financed price stated separately; warranty terms split into equipment and workmanship; who handles interconnection; and which Approved Vendor holds the REC contract.
What are the biggest red flags on an Illinois solar quote?
Ten patterns account for most bad Illinois solar deals, and every one is checkable against a public source. Tick what you see on the quote in your hand — each row shows what an honest quote looks like instead, and where to verify it. A checked box doesn't mean you're being scammed; it means that line deserves an answer before a signature.
| Red flag on the quote | What an honest Illinois quote shows | Where to verify |
|---|---|---|
| No residential federal credit — it ended for expenditures after Dec 31, 2025 | IRS Form 5695 instructions | |
| Neither exists — the real state value is Illinois Shines RECs and the utility rebate | ipa.illinois.gov | |
| The Approved Vendor (or the Designee's AV) named, and findable on the public list | illinoisshines.com AV list | |
| A signed Disclosure Form before the installation contract | illinoisshines.com | |
| Supply-only credits for systems interconnected on/after Jan 1, 2025 | ComEd net metering | |
| A year-one kWh figure close to what PVWatts returns for your address | pvwatts.nrel.gov | |
| Estimates labeled as estimates, with assumptions shown | Ask for the math in writing | |
| Your written 3-business-day cancellation notice, in two copies | FTC 16 CFR 429 · 815 ILCS 505/2B | |
| Cash price, financed price, and every fee between them, stated | CFPB solar-lending report | |
| Make, model, wattage, inverter — and a price you can put in $/W | The quote itself |
Tick the rows that match your quote — each one is worth a question, not a panic.
Does the quote still claim the 30% federal tax credit?
If a 2026 quote for a system you will own shows a 30% federal credit, that line is wrong. The federal residential credit (Section 25D) ended for expenditures made after December 31, 2025 — and the IRS counts an expenditure as made when the installation is completed. A deposit paid in 2025 does not preserve the credit for a system finished in 2026.
Leases and PPAs run under a separate business-side credit with its own deadlines, and that credit belongs to the system's owner — not to you. If a third-party offer leans on it, ask in writing whether that specific project still qualifies. What expired and what didn't is covered in full on Did the solar tax credit end?
Is the production estimate realistic — and how do I check it myself?
You can check a production claim yourself, free, in about two minutes. Open NREL's PVWatts calculator, enter your address, enter the system size in kilowatts from the quote, keep the default settings, and compare the year-one kilowatt-hours to the quote's number. A claim far above what PVWatts returns needs an explanation.
A fair explanation exists — better-than-default tilt, orientation, or equipment can beat the tool's assumptions. The difference is that an honest company shows you those inputs in writing. "Our panels are just better" is not an input.
What is the Illinois Shines Disclosure Form — and why demand it before signing?
Any company selling you Illinois Shines value must provide the program's standardized Disclosure Form, and you must sign it before you sign an installation contract — not after. The form puts the system's size, cost, operations, warranties, and financial benefits in one document. No form before signing is a program violation, and reason enough to stop.
The form can be signed on paper, through the program's own portal (which records the date, time, and IP address), or through a standard e-signature platform — but the sequence never changes: Disclosure Form first, contract second. If the salesperson's pitch and the form disagree, believe the form. What the program is and how it pays is covered on Illinois Shines, explained.
Is the solar company actually registered in Illinois?
Illinois gives you two real checks and one common fake. Real: the public Illinois Shines Approved Vendor and Designee list, and the company's ICC distributed-generation installer certification — which exists as a docket number you can ask for, not a public roster. Fake: a statewide "solar license." Illinois doesn't issue one.
The Approved Vendor check matters because only registered Approved Vendors can enroll your system in Illinois Shines and sell its RECs; the sales company in your living room may be a Designee operating under one — ask which. The installer certification comes from 83 Ill. Adm. Code Part 468: since the end of 2013, entities installing distributed generation in Illinois must be certified by the Commerce Commission, and each certification lives in its own ICC docket. There is no public lookup, so the check is a question: "What's your ICC certification docket number?" A real installer answers it without blinking.
