Why Your Con Ed Bill Matters for Solar
Your Con Edison bill contains the exact data needed to calculate your solar savings. But most homeowners have never looked beyond the total amount due. Understanding what each line item means helps you evaluate solar proposals intelligently and avoid overpaying for a system that's too large or too small.
Supply Charges vs. Delivery Charges
Your bill has two main sections: Supply and Delivery. Supply charges cover the actual electricity you consumed, measured in kWh. This is the commodity cost of power. Delivery charges cover Con Edison's cost to maintain the grid, wires, transformers, and infrastructure that bring electricity to your home. Solar directly offsets your supply charges. Delivery charges are partially offset through net metering credits (called VDER in New York), but not dollar-for-dollar. This is why your bill won't go to zero even with a large solar system.
Finding Your kWh Usage
Look for "Total kWh Used" or the usage summary section. This number tells you how much electricity your home consumed in the billing period. For solar sizing purposes, you want your annual total. You can find this on your bill's usage history graph or by adding up 12 months of statements. Most Westchester homes use 8,000-14,000 kWh per year. If you can't find the number, upload your bill to our analyzer and we'll extract it automatically.
Your Rate Class
Your bill shows your service classification, typically "SC 1" for standard residential service (Rate I). This is important because it determines your per-kWh cost and affects solar savings calculations. If you see "SC 1 - VTOU" you're already on a time-of-use rate. Most Westchester homeowners are on standard Rate I, which charges a flat rate regardless of when you use electricity. Switching to TOU Rate III with battery storage can significantly reduce your costs.
The Effective Rate: Your Key Number
Divide your total bill amount by your total kWh used. This gives you your effective rate per kWh, which includes both supply and delivery. For most Con Edison residential customers in Westchester, this number is between $0.30-0.38/kWh. This is one of the highest effective rates in the country, and rates have been climbing steadily, which is exactly why solar makes so much financial sense here. The higher your rate, the more valuable every kWh of solar generation becomes.
What Solar Installers Look For
When you get a solar proposal, the installer uses three key numbers from your bill: annual kWh consumption (to size the system), your effective rate (to calculate dollar savings), and your rate class (to model net metering credits). A good proposal will show you these inputs clearly. If a solar company gives you a quote without looking at your bill, that's a red flag. Upload your bill to our free analyzer and see these numbers broken down before talking to any installer.
Want to see your exact rates?
Upload your bill and we'll show you what you're paying per kWh, peak vs off-peak.