Net Metering by State

What your electric utility actually pays for exported solar power.

Michigan solar export compensation

What Michigan pays for exported rooftop solar power, with the source and the date each figure was checked.

Record verified 2026-09-16 · 17 of 17 fields sourced

What does your utility pay?

Fixed export rate

Rider 18 outflow credit varies by attached rate schedule; current residential D1/D1.6 credit is 8.782 cents/kWh for the first 17 kWh/day and 10.081 cents/kWh for excess, effective March 5, 2026. Inflow is billed at the attached retail rate plus applicable surcharges and PSCR.

DTE Energy · Michigan

Effective 2026-03-05

Rider 18; legacy Rider 16 net-metering customers are grandfathered under the prior program until its applicable term ends. Credits carry forward and do not expire during service.

Source: dteenergy.com · dteenergy.com

Full DTE Energy detail →

Michigan's current customer-generation framework is the Distributed Generation (DG) program, with legacy net-metering customers retained under their prior tariff. Under the post-PA 235 inflow/outflow structure, inflow is billed at the customer's retail rate and outflow is credited at the applicable power-supply rate, including utility-specific time-of-use and seasonal schedules. DTE Electric and Consumers Energy are the two principal investor-owned utilities; their current tariffs were approved in utility-specific MPSC cases U-21798 and U-21796, respectively.

Program details

Compensation mechanismDistributed Generation inflow/outflow billing: customer inflow is billed at the retail rate and exported outflow receives a power-supply credit; legacy net-metering customers remain on legacy tariffs until their applicable transition point.
Export rateUtility- and rate-schedule-specific, not one statewide flat rate. DTE's current Rider 18 residential D1/D1.6 outflow credit is 8.782 cents/kWh for the first 17 kWh per day and 10.081 cents/kWh for excess; Consumers' current RSP outflow credits are 15.1904 cents/kWh summer on-peak, 10.3970 cents/kWh summer off-peak, and 8.2996 cents/kWh all kWh October-May, plus PSCR where applicable.
Rate effectiveDTE Rider 18 rates are effective March 5, 2026; Consumers C11.3 outflow-credit rates are effective May 1, 2026.
Credit rolloverUnused outflow credits carry forward to subsequent billing periods under both DTE Rider 18 and Consumers C11.3; Consumers applies credits only to eligible electric charges, while DTE excludes securitization charges.
Credit expirationDTE states Rider 18 credits do not expire during service and are carried in the Excess Generation Bank; at termination, remaining credits are applied to the final bill or refunded. Consumers states remaining credits may be refunded at the company's discretion on termination, with any amount above the final bill refunded.
Annual true-upThere is no single statewide annual true-up date for the current DG tariffs. DTE carries credits forward and settles remaining credits when Rider 18 service ends; Consumers reports DG data annually by March 31 for the preceding calendar year and may issue a payment at its discretion when participation ends.
Residential system capUp to 110% of the customer's prior-12-month electricity consumption, with the statewide eligible-generator ceiling at 550 kW; DTE Category 1 is 20 kW or less, while Consumers Category 1 is up to 20 kW.
Commercial system capUp to 110% of the customer's prior-12-month electricity consumption and no more than 550 kW at one site; systems above 20 kW are Category 2 under DTE and Consumers, subject to the applicable utility tariff.
Aggregate program capThe DG program limit is 10% of the utility's average in-state peak load for the preceding five calendar years, allocated between systems of 20 kW or less and systems above 20 kW through 550 kW; at least 50% is reserved for the smaller category and no more than 50% for the larger category.
Program statusThe statewide 10% statutory cap is in force; the MPSC's 2025 report lists remaining capacity by utility and category, including 79% remaining for Consumers' up-to-20-kW category and 87% remaining for DTE's up-to-20-kW category in the report's data.
RegulatorMichigan Public Service Commission (MPSC).
DocketState implementation: Case No. U-21767. Current utility tariff approvals: DTE Electric U-21798 and Consumers Energy U-21796.
Governing ruleMichigan Public Act 235 of 2023, codified principally at MCL 460.1173 and MCL 460.1177, together with the MPSC-approved utility DG tariffs and Michigan Interconnection and Distributed Generation Standards.
GrandfatheringCustomers enrolled in legacy net metering before the applicable utility DG start date remain on the legacy program until the prior program's terms terminate; DTE identifies May 9, 2019 as its DG availability date and Consumers identifies January 1, 2021.
Interconnection applicationApply to the serving utility with the utility's interconnection and DG application; DTE and Consumers require a $50 DG application fee, waived when a customer transitions from legacy net metering without system modification.
Interconnection timelineThe applicable timeline is governed by the Michigan Interconnection and Distributed Generation Standards and the serving utility's approved procedures; no single statewide customer-facing completion time is stated in the cited DG tariffs.
Pending changeNo pending statewide change identified in the cited MPSC materials; the PA 235 tariff revisions were approved March 13, 2025, while utility rates remain subject to later MPSC-approved tariff revisions such as Consumers' May 1, 2026 outflow-credit update.

Rates by utility

State rules set the framework. Individual utilities often pay something different, and where they do the utility tariff governs.

DTE Energy (DTE Electric)Rider 18 outflow credit varies by attached rate schedule; current residential D1/D1.6 credit is 8.782 cents/kWh for the first 17 kWh/day and 10.081 cents/kWh for excess, effective March 5, 2026. Inflow is billed at the attached retail rate plus applicable surcharges and PSCR.
2026-03-05
Rider 18; legacy Rider 16 net-metering customers are grandfathered under the prior program until its applicable term ends. Credits carry forward and do not expire during service.
Consumers EnergyC11.3 outflow credit varies by rate schedule and season; current residential RSP credit is 15.1904 cents/kWh summer on-peak, 10.3970 cents/kWh summer off-peak, and 8.2996 cents/kWh all kWh October-May, plus PSCR. Inflow is billed at the retail rate plus applicable surcharges and PSCR.
2026-05-01
C11.3; legacy net-metering customers retain the prior tariff until its applicable term ends. Consumers' tariff states excess credits carry forward to later billing periods.

Sources read for this record

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