Contractor and electrician licensing, meanwhile, is handled by cities and counties, not the state — so a pitch waving a "state solar license" is describing a document that doesn't exist. The program also runs a public complaint operation; before signing, it's fair to check whether the company has appeared in the program's violations reporting, via the Illinois Shines Consumer Complaint Center.
How do I check the price without trusting anyone's "average"?
There is no trustworthy "average Illinois solar price" to compare against — in the national lab's most recent installed-price data (2023), state-level median prices spanned roughly $3.10 to $5.80 per watt. That spread is exactly why a single average can't vet your quote. Do the one calculation that always works instead: total contract price ÷ system watts.
That number — dollars per watt — is the quote's fingerprint. A 7 kW system is 7,000 watts; a $28,000 price is $4.00 per watt. Compute it for the cash price and the financed price separately, and if the two differ, the gap is the cost of the financing — make the company account for it line by line. We publish no benchmark on purpose; a benchmark you didn't compute is a benchmark you can't defend in a sales conversation. What goes into Illinois pricing is broken down in our Illinois solar cost guide.
What financing red flags show up on Illinois quotes?
The loan can cost more than the hardware markup ever would. In August 2024, the Treasury, the CFPB, and the FTC jointly warned consumers about solar sales and lending practices — and the CFPB's companion report found dealer fees routinely adding on the order of 30% above the cash price, often folded invisibly into the financed amount.
Three asks expose most of it: the cash price, the financed price, and every fee between them. Then two more checks. First, watch for a payment structure that assumes you'll apply a federal tax credit to pay down the loan — for a homeowner-owned 2026 system that credit no longer exists, and a payment plan built on it has a balloon in it. Second, confirm the savings math uses supply-only export credits for a new system, not the full-retail netting that ended for systems interconnected after 2024. How leases, PPAs, and loans actually compare over a full term lives on lease vs PPA vs buying in Illinois.
What should I ask before signing anything?
Eleven questions, each tied to a document or a public requirement — not vibes. Copy them, bring them to the conversation, and pay attention to which ones get a straight answer in writing. A company that handles this list calmly is telling you something. So is a company that doesn't.
- Are you a registered Illinois Shines Approved Vendor or a Designee — and under which Approved Vendor?
- Will you give me the signed Illinois Shines Disclosure Form before I sign the installation contract?
- What is your ICC distributed-generation installer certification docket number?
- This quote shows a 30% federal tax credit and my install finishes in 2026 — do I actually qualify, in writing?
- What is the system size in watts and the total price, so I can compute the dollars per watt?
- What year-one production are you promising, and what tilt, orientation, and loss assumptions are behind it?
- Does your savings math use supply-only export credits for a new system?
- Is the financed price higher than the cash price — and what is every fee between them?
- Is there a payment escalator, and does any payment step assume a tax credit I won't receive?
- Who holds and sells the renewable energy credits, and for how long?
- If I was solicited at home, where is my written three-day Notice of Cancellation, in two copies?
Can I cancel — and where do I complain in Illinois?
Cancellation rights are real but narrower than salespeople imply. If you were solicited at home, federal and Illinois law each give you three business days to cancel — and the seller must hand you written notice of that right, in two copies, or the clock doesn't start. A contract signed at the company's office generally carries no automatic cooling-off window.
The federal right comes from the FTC's Cooling-Off Rule (16 CFR Part 429), covering sales over $25 made at your home; the Illinois right comes from the Consumer Fraud Act's home-solicitation section (815 ILCS 505/2B). Both attach to where the sale happened, not to solar specifically — which is why "you can always cancel" is a myth, and why the two-copy written notice matters so much.
If something has already gone wrong, Illinois routes complaints three ways: program issues — a missing Disclosure Form, misrepresented REC value — go to the Illinois Shines Consumer Complaint Center; installer, installation, or electricity-supplier issues go to the Illinois Commerce Commission; and deceptive sales practices go to the Illinois Attorney General's consumer fraud bureau.
And if you'd rather not audit alone: start the free eligibility check below and mention you already have a quote — the review happens in the same free, no-pressure conversation. We don't trash-talk anyone's paperwork, and if the quote in your hand holds up, we'll tell you exactly that. In the interest of transparency: The Day Company is a lead-generation business — connecting Illinois homeowners with installers is how we're paid — the review itself is free, and how we verify everything we publish is on our editorial standards page.
