Electric Consumer

Editor: Katerine G., Editor & Data Researcher · Research & publishing: Electric Consumer Editorial Team · Data retrieved · Sources named on this page: EIA-861, EIA retail sales, EIA-860/923, NREL PVWatts · How we got these numbers · Report an error

Solar in Florida: payback, sun by city and utility-scale capacity

22%of a year's solar output in Florida falls in December to February, rank 50 of 51 (1 = least winter)

Across 5 Florida cities, yearly output runs from 1,455 kWh per kW in Jacksonville to 1,568 in Tampa. Apr is the best month at 151 kWh per kW and Dec the worst at 105. Florida pays back in 12.7 years at $3.00 a watt (rank 22 of 51), 0.8 years shorter than the middle state. 1,546 kWh per kW (rank 7) at 15.24 ¢ (rank 29 from the top): sunshine drives it. Utility-scale solar in Florida: 12,301 MW in 213 plants, 9.3% of 2025 generation; 2,830 MW more under construction or planned.

Best and worst month in Florida: Apr 151, Dec 105 kWh per kW

Florida output and value by month
Florida monthkWh per kWPrice ¢Value per kWkWh per kW per sun unit
Jan115.714.42$16.680.78
Feb116.914.97$17.500.76
Mar147.215.08$22.200.76
Apr150.915.26$23.030.75
May150.914.97$22.590.73
Jun130.915.35$20.090.73
Jul130.015.11$19.640.72
Aug131.015.37$20.130.72
Sep124.915.76$19.680.74
Oct129.815.70$20.380.76
Nov113.115.78$17.850.77
Dec104.615.02$15.710.78

Florida: December to February give 22% of a year (rank 50 of 51, 1 = most winter); the best month is 1.4 times the worst. Output per unit of sun is highest in Jan (0.78) and lowest in Jul (0.72); PVWatts lowers cell output when the panel is hot, and the sun angle changes with the season. Our runs use one fixed 14% loss figure for every place, so snow or soiling in Florida is not modelled separately.

Sun inside Florida: 5 cities, 7% apart

Solar output in 5 cities of Florida
Florida citykWh per kW a yearAgainst state pointSun, kWh/m2 a dayPayback at $3.00Residents
Jacksonville1,455-5.9%5.4813.5961,739
Miami1,558+0.8%5.6412.6446,663
Tampa1,568+1.4%5.7112.6393,389
Orlando1,507-2.5%5.5013.1311,732
Port St. Lucie1,519-1.8%5.5413.0220,453

Florida state point 27.73, -81.55; city points Jacksonville 30.34, -81.66; Miami 25.77, -80.21; Tampa 27.97, -82.48; Orlando 28.41, -81.25; Port St. Lucie 27.28, -80.39. Panel and method: solar method.

Output by month in Florida cities: 12 rows
Florida monthJacksonvilleMiamiTampaOrlandoPort St. Lucie
Jan106.5118.3122.2119.8118.8
Feb101.1124.6120.4109.7117.0
Mar135.5148.5151.2143.9141.5
Apr141.3153.9151.0142.7149.9
May146.2139.8151.7142.9143.6
Jun126.2125.8127.9124.6124.1
Jul132.4135.8125.8130.9131.2
Aug131.5136.9123.5134.5128.1
Sep117.6121.4126.1121.3120.6
Oct116.9127.8136.7124.5120.5
Nov107.1114.4122.9107.1114.7
Dec92.4111.0109.1105.4108.4

Florida: 5 cities, best month 154 and worst 92 kWh per kW across them.

CSV

Florida: payback 12.7 years, rank 22 of 51

Solar measures for Florida
MeasureValueRank of 51Median state
Output of 1 kW a year, kWh1,54671,372
Home price, ¢ per kWh15.242915.37
Value of 1 kW a year$23622$222
Payback at $3.00 a watt12.7 years2213.5 years

EIA-861 (2024): 290,466 home net-metered systems in Florida, 27.8 per 1,000 accounts (rank 17), average 9.3 kW.

Sizes and prices per watt in Florida

Systems of 4 to 12 kW in Florida
Florida kWkWh a yearValue a yearCost at $2.50At $3.00At $3.50t CO2
46,184$942$10,000$12,000$14,0002.2
69,276$1,414$15,000$18,000$21,0003.3
812,368$1,885$20,000$24,000$28,0004.4
1015,460$2,356$25,000$30,000$35,0005.5
1218,552$2,827$30,000$36,000$42,0006.6
Payback in Florida by price and retail share
Florida $ per watt100% retail75%50%25%
$2.008.511.317.034.0
$2.5010.614.121.242.4
$3.0012.717.025.550.9
$3.5014.919.829.759.4
$4.0017.022.634.067.9

Florida: 1,546 kWh/kW × 15.24 ¢ = 236 a year per kW; the 30% column (8.9 years at $3.00) is arithmetic only.

CSV

Utility-scale solar in Florida: 12,301 MW

Florida: 12,301 MW of operable utility-scale solar in 213 plants across 54 counties (EIA-860, 2025), rank 3 of 51; 561 W per resident, rank 13. Solar made 9.3% of Florida's net generation in 2025 (EIA-923), rank 12, +2.5 points against the national share. Biggest plants: Whistling Duck I in Levy County, 75 MW (2025); Trenton Solar Power Plant in Gilchrist County, 75 MW (2019); Hamilton Solar Power Plant in Hamilton County, 75 MW (2018). By county: Hillsborough 743 MW, St Lucie 670 MW, Hendry 596 MW, Manatee 596 MW. Proposed: 2,563 MW under construction (35 plants) and 267 MW planned (4 plants); batteries 1,182 MW running and 190 MW proposed.

