Guide to Going Solar as a Con Edison Customer in New York City

If you’re a Con Edison customer in New York City, going solar isn’t just possible—it’s easier than you might think, especially with an experienced local installer.

At Brooklyn SolarWorks, we specialize in solar panel installation for New York City rooftops and have connected thousands of systems to the Con Ed grid. We’ll handle the entire process for you, from submitting your interconnection application to coordinating the final inspections.

In this guide, we cover everything you need to know about going solar as a Con Ed customer.

What Happens When You Go Solar with Con Edison

When you go solar as a Con Edison customer, your solar panels—and your home—will be connected to the electric grid. This is called grid-tied solar.

You pay a basic service charge to maintain your grid connection, which means your bill will never be $0, even with solar panels (more on that below). The small charge, however, is worth it for two important reasons:

1. It ensures that you always have access to electricity. At night, or if there’s ever a problem with your panels, you can buy power from the electric grid.
2. It allows you to participate in net metering. Net metering is a billing arrangement that allows you to send the extra electricity your solar panels generate to the grid in exchange for credits on your bill. It’s like a virtual battery that lets you “store” the excess solar energy you produce to use at a later time. That means you’re benefiting from solar power even when your panels are not producing electricity.

The Con Edison Solar Interconnection Process

Getting connected to the Con Ed grid involves several steps. Our team will handle all of this for you, so you don’t have to worry too much about the details.

Here’s what the process includes:

1. Interconnection Application – We submit a detailed application to Con Edison that includes your system design and electrical specs. This is required before we can begin installation.
2. Inspection – Once your system is installed, Con Edison inspects it. We’ll schedule and facilitate the inspection for you.
3. Permission to Operate (PTO) – After a successful inspection, you receive Permission to Operate. This is the final green light to turn your solar panels on.

Will My Solar Panels Work During a Con Ed Power Outage?

Unfortunately, your solar panels will not work during a Con Ed outage. All grid-tied solar panels shut down automatically during a power outage to prevent them from sending unexpected surges of electricity into the grid and putting utility workers at risk.

How Net Metering Works with Con Edison

Net metering is, essentially, selling solar-generated electricity to Con Ed in exchange for credits on your bill. When you generate more electricity than you need, it’s automatically sent to the grid. Then, when you need more than you produce, you take it from the grid. Your meter keeps track of what you take and what you send, and you pay the net difference every month.

Your credits roll over month to month, so you can bank them during the long, sunny summer days and use them to cover your higher electricity costs in the winter, when there’s less sunlight available for solar generation.

Where to Find Net Metering Information on Your Bill

Your net metering credits are tracked on your monthly Con Ed statement, under a section titled “Your Net Meter Summary.” You’ll see a log of credits for recent billing periods, the kWh you’re being billed for (if any—0 in the example below), and the total amount of credit being carried forward to the next billing period.

What’s the Customer Benefit Contribution (CBC) Charge?

In 2022, Con Ed introduced a new monthly fee for solar customers, called the Customer Benefit Contribution (CBC) charge.

This charge was implemented to ensure that solar customers contribute fairly to public benefit programs, including the Clean Energy Fund, utility energy efficiency programs, and utility low-income programs.

Your CBC charge is calculated based on your system’s size, and the rate varies by utility. In 2025, the CBC rate for Con Edison customers is $1.84 per kW a month. For a 7 kW system, that comes out to  $12.88 a month.

Is Net Metering Going Away in New York City?

Because of the new CBC charge, as well as net metering changes in other states like California, there’s been some concern that net metering is going away in New York. Fortunately, this is not the case. Net metering is safe in NYC for the time being.

However, policy changes are always possible. If you’re interested in installing solar, your best bet is to do so now, before any potential changes are implemented. You’ll be locked into Con Ed’s current net metering policy for 20 years, so if net metering is eliminated in New York City in the coming years, your savings will be safe.

Reading Your Con Edison Bill After Installing Solar

As a Con Ed solar customer, you will still receive an electric bill every month. It will, however, be significantly lower.

Here’s an example of an electric bill for a Brooklyn SolarWorks Customer before and after going solar. They still owe a small amount, but their total dropped from $622.97 before solar to just $47.10 after installing solar panels!

Why Do I Still Have Charges on My Con Ed Bill After Going Solar?

There are some charges that all Con Edison solar customers pay, even if you have solar panels. These include:

1. Delivery charge – These charges cover the infrastructure costs of delivering electricity to and from your home. If your solar doesn’t fully offset your home’s usage and you’re pulling energy from the grid, you’ll pay this delivery fee at a set rate per kWh. Even though your solar system may cover most of your usage, you’re still connected to Con Edison’s grid and have to pay this fee.
2. Customer Benefit Contribution (CBC) – This is a new charge that you’ll see on your bill after going solar. It’s a fixed monthly fee based on your system’s size that helps fund public energy programs.
3. Basic Service charge – This is a type of delivery charge. It’s a standard monthly fee that connects you to the Con Ed grid and covers the cost of maintaining your electric account. It’s not based on how much electricity you use.
4. Sales Taxes & other surcharges – These are also added to your bill as a percentage of any remaining charges on your bill.
5. Supply Charges – This charge covers the cost of any electricity pulled from the grid. Think of it like the cost of the commodity “Energy,” whereas the delivery charges are the cost of bringing the energy to your home. If your solar doesn’t fully offset your home’s usage and you are pulling energy from the grid, you’ll pay this supply fee at a set rate per kWh.

Ready to Lower Your Con Ed Bill with Solar?

Electricity is already expensive, and rates are only going up. If you’re ready to take control of your Con Ed bill, reach out to Brooklyn SolarWorks today. We offer free, no-pressure consultations to help you decide whether solar panels make sense for your home in New York City.

Call 929-977-0058 or schedule your free solar consultation today.