In the Phoenix Valley, there’s plenty of sunshine to go around, which is why many Arizona homeowners consider adding solar panels to their homes. 

But how does your electricity provider factor into that decision?

It’s true that solar panels will soak up the same sun, regardless of whether your electric bill comes from APS or SRP. But who your provider is can actually affect how your solar system should be designed.

That’s because APS and SRP have different solar rate structures, different ways of charging for electricity at different times of day, and different ways of crediting the energy your system sends back to the grid. 

This is why an Arizona solar quote should never be based only on your annual electricity use or how many panels will fit on your roof. A good solar design should also account for your utility, your rate plan, when your household uses electricity, and whether technology such as a battery or energy management system could improve your savings.

Let’s take a closer look at how APS vs. SRP solar can change the best setup for your home.

 

First: Solar Savings Aren’t Just About How Much Electricity You Produce

Many people think about solar in simple terms: You use a certain number of kilowatt-hours each year, so you install enough panels to produce roughly the same number and offset your costs.

But utility billing makes the calculation more complicated.

Electricity may cost considerably more during certain hours. Your utility company may credit solar energy you export differently from the electricity you buy from the grid. Some plans also include demand charges based on how much power you pull from the grid at one time.

In short, when you produce and consume electricity can matter almost as much as how much electricity you use overall.

That means that when you design your solar system, multiple factors should be taken into account, including historical power consumption, roof limitations, shading, and your utility’s rate-plan structure.

Sometimes, that will leave you with a system that offsets close to 100% of your annual electricity consumption. But other times, a smaller system—paired with smarter energy management—might make more financial sense.

 

Should You Size Solar for 100% Offset?

Short answer: not automatically.

The goal of solar system design should not be to put the maximum number of panels on your roof. It should be to create the combination of solar production, energy management, and storage that makes the most sense for your home.

And whether you use APS or SRP—and which plan you choose with your provider—is an important part of the equation.

 

How Do APS Solar Rates Work?

APS solar customers generally use a time-of-use plan, meaning electricity costs more during designated on-peak hours and less during off-peak hours.

APS currently offers two main options for most solar customers: 

• • Time-of-Use 4 p.m. – 7 p.m Weekdays: Homeowners pay more for electricity purchased between 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. on weekdays. This encourages solar users to shift energy use to times outside of those hours.

• • Time-of-Use 4 p.m. – 7 p.m Weekdays with Demand Charge: This plan is similar to the typical time-of-use plan, with an added monthly demand charge for the highest hour of usage during on-peak hours. APS recommends using major appliances outside peak hours or staggering their use to help control the extra charge.

 

What happens to extra solar energy with APS?

When your panels produce more electricity than the home is using, the excess can be sent to the APS grid. There are two different ways homeowners can be compensated for this:

• • Resource Comparison Proxy (RCP) Export Rate: This option provides a dollar amount for exported energy, which shows as a credit on your account. Remaining credits roll over to the next month, and balances of $25 or more at the end of the year will be paid to the homeowner via check.

    The dollar amount a homeowner receives for their exported energy depends on when they begin the program.

 

The plan you choose—and the rate you get for that plan—matters. If the electricity you send to the grid is worth less than the electricity you later purchase from APS, simply producing as much excess solar energy as possible may not give you the biggest financial return. It may be more valuable to structure your energy use so that you use more of your solar energy inside your own home, so you rely less on the grid.

For that reason, batteries and energy management can become important pieces of an APS solar design.

 

How Do SRP Solar Rates Work?

SRP solar rates work differently—and there are more plan structures to consider. 

Some of SRP’s current residential plans are available to customers with or without solar, including:

• • Conserve 6-9 p.m. and Save: Weekday electricity between 6-9 p.m. costs more.

• • Manage Demand 5-10 p.m. and Save: Encourages customers to limit energy use during on-peak hours, and includes super off-peak hours for even lower prices during certain times.

 

SRP also offers some solar-specific plans that remain available to solar customers until November 2029.

Demand plans include demand charges, but typically offer SRP’s lowest residential energy rates. Demand plans include:

• • Customer Generation Plan: Encourages customers to actively track their usage online to reduce demand during on-peak hours. SRP says this plan is ideal for homes with consistent energy usage.

• • Average Demand Plan: For a home with more fluctuating demand needs, this plan allows for a more hands-off approach, with the tradeoff of higher per-kilowatt demand charges.

