Washington Sales Tax Exemptions for Solar Energy

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New WA Sales Tax Exemption on Solar Panels

Washington State just made solar energy installations cheaper. Beginning July 1st, 2019, all equipment for solar energy systems smaller than 100 kilowatts in size are exempt from 100 percent of state and local sales and use tax.

This saves thousands on most projects. For an average-sized residential system, this will save homeowners $2,500+ on the total project cost. That’s about 8% savings!

This new Washington state tax exemption for solar (PDF) is good through December 2029. Paired with the last year of a federal solar tax credit that returns 30% of the system cost, solar technology is better (and cheaper) than ever. Now is a great time to start making your own power!

How Does It Work?

Simple! Instead of paying the typical sales tax you normally would, you now do not. This tax exemption alone significantly decreases the price by thousands. Depending on which city you live in determines how much you will save. If you live in Vancouver, Washington you will pay 8.4% less than you would have prior to July 1st, 2019. Below is a list of SW Washington cities and their current combined state and local sales tax.

Sales Tax by City

Amboy – 7.7%
Battle Ground – 7.7%
Camas – 8.4%
Castle Rock – 7.8%
Ridgefield – 6.35%
Goldendale – 7.0%
Longview – 8.1%
Vancouver – 8.4
Washougal – 8.4%
Woodland 7.7%

Is your city not here? Find out your tax exemption with this sales tax calculator.

Author:

Adam Walters

Adam Walters is a writer and solar industry expert with over a decade of experience. He has written extensively on topics related to renewable energy, sustainability, and climate change, and is a passionate advocate for the transition to clean energy sources.

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Lura Kidner-Miesen

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I highly recommend Sunbridge Solar. I was very happy with their product, customer service, installation team, and support.

Karen Driscoll

2023-11-10

I highly recommend Sunbridge Solar. We received 3 bids. The reason we chose Sunbridge is 1. The reasonable price. 2. Local company. 3. No sales pressure and great product knowledge. Jim our salesperson and Haley our product manager guided us through the process and kept us informed every step of the way. If we had questions, they got back to us within 24 hours. Matt and the rest of the install team were hard working, efficient, friendly, and great communicators. Sunbridge Solar takes care of all the permitting. They coordinate with the utility company (and the cost of the new meter is included in the contract). No hidden costs! We have hired many contractors for a variety of home improvements over the years. None have measured up to the quality of work and customer service we received from Sunbridge Solar.

Michael Hubbard

2023-09-28

We could not be happier with Sunbridge Solar and their excellent sales, planning and installation staff. When we had some early communication issues, Jordan, Justin and Sean addressed and resolved them. The installation was a lot of work, partly due to our topography; but Garret and team addressed it with zeal and friendliness, explaining all the was occurring and ready to answer any questions. We likely cannot say enough in a sincere recommendation; but assure you of first-rate service.

Calvin Mattson

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We had been looking to go Solar for the past 9 years but the costs did not add up enough to take the plunge. A friend of ours recommended Sunbridge Solar so we decided it was time to give it another look. Rachel answered the call and showed up shortly after to start the process. Between collecting power bills, planning the system, and coordinating with all applicable parties communication was great every step of the way. The installers came out and finished within 2-days and over the course of the next 10 days final inspection and installation of our bi-direction meter by the power company. We are extremely happy with the results and with an environmental conscience glad to know we are reducing our dependence on "the grid". Finally once all had been up and running Rachel came back to do a walk-through of the entire system and help streamline our use of the 'Enlighten' app to ensure we were set up correctly to also receive automatic alerts 'if' the system runs into any issues. Thanks again for such a great experience!!

Gregg R

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harry warren

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My first experience with Sunbridge Solar and SEAN was great! They were super quick to answer my questions and really friendly. SEAN was really knowledgeable and explained things in a simple way that made everything easy to understand. I love my new solar setup and would definitely tell anyone thinking about solar to check out Sunbridge Solar and SEAN!

Mark Johansen

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Vance Berry

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Sean was incredibly helpful. He was generous with his time, making us comfortable with how the system worked, and is obviously passionate about this work. Thanks, Sean, for going above and beyond!

Steve Skinner

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