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Best Time to Go Solar in Illinois: Winter Is About 18% of Your Output. Spring Is 28%.
guide10 min read

Best Time to Go Solar in Illinois: Winter Is About 18% of Your Output. Spring Is 28%.

Ryan Cook•

The best time to go solar in Illinois is fall or early winter, so your system is running by March. Across nine Illinois towns we model, December through February make only about 17% to 18.4% of a year's estimated solar output. March through May make about 27% to 28%. Starting in winter gives up very little. Waiting until spring to start gives up the months where your roof is about to earn the most.

I hear "let's wait until spring" every October. I get it. Nobody wants a crew on the roof in sleet, and panels under a gray November sky don't look like a smart buy. But the calendar math runs the other way, and the paperwork between "yes" and "on" takes weeks no matter what month you start.

Key fact Figure Window / source
Share of annual output, Dec–Feb ~17.1% to 18.4% (9 Illinois towns) Estimates from NREL/NLR monthly solar data
Share of annual output, Mar–May ~26.7% to 28.1% Same nine towns
Share of annual output, Jun–Aug ~30.2% to 31.4% Same nine towns
Ameren Illinois Price to Compare 10.441¢/kWh first 800 kWh; 8.262¢ above Oct 1, 2026 – May 31, 2027
ComEd Price to Compare 10.103¢/kWh Oct 1, 2026 – May 31, 2027
Utility Level 1 deadlines 7 business days (completeness) + 15 (screens) 83 Ill. Adm. Code 466.90
Ameren Level 1 witness test Within 15 business days of construction-complete paperwork Ameren DER guide (eff. June 21, 2023)
Net metering credits, systems connected 2025 or later Carry over to later bills; don't expire 220 ILCS 5/16-107.5(n); ComEd net metering FAQ
Federal credit on leased systems Ends for solar placed in service after Dec 31, 2027 (if construction begins after July 4, 2026) IRS Notice 2025-42

Winter is the smallest slice of your solar year

Here's the estimated year for a 7.5 kW system in two corners of the state, built from NREL's monthly solar resource data for each town at a roof tilt near local latitude. Your roof will land near these numbers, not on them.

Season Share of year (9 towns) Chicago area (ComEd), est. Belleville area (Ameren), est.
Dec – Feb 17.1% – 18.4% ~1,288 kWh ~1,537 kWh
Mar – May 26.7% – 28.1% ~2,045 kWh ~2,253 kWh
Jun – Aug 30.2% – 31.4% ~2,304 kWh ~2,534 kWh
Sep – Nov 23.2% – 24.7% ~1,706 kWh ~2,052 kWh

The pattern barely changes from Rockford to Carbondale. Every town we checked puts winter under a fifth of the year and spring above a quarter. I walked through the month-by-month curve in August if you want the detail behind it.

A single May is worth a lot more than a single December. Near Chicago, the estimate is about 726 kWh in May against 367 in December, roughly double. Around Belleville it's about 783 against 476. That's the whole argument in two numbers.

What waiting until spring actually costs

Say you sign in April instead of October and your system starts producing in June instead of March. Here's roughly what those three spring months would have been worth at the rates in effect through May 31, 2027:

  • Chicago area (ComEd): about 2,045 kWh × 10.103¢ ≈ $207
  • Belleville area (Ameren): about 2,253 kWh × 8.262¢ to 10.441¢ ≈ $186 to $235, depending on how much of your usage falls in the first 800 kWh

I'm pricing those kilowatt-hours against the Price to Compare, the supply-side price Illinois solar credits work against now. Power you use at home as it's produced also skips per-kWh delivery charges, and I left that out, so these figures lean low. They're estimates, not promises.

Two hundred dollars won't change anyone's life. But it isn't the only thing waiting costs, and it compounds with everything below.

The calendar between "yes" and "on"

Signing a contract and switching a system on are two separate events, and Illinois puts a process with real deadlines between them.

