Typical customer: Not worth it

City of Lansing and solar

City of Lansing is a municipal utility serving about 87,026 homes in Michigan. Here's what its rates and export rules mean for solar: for a typical customer, solar is not worth it.

Average price (2026 est.)
20.4¢3% below Michigan average
Typical bill
$110537 kWh a month
Exports credited
~44%Net billing (reduced export credit)
Typical payback
17.4 yrs3 kW, cash

Export rules for City of Lansing customers

Net billing (reduced export credit) (Michigan rule).

Michigan's IOUs use a 'distributed generation' inflow/outflow tariff: you save the full retail rate on solar you use directly, but power sent to the grid is credited only at roughly the power-supply portion of the rate (about 8-15 cents depending on rate/time).

Michigan net metering details

Solar for a typical City of Lansing home

System3 kW (60% of 537 kWh/month)
Cost$11,900
First-year savings$631
Payback17.4 years
25-year net$7,205

Uses the utility's average price.

Solar adoption

Homes with solar (2025)
432
Share of customers
0.5%
Residential solar capacity
3 MW
Residential customers
87,026

EIA-861, 2025.

Cities served

Questions about City of Lansing and solar

Does City of Lansing have net metering?

City of Lansing follows Michigan's rules: Michigan's IOUs use a 'distributed generation' inflow/outflow tariff: you save the full retail rate on solar you use directly, but power sent to the grid is credited only at roughly the power-supply portion of the rate (about 8-15 cents depending on rate/time).

How much does electricity cost with City of Lansing?

Residential customers paid an average of 19.4¢ per kWh in 2025 (EIA), about 20.4¢ adjusted to 2026. The typical home uses 537 kWh a month, a bill of about $110.

Is solar worth it with City of Lansing?

For a typical customer, solar is not worth it: a 3 kW system costing about $11,900 pays back in about 17.4 years, with $7,205 net over 25 years.

How many City of Lansing customers have solar?

About 432 homes had net-metered solar at the end of 2025, roughly 0.5% of residential customers (EIA-861).

Legal name: City of Lansing - (MI) (EIA ID 10704). Data: EIA-861 2025 and monthly data through 2026, state policy research October 2026.