Solar Payback Period Calculator

Most C&I rooftop plants in north India pay back in 3 to 5 years. The two numbers that decide it are your landed tariff (printed on your electricity bill) and the installed cost per kW. A factory paying ₹9/unit recovers a plant far faster than an office paying ₹6.5/unit on the same roof.

This tool deliberately assumes only 90% of generation offsets billed units, because some generation lands on Sundays and holidays when the factory draws little. Quotes that assume every unit earns the full tariff, ignore that mismatch, and skip degradation will always look faster on paper — and slower in your accounts.

It is the right first filter, not the final answer. Simple payback ignores tariff escalation (works in solar's favour), module degradation and O&M (work against it), and the time value of money. For a board or bank you want IRR and NPV over 25 years — our full financial model calculator computes exactly that with every assumption editable.

For profit-making companies, substantially. Solar plants qualify for 40% accelerated depreciation under the Income Tax Act, which shelters profit in the first years and can bring the effective payback down by roughly a year for a tax-paying firm. This calculator shows pre-tax payback; ask us for the post-tax working for your entity.