Solar Financing Payment Calculator: Loan vs Lease vs Prepaid Lease
See what your customer pays each month with a Climate First Bank loan, a 25-year standard lease, or a prepaid lease coupled with a 20-year loan. Enter your equipment costs and see how the three payments compare.
Updated October 2026 by Bodhi for solar installers.
What your customer pays each month
Monthly payment over time
How we modeled the loan. Climate First Bank's solar loan is 8% over 30.5 years: no payments for the first 6 months, then 360 fixed monthly payments. Interest accrues only on funds once they are disbursed, which on a typical project adds about 3 months of interest to the balance before payments begin. The $1,125 origination fee is financed.
How we modeled the lease. The TPO provider claims a 40% Section 48E tax credit in this model, the 30% base credit plus the domestic content bonus, and sets the lease payment to earn a 10% yield over 25 years.
How we modeled the prepaid lease. The prepaid price is the TPO system price less the prepaid discount. That amount plus a $295 loan fee is financed over 20 years at 8.99% with no dealer fee and no payment deferral. The year-6 buyout is a what-if only. The actual purchase price has to be based on a fair-market-value appraisal at the time.
Want to go deeper? Read our guide to prepaid leases and our side-by-side comparison of TPO vs. cash and loan pricing.
This calculator is a planning tool, not a financing quote.
Loans are made by Climate First Bank and are subject to credit approval. For example, a $50,000 loan with a 30.5-year term at an 8% interest rate would have no required monthly payments for the first 6 months, followed by 360 monthly payments of $382.69. The interest rate for 30.5-year loans is 8%. Interest accrues on the outstanding balance during the 6-mo no payment period. Nonrefundable processing and documentation fees apply (starting at $1,125.00). Programs, terms, and conditions are subject to change without notice.