Under 83 Ill. Adm. Code Part 466, your utility has 7 business days to tell you whether your Level 1 application is complete and 15 business days after that to verify the screens. If minor modifications are needed, it has 10 more business days to send the agreement after you agree to them and pay the fee. After your installer reports construction complete, Ameren Illinois says Level 1 witness tests are completed within 15 business days, with permanent permission to operate typically within two business days of a passed test. ComEd runs the same two gates through its own approval and Certificate of Completion.

Stack those and the utility's side alone can run nine or ten weeks at the outside edge. That's a ceiling, not a forecast. It also doesn't count permits, scheduling or the install itself. I explained every step of that wait in August.

Here's the practical read. Start in October and the paperwork grinds through the darkest months of the year, when your roof would barely produce anyway. Start in April and the same paperwork eats your best months.

Your first winter won't look impressive, and that's fine

A system that switches on in December will post small numbers. That's the season, not the hardware.

What used to make a winter start feel risky doesn't apply to new systems. ComEd's net metering FAQ says credits don't expire for customers who interconnected on or after January 1, 2025. The April-or-October reset people warn about is a legacy-customer rule for systems connected before 2025. For new systems, credits apply to the supply and transmission portions of the bill, and Illinois law says the utility "shall continue to carry over any excess kilowatt-hour or monetary energy credits earned and apply those credits to subsequent billing periods." Delivery charges stay on the bill for every kilowatt-hour you pull from the grid.

Snow is the other worry. On a pitched Illinois roof it usually melts or slides off on its own once the sun comes back, and the right move is almost always to leave it alone.

Rates aren't waiting for spring either

Ameren Illinois' new Price to Compare is 10.441¢ per kWh on the first 800 kWh, up about 24% from last October's 8.402¢. ComEd's is 10.103¢. Both run through May 2027, and I broke down what the October reset means for your bill when the new prices posted.

Next summer doesn't look gentler. PJM's capacity auction for June 2027 through May 2028 cleared at the FERC-approved price cap of $333.44 per megawatt-day, and that cost flows into ComEd supply prices starting June 2027. The full rate history since 2021 shows how rarely a reset goes the homeowner's way. Waiting for a better utility price has not been a winning bet in Illinois lately.

The one federal date worth knowing

The 30% credit for homeowners who buy their system is gone. The IRS says the Residential Clean Energy Credit isn't available for property placed in service after December 31, 2025.

On a lease, a separate business credit goes to the company that owns the panels, and that value can show up in the price it offers you. I covered how that works in June. IRS Notice 2025-42 sets the date: the credit terminates for solar placed in service after December 31, 2027, when construction begins after July 4, 2026.

That's 15 months out. It isn't a reason to rush a decision this week. It is a reason not to let "someday" drift into 2028, and a fair question to ask any company quoting you a lease: how does your pricing account for that date?

When waiting genuinely makes sense

I'd rather you wait for the right reason than sign for the wrong one.

  • Your roof needs replacing within a few years. Do the roof first. Here's how to tell.
  • You're selling the house soon. Solar can transfer, but don't add a variable to a sale already underway.
  • A big load is coming. An EV, a heat pump or a basement finish changes your usage. Size for the house you'll have next year, not the one you had last year.
  • You qualify for Illinois Solar for All. Income-qualified homes should check the program's windows before signing anything else.

None of those is "it's October."

My take

Fall is when I'd want my own system signed. The months the paperwork eats are the months the roof would waste anyway. The spring production arrives on a system that's already running.

A solar lease in Illinois gives you a predictable rate as low as $0.10/kWh, with your full 25-year rate schedule set in your contract before you sign. Cash purchases and Illinois Solar for All are on the table too. Any savings figure is an estimate until we've looked at your usage, your roof and your utility.

Run your address through the savings calculator, or call me at (618) 217-2001. You can also reach out here. Tell me your town and your utility, and I'll tell you honestly whether this fall is your window or whether you should wait.

