South Carolina solar in numbers, 2024
Every figure below is computed by us from the Form EIA-861 annual files. Ranks are out of 51 jurisdictions, highest first.
| Measure | South Carolina | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Households with a metered rooftop system40,055 systems across 2,581,882 residential accounts | 1.55% | 27th of 51 |
| Average system sizeNational average 6.74 kW | 7.54 kW | 23rd of 51 |
| Residential priceDerived average across the state, not a tariff | 14.23¢/kWh | 30th of 51 |
| Consumption per accountWhat a system here is typically sized against | 12,605 kWh/yr | 10th of 51 |
| Systems with a battery753 paired systems | 1.88% | 22nd of 51 |
| Third-party ownedLeased or under a power purchase agreement | 20.2% | 17th of 51 |
| Five-year growth2,040 systems added in 2024 | 12.8%/yr | 45th of 51 |
| Installed capacityResidential net-metered capacity | 302.0 MW | — |
What the adoption figure means
A middling market — neither early nor late. Expect a reasonable choice of installers without the depth of the coastal markets.
Residential electricity in South Carolina averaged 14.23¢ per kilowatt-hour in 2024, 30th of 51 and below the national average of 16.48¢. Prices are close to the national middle, so the export rate your particular utility offers usually decides the outcome rather than the retail rate. Prices and adoption across all 51.
System size and consumption
The average South Carolina system was 7.54 kW in 2024, ranking 23rd of 51. Households consumed an average of 12,605 kilowatt-hours a year (10th of 51) — the figure a system here is sized against.
Size your own system from your own kilowatt-hours, not from this average — how to do that.
Who owns the systems
20.2% of South Carolina systems were third-party owned in 2024 — leased or under a power purchase agreement rather than owned by the householder. That is 17th of 51.
Third-party ownership is common, so leases and PPAs will be presented alongside purchase. Who claims the federal credit · ownership across all 51.
Battery attachment
1.88% of South Carolina solar systems were paired with a battery in 2024, 22nd of 51 — 753 paired systems.
Attachment runs above the national middle, suggesting storage often earns its place. Attachment across all 51 · does a battery belong in your project.
Where the market is going
South Carolina added 2,040 systems in 2024 and has grown at 12.8% a year over five years, 45th of 51. Where growth has turned.
Solar companies and licensing in South Carolina
We found no dedicated state licence register for solar work in South Carolina, so we publish no company counts rather than guessing. That is not evidence of light regulation — electrical work is frequently licensed at state or local level even where solar is never named separately.
It does have a practical consequence here. With 40,055 systems in the state and adoption 27th of 51, you are working in a market where a search for "South Carolina solar licence" will often return nothing useful, and where the company quoting you may be travelling in from out of state. Ask which licence they hold, in which state, and confirm it with that issuing authority rather than accepting a licence number on a proposal. What to do when the search comes back empty.
Method
Figures are computed by HyreSolar from the Form EIA-861 2024 annual files — net-metered residential systems only, penetration counted against residential accounts, sizes as means. EIA publishes the inputs, not these ratios. Full methodology and the underlying CSV.
None of these figures is an estimate for your property. What to work through before you talk to anyone.
Common questions
How many homes in South Carolina have solar?
40,055 residential net-metered systems were recorded in South Carolina in 2024, against 2,581,882 residential electricity accounts — 1.55% of households, 27th of 51 jurisdictions. That is a HyreSolar calculation from Form EIA-861.
What size solar system is typical in South Carolina?
The average net-metered residential system in South Carolina was 7.54 kW in 2024, against a national average of 6.74 kW. Your own system should be sized from twelve months of your kilowatt-hours and your usable roof, not from a state average.
Do people in South Carolina add batteries to solar?
1.88% of South Carolina systems were paired with storage in 2024, 22nd of 51. Battery attachment tracks outage frequency and export rules more than it tracks sunshine.
Is South Carolina a good state for solar?
On the measures we can compute: residential electricity averages 14.23¢/kWh (30th of 51), households use 12,605 kWh a year (10th of 51), and 1.55% have installed a system (27th of 51). Retail price and export rules move the answer far more than sunshine does, and both are set by your specific utility rather than by the state.
Source: US EIA, Form EIA-861, 2024 final release, retrieved 2 September 2026. Figures marked as a HyreSolar calculation are derived by us and are not official EIA statistics.