Best Solar Panel Loans

If you have a lot of roof space and plan to cover it with solar panels, you’ll feel good knowing SoFi can cover your large solar loan with up to $100,000. Add in a 0.25% rate discount if you choose autopay, plus the company’s commitment to no borrower fees, and you’ll understand why we chose SoFi as our best option for large solar loans.

SoFi was founded by Stanford business school students in 2011 by using the alumni network to connect recent grads with alumni for funding. By 2014, the company was launching mortgages and a student loan refinancing product in 2017. Now, SoFi has over 5.5 million members, has given over $73 billion in loans, and its loans have paid off more than $34 billion in member debt.

With a loan maximum as high as $100,000, no fees, and an autopay rate discount, SoFi ranks as best for large solar loans. You can choose to pay an origination fee in exchange for a lower interest rate. Loans range from 24 to 84 months, repaid monthly with an autopay option. Fixed APRs range from 8.99% to 25.81%.

Most SoFi loan customers get same-day funding, however, a few of them do not. SoFi does not have a specific solar loan, but you can finance your system through their home improvement loan product.

LightStream’s same-day funding potential alone puts it in a small class of solar lenders, but when you add in the fact that it can loan up to $100,000 with rates as low as 8.99% with autopay and excellent credit, you can see why it’s our best for quick funding.

LightStream can deposit up to $100,000 in your bank account as soon as the same day that you complete all of your application and document submissions, making it the clear winner of our quick funding category.

LightStream, a division of Truist Bank, is an online consumer lender with the support of a major bank.

Those seeking to finance their solar installation will find LightStream has low rates for those with good credit. It offers low-interest, fixed-rate loans that are backed with a Rate Beat Program, in which LightStream will offer a rate 0.10 percentage points lower than a rate offered to you by a competitor.

Solar loans from LightStream have an interest rate between 7.99% and 21.24% APR with 0.50% automatic payment discount. LightStream offers whole project funding with no fees, no home equity requirement, and no prepayment penalties. It also doesn't require an appraisal. 

The LightStream loan allows customers to control the terms of their home improvement loan. Customers can repay the loan in as little as two years or take up to 12 years, depending on the amount financed. The terms are related to good credit, so you must have a solid credit history to apply. There is no stated income minimum, but the company will look at your income and DTI to determine your repayment qualifications.

You apply online using electronic signatures and, if you are approved, you’ll be asked to present a valid credit card for verification purposes. No charges will be applied.

Upgrade, the winner of our best for poor credit category, looks at a borrower’s full financial picture, including income, credit history, debt usage, and score, making it easier for borrowers with lower scores to qualify.

Those with less-than-perfect credit should try the best for poor credit option, Upgrade. While Upgrade doesn't offer loans specific to solar energy financing, it does provide personal loans up to $50,000, funds in less than a week, and has a lenient credit score policy. Rates depend on credit score, credit usage history, and the loan term.

Loans can be used for home improvements to remodel or repair a home without refinancing or taking out a home equity loan. You can use this to make energy renewal improvements, including solar panel installation.

Loan term lengths are 24 to 84 months, with APRs ranging from 8.49% to 35.99%. For a solar panel installation, you would apply for a personal loan, which has a 1.85% to 9.99% origination fee deducted from the loan proceeds.

Applying with Upgrade is a no-hassle process where customers can apply online in minutes to see their proposed rate without impacting their credit score. The online application enables customers to review several loan options to pick the one that fits their needs.

Once customers accept an offer, the money is sent to the bank within a day of clearing necessary verifications.

With fixed annual percentage rates (APR) as low as 3.99%, a 10-minute paperless online application, a workmanship warranty, no prepayment penalties, and the option to put zero down, Dividend has so many customer-focused benefits with its solar financing that we had to name it best overall.

Founded in 2013 in San Francisco, Dividend is now a leader in the financing market for clean energy that offers two primary products, the Empower Loan and PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy). Empower loans reach residential customers, while PACE is a public-private financing option for commercial enterprises.

Dividend provides loans throughout most of the United States except for Vermont, Wyoming, Montana, North and South Dakota, and Nebraska.

Empower Loans offers fixed automatic payments with APRs starting at 3.99%. Customers describe Dividend’s online application process as simple, taking no more than 10 minutes. There’s no down payment required at the beginning of the loan, and there’s no prepayment penalty if you decide to pay in full early. Loan terms range from 10 to 25 years.

Dividend does not state an income or credit score minimum to qualify, but rather will use your score and ability to repay the loan to dictate your APR. With monthly automatic re-payment plans, most Dividend customers take out loans between $20,000 and $50,000.

By connecting its borrowers to the Fannie Mae (FNMA) HomeStyle Energy Efficient Mortgage (EEM) program, New American Funding offers the best fixed-rate financing through low rates and a government-backed guaranty, available in every state except Hawaii.

New American Funding has the best fixed rates available thanks to its use of the FNMA-backed loan, where APRs can be as low as 6.436% when spread over 30 years. 

New American Funding funds customers for solar panels and other energy efficiency projects through the Fannie Mae HomeStyle Energy Mortgage program. The company is family-owned with thousands of employees and is a Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and Ginnie Mae direct lender, seller, and servicer.

Energy-efficient loans offer more than solar panels. They could also include water efficiency devices, wind power and geothermal systems, and many more projects. New American Funding offers the HomeStyle Energy Mortgage to either upgrade your home using a refinance or finance your new home with energy improvements already built into the cost.

Properties eligible for New American Funding loans include a one-to-four-unit principal residence, a second home, a one-unit investment property, manufactured homes, condos, co-ops, and planned unit developments.

New American offers fixed rates for 15- or 30-year mortgages. 

• 30-Year Fixed: 6.125% mortgage rate, 6.436% APR
• 15-Year Fixed: 5.50% mortgage rate, 6.008% APR
• FHA 30-Year Fixed: 5.625%, 6.829% APR
• VA 30-Year Fixed: 5.625%, 6.272% APR

Both your income and your debt-to-income ratio will be considered in your loan approval.

ezSolarLoan has the term length for a solar loan that isn’t wrapped into a mortgage. Its Jackpot Solar Loan can last for 21 years with an APR starting point of 9.99% with built-in rate increase protection every seven years.

ezSolarLoan, a brand under Community 1st Credit Union, provides a long-term, 21-year solar loan outside of your mortgage note, making it our preferred choice for a long-term repayment plan.

This credit union's interest in energy improvement loans can be as low as 9.49% for five, seven, 10, 12, and 15 years. For well-qualified applicants, it can offer instant approvals up to $50,000. Its longest-term program, called the Jackpot Solar Loan, cobbles together three seven-year loans back to back.

The APR for the Jackpot Solar Loan starts at 9.99% for the initial seven years. The rate changes at the beginning of the second and third seven-year terms. Each adjustment can increase by no more than 2.5%.

The credit union does not have stated income or credit score minimums but does consider both of these aspects of your package, along with your debt-to-income ratio.

The online application takes about five minutes to complete. Having already chosen your solar panel installer, you'll type into the application the contractor's Solar Company Identifier (SCI) code. You will upload your documents for income verification and identification and answer some questions about your property.

Once your loan is approved, you'll sign the documents online. Your installation will begin with the credit union paying your installer according to contract terms.

The Jackpot Solar Loan gives you the lowest monthly payment available from ezSolarLoan. The online application instantly approves loans up to $50,000, but loan amounts up to $80,000 are also available. There are no prepayment penalties for any credit union's energy improvement or solar loans.