Solar Companies in Downey, CA: Who Installed the Most Systems in 2025

Installers who connected the most home solar systems in Downey in 2025

Counts from utility records, not a ranking or endorsement. Check each license's status and complaint history on the CSLB's Check a License page (checked Sept. 24, 2026).

Source: California Distributed Generation Statistics (CPUC), Interconnected Project Sites data set, data through May 31, 2026 (checked Sept. 24, 2026).

Home solar in Downey by the numbers

SCE approved 181 home solar systems in Downey in 2025, from 52 installers; the top three were named on 40% of them. The busiest year since 2021 was 2023, with 402 (2025: -55%). Another 113 were approved from January through May 2026.

2025 mix: 52% leased or on a power purchase agreement, 48% owned by the household; 89% with a battery; median size 7.53 kW DC. Los Angeles County: 47% leased or PPA, 79% with a battery, median 6.56 kW.

Hiring a solar company in Downey

Solar companies in Downey connect to SCE, but Clean Power Alliance supplies the generation for almost the whole city and settles solar credits every April, paying annual surplus 10% above SCE's rate. Downey reported SolarAPP+ as its automated permit platform, and the SolarAPP+ program lists it as accepting batteries, panel upgrades and breaker derates. Compare at least three written bids built on your own CPA and SCE bill.

Start with your Downey electricity bill

On the Energy Commission's maps, SCE delivers power across Downey and Clean Power Alliance supplies generation over about 97% of the city. CPA compensates rooftop solar with credits on the generation part of the bill, while SCE credits the delivery part. For systems SCE approved after August 31, 2023, CPA's own Solar Billing Plan applies on the generation side and SCE's on the delivery side. Have each bidder model both.

How Clean Power Alliance credits a Downey solar home

Clean Power Alliance supplies generation to most Downey homes and compensates rooftop solar with credits on the generation portion of the SCE bill; SCE handles the delivery side. For customers on CPA's net energy metering program, whose systems SCE approved on or before August 31, 2023, CPA bills energy charges net of credits monthly and trues everyone up each April rather than on individual dates, paying net surplus at 10% above SCE's rate. Credits over $100 come as a check.

Systems SCE approved after August 31, 2023 are on CPA's Solar Billing Plan for generation and SCE's for delivery. Imports are charged at your time-of-use rate and exports earn Energy Export Credits based on hourly avoided-cost prices, which CPA says makes solar paired with a battery more valuable than solar alone. CPA's Sun Storage Rebate