Sources

Production figures are estimates from NREL/NLR monthly solar resource data for each town, scaled to our town-level production model; your roof, shading and equipment will change them. Rates are the published Prices to Compare for October 1, 2026 through May 31, 2027. I'm not your utility or your tax preparer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Fall and early winter are the best time to sign, because the goal is to have the system running by March. Across nine Illinois towns we model, from Rockford and Chicago down to Belleville and Carbondale, December through February produce only about 17% to 18.4% of a year's estimated solar output. March through May produce about 27% to 28%. That math means a winter start gives up very little, while waiting until spring to begin gives up the stretch where production climbs fastest. The paperwork side doesn't move quickly either. Illinois' interconnection rule lets the utility take up to 7 business days to confirm an application is complete and 15 more to screen it, and Ameren Illinois says it completes Level 1 witness tests within 15 business days of construction-complete paperwork. Starting in the fall lets all of that happen during the months your roof would barely be producing anyway. Every home is different, so treat these as estimates.
Yes. Solar gets installed in Illinois year-round, and cold weather doesn't hurt the panels. Panels actually run a little more efficiently at lower temperatures, and a pitched array tilted toward the low winter sun keeps producing on clear days. What slows winter work is the roof itself. Crews don't work on ice-covered or snow-covered shingles, so a storm can push an install date back a few days. In my experience, that's a scheduling nuisance, not a reason to wait months. The paperwork that sits around the install runs the same in January as in June. Illinois' interconnection rule sets the utility's deadlines for reviewing your application, and Ameren Illinois says it completes Level 1 witness tests within 15 business days of your installer reporting construction complete. Winter production is small, too. December through February make only about 17% to 18% of a typical Illinois system's estimated year, so a slow winter start costs little.
For a typical 7.5 kW home system, waiting to start production until June instead of March gives up roughly $186 to $235 of estimated electricity in the Belleville area and about $207 near Chicago. That's March, April and May, which together make about 27% to 28% of a year's estimated output across Illinois. A Chicago-area system is estimated at about 2,045 kWh over those three months, valued at ComEd's Price to Compare of 10.103 cents per kWh. A Belleville-area system is estimated at about 2,253 kWh, valued at Ameren Illinois' 8.262 to 10.441 cents depending on usage tier. Both prices run October 1, 2026 through May 31, 2027. I'm pricing it against the supply side of your bill only, and solar power you use at home also skips per-kWh delivery charges, so these figures lean low. They're estimates, not promises. Your roof, usage and contract decide the real number.
No. If your system is interconnected in 2026 or later, your net metering credits don't expire. ComEd's net metering FAQ states that credits, whether kWh or monetary, do not expire for customers who interconnected on or after January 1, 2025. The annual April or October expiration date people warn about applies to legacy customers who connected before 2025 on fixed-price supply. For newer systems, Illinois law tells the utility to carry excess credits over to later bills. For a new system, a winter start just means your first few bills show smaller offsets, because December through February only make about 17% to 18% of a year's estimated output. Credits apply to the supply and transmission portions of your bill under the rules for systems completed on or after January 1, 2025. Delivery charges stay on the bill for every kilowatt-hour you pull from the grid. Your bigger credit months come in spring and summer, and anything banked rolls forward instead of resetting at a fixed date.
There's no Illinois deadline that forces a homeowner to sign this month, but there is one federal date worth knowing. The 30% homeowner credit already ended. The IRS states the Residential Clean Energy Credit is not available for any property placed in service after December 31, 2025. On a lease, a separate business credit is claimed by the company that owns the system. IRS Notice 2025-42 says the One, Big, Beautiful Bill terminates that credit for solar facilities placed in service after December 31, 2027 when construction begins after July 4, 2026. That's more than a year away, so it isn't a reason to panic-sign in October. It is a reason not to let a vague someday drift into 2028. How any company plans around that date is a fair question to ask before you sign. Income-qualified homes should also watch Illinois Solar for All's application windows, which open and close on their own schedule.

Related City Guides

Chicago, ILRockford, ILNaperville, ILPeoria, ILSpringfield, ILChampaign, ILBloomington, ILBelleville, ILCarbondale, IL

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