Illinois solar quote FAQ
Does Illinois have a state solar tax credit?
No. Illinois has no state solar income-tax credit and no residential solar sales-tax exemption — claims of a "25% or $10,000 Illinois credit" are imported from other states. The real Illinois value is Illinois Shines REC payments and the utility smart-inverter rebate, plus a property-tax special assessment claimed with a one-time PTAX-330 filing.
Is the 30% federal tax credit on my 2026 quote real?
Not for a system you will own. The federal residential credit under Section 25D ended for expenditures made after December 31, 2025, and the IRS treats an expenditure as made when installation is completed — so a 2026 completion gets no credit even if a deposit was paid in 2025.
What is the Illinois Shines Disclosure Form?
A standardized form the program requires before any contract is signed. It states the system's size, cost, operations, warranties, and financial benefits, and you must sign it before signing the installation contract. A company that won't produce it before signing is violating program rules.
How do I check if a solar company is an Approved Vendor?
Look the company up on the public Approved Vendor and Designee list at illinoisshines.com. Many sales companies are Designees operating under an Approved Vendor — that's allowed, but they should name the vendor, and the vendor should appear on the list.
Do Illinois solar installers need a state license?
There is no statewide contractor or electrician license in Illinois — licensing is handled by cities and counties. What does exist statewide is ICC distributed-generation installer certification, which a company can prove with its certification docket number when you ask.
Can I cancel a solar contract after signing in Illinois?
If you were solicited at home, yes — three business days under both the FTC Cooling-Off Rule and Illinois' home-solicitation law, and the seller must give you written notice of the right in two copies or the clock doesn't start. Contracts signed at a company office generally carry no automatic cancellation window.
How do I check a solar quote's production estimate?
Reproduce it free at pvwatts.nrel.gov: enter your address, enter the quote's system size in kilowatts, keep the default settings, and compare the year-one kilowatt-hours. If the quote's figure is far higher, ask the company to show the tilt, orientation, and loss assumptions behind it in writing.
What is a fair price per watt for solar in Illinois?
There is no single trustworthy average — state-level median installed prices spanned roughly $3.10 to $5.80 per watt in the most recent national-lab data. Compute your own quote's number instead: total contract price divided by system watts, calculated separately for the cash and financed price.
Why is the financed price higher than the cash price?
Usually dealer fees — costs the installer pays the lender and folds into the loan. Federal regulators found these fees routinely add on the order of 30% above the cash price. Ask for the cash price, the financed price, and an itemized list of every fee between them.
Where do I complain about a solar company in Illinois?
Three routes. Program issues, like a missing Disclosure Form, go to the Illinois Shines Consumer Complaint Center. Installer, installation, and electricity-supplier issues go to the Illinois Commerce Commission. Deceptive sales practices go to the Illinois Attorney General's consumer fraud bureau.
Related answers
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Sources
- Illinois Shines — Approved Vendor & Designee list (Illinois Power Agency)
- Illinois Shines — Consumer FAQs — the Disclosure Form requirement and net-metering changes
- Illinois Shines — Consumer Complaint Center
- IRS — Instructions for Form 5695 — the December 31, 2025 end of the residential credit
- FTC — Cooling-Off Rule, 16 CFR Part 429 (three-business-day cancellation for home and off-premises sales)
- Illinois Home Repair and Remodeling Act, 815 ILCS 513 · Illinois Consumer Fraud Act §2B, 815 ILCS 505/2B (ilga.gov)
- Illinois Commerce Commission — Distributed Generation Installer Certification (83 Ill. Adm. Code Part 468)
- U.S. Treasury — Consumer Solar Awareness (joint Treasury / CFPB / FTC advisories, August 2024)
- CFPB — report on solar-loan markup fees (August 2024)
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory — Tracking the Sun, 2024 edition (2023 installed-price data)
- NREL — PVWatts Calculator
How to cite this page: The Day Company, "How do I know if my Illinois solar quote is a good deal?", theday.company/answers/vetting-solar-quote-illinois, last reviewed July 30, 2026.
Changelog: July 2026 — v1 published.