Utility-scale solar added in Florida by year
Florida yearMW addedCumulative share of today's MW
20197436%
2020164019%
2021110428%
2022111437%
2023180652%
2024315478%
2025134389%

Net metering and CO2 in Florida

EIA-861 (2024): 290,466 home net-metered systems in Florida, 27.8 per 1,000 accounts (rank 17), average 9.3 kW.

6 kW in Florida: 9,276 kWh a year displaces 3.3 t CO2 at 0.357 kg per kWh, +0.3 t against the average state.

Florida utilities and solar payback

Solar payback by utility in Florida
Florida utilityHomesPrice ¢Value of 1 kWPayback at $3.00
Florida Power & Light Co5,236,27713.71$21214.2 yr
Duke Energy Florida, LLC1,793,06716.63$25711.7 yr
Tampa Electric Co757,28014.67$22713.2 yr
JEA470,56412.43$19215.6 yr
Orlando Utilities Comm248,68315.24$23612.7 yr
Lee County Electric Coop, Inc231,14213.54$20914.3 yr
Withlacoochee River Elec Coop229,37512.35$19115.7 yr
Sumter Electric Coop, Inc228,85513.09$20214.8 yr
Clay Electric Cooperative, Inc171,17913.09$20214.8 yr
City of Lakeland121,60411.40$17617.0 yr
City of Tallahassee106,94613.60$21014.3 yr
Gainesville Regional Utilities92,96814.87$23013.1 yr

Florida among its neighbours

Closest states to Florida
Closest to FloridaPayback, yearskWh per kWPrice, ¢Utility-scale solar, points of generationMiles away
Florida (this page)12.71,54615.249.3-
Georgia+1.7-133-0.51-1.7406
South Carolina+1.0-83-0.28-6.2429
Alabama+0.7-163+0.86-8.4477
North Carolina+2.4-135-1.22-0.4550
Simple solar payback by state at $3.00 a wattNew Mexico: 11.2 yrTexas: 12.9 yrKentucky: 16.9 yrOhio: 14.2 yrGeorgia: 14.4 yrArkansas: 17.0 yrOregon: 17.3 yrPennsylvania: 12.5 yrMissouri: 16.0 yrNorth Carolina: 15.2 yrUtah: 14.9 yrVirginia: 14.6 yrWyoming: 14.5 yrWest Virginia: 16.2 yrNew York: 8.9 yrIndiana: 13.5 yrKansas: 13.9 yrIdaho: 18.5 yrNevada: 12.6 yrIllinois: 13.0 yrVermont: 10.7 yrNew Jersey: 10.0 yrMinnesota: 14.0 yrMaryland: 11.1 yrIowa: 15.9 yrHawaii: 4.3 yrNew Hampshire: 9.7 yrRhode Island: 7.9 yrConnecticut: 8.0 yrMontana: 17.6 yrArizona: 11.2 yrNebraska: 16.9 yrWashington: 21.6 yrSouth Dakota: 16.0 yrCalifornia: 5.5 yrAlabama: 13.5 yrWisconsin: 12.5 yrMississippi: 15.6 yrColorado: 12.3 yrOklahoma: 15.3 yrTennessee: 16.4 yrLouisiana: 16.1 yrMichigan: 11.7 yrMassachusetts: 7.7 yrFlorida: 12.7 yrAlaska: 11.3 yrNorth Dakota: 19.2 yrSouth Carolina: 13.7 yrMaine: 8.5 yrDelaware: 12.7 yrDistrict of Columbia: 9.8 yr

Florida against its neighbours in the payback ranking

  • -1 places, Nevada -0.2 years against Florida
  • +0 places, Delaware -0.1 years against Florida
  • Florida, rank 22: 12.7 years
  • +2 places, Texas +0.2 years against Florida
  • +3 places, Illinois +0.2 years against Florida

Your numbers for Florida

    Limits in Florida

    Florida: with the old 30% credit (IRS, ended 2025) payback would be 8.9 years instead of 12.7, so the calculator starts at 0%. No Florida export rates in our data: output counts at 15.24 ¢. All limits.

    Sources for Florida

    More about Florida

    Florida electricity hub, Florida EV charging: 4,392 stations, where Florida ranks for rooftop solar, 12.7 years against 51 states, Florida calculators.

    Questions

    Winter cut in Florida solar output?

    December to February give 22% of the year; Apr makes 151 kWh per kW and Dec 105.

    Florida sunshine for solar panels?

    1,546 kWh per kW a year at the state point, rank 7 of 51; from 1,455 in Jacksonville to 1,568 in Tampa.

    Florida electricity from solar, what share?

    9.3% of 2025 net generation, rank 12 of 51, +2.5 points against the nation.

    Florida utility-scale solar capacity?

    12,301 MW in 213 plants (EIA-860), 561 W per resident, rank 13; 2,830 MW proposed.

    Net metering in Florida?

    290,466 systems, 27.8 per 1,000 accounts, rank 17.

    Solar payback in Florida?

    12.7 years at $3.00 a watt; 10.6 at $2.50; 14.9 at $3.50; 1,546 kWh per kW at 15.24 ¢.

    Where in Florida is solar best?

    Yes: 7% between Jacksonville and Tampa in yearly output.

    Florida pays half price for exports?

    Payback 25.5 years at a 50% retail share.

    CO2 displaced in Florida?

    3.3 t a year on 6 kW at 0.357 kg per kWh.

    Federal solar credit in Florida: still available?

    Ended 2025 (IRS 25D); with it Florida payback would be 8.9 years, not 12.7.

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    22% of a year's solar output in Florida falls in December to February, rank 50 of 51 (1 = least winter)