 

Export plans compensate homeowners at a fixed per-kilowatt hour rate for excess energy sent back to SRP. These include:

• • Time-of-Use Export Plan: Homeowners can save by using energy from their systems and pulling from the grid during off-peak hours. 

• • Electric Vehicle Export Plan: Customers with electric vehicles can save by charging overnight during super off-peak hours.

 

Again, these older solar plans are scheduled to be retired beginning with the November 2029 billing cycle.

There are clearly a lot of options available to homeowners. But the basic principle behind solar design and installation remains the same: an SRP solar system should be designed around the SRP plan the homeowner will actually use.

 

How Batteries Can Change the Equation

Solar panels produce the most electricity during daylight hours.

Unfortunately, many Arizona homes don’t consume most of their electricity during those hours. Instead, they use a lot of electricity later in the afternoon and evening—when the family comes home, the oven is turned on for dinner, the laundry gets started, the EV gets plugged in, and the air conditioner is still fighting triple-digit temperatures.

That creates a timing problem. Extra solar energy produced midday may be exported back to the grid; but later, when your family is using more energy but your panels are producing less (or nothing at all), you may be forced to buy electricity back from the grid during a more expensive period.

A battery can store some of that midday production so it can be used later instead.

Whether or not a battery actually makes sense for your home depends heavily on your utility and rate plan. One homeowner may use a battery to avoid expensive time-of-use electricity, while another may use it to help control demand. But for some, the economics of battery usage may not justify the additional equipment at all. 

That is why “Do I need a battery?” will not have the same answer for every Arizona homeowner.

 

What Should an Arizona Solar Company Look at Before Designing Your System?

At the very least, an Arizona solar quote or proposal should account for:

• • Your APS or SRP territory and eligible rate plan

• • At least 12 months of historical electricity consumption

• • When your household tends to use electricity

• • Your roof orientation, usable roof space, and shading

• • Expected solar production throughout the year

• • How excess solar production will be credited

• • Whether your rate includes demand charges

• • Whether a battery or energy management technology improves the economics

• • Future changes, such as adding an EV, pool, or additional HVAC equipment

 

When done right, the process involves a close look at each of these factors and considers them in your solar design. 

If a solar company simply takes your annual usage, divides it by expected panel production, and calls the job finished, it’s time to ask more questions.

 

APS vs. SRP Solar: What Is the Biggest Difference for Homeowners?

When comparing Arizona utility companies and their solar options, there isn’t one single number that can answer whether solar is “better” with APS or SRP.

A more useful way to think about it is to break it down by feature:

RATE STRUCTURE

• • APS: Solar customers generally use time-of-use plans, with an optional demand-charge plan

• • SRP: Multiple solar-compatible plans, including demand and export-credit structures

 

PEAK PERIODS

• • APS: Current APS solar TOU plans focus primarily on weekday 4–7 p.m. use

• • SRP: Peak periods vary by SRP plan and may extend farther into the evening

 

EXCESS SOLAR

• • APS: Exported electricity can receive bill credits through APS renewable riders

• • SRP: Treatment depends on plan; some use export credits while certain plans use net metering

 

DESIGN PRIORITY

• • APS: Reduce expensive evening grid purchases and, where applicable, control demand

• • SRP: Match production, storage, and consumption strategy carefully to the selected SRP plan

 

BATTERY/ENERGY MANAGEMENT VALUE

• • APS: Can help shift daytime solar production into higher-cost evening hours

• • SRP: Can help reduce exports, cover evening loads, and manage demand depending on the plan

 

This is a lot of information to take in, but remember: you don’t have to memorize every rate. After all, rates and plans can change—and so can your family’s electricity habits.

The important thing is making sure that if you choose to pursue solar, whoever designs your system understands how those factors will work together under your roof before they install anything on your roof.

 

Why Working with a Local Solar Company Matters

Citrus Solar knows APS and SRP because our families use them too. As Valley homeowners ourselves, we design solar systems based on our years of local experience. 

We don’t apply the same formula to every house. We’ll look at your utility, your energy use, and your home and recommend what suits your situation—nothing more.

Because the goal isn’t to sell you the biggest solar system possible.

It’s to build the right one.

Want to see what solar could look like for your APS or SRP home? Get a hassle-free online quote from Citrus Solar in about 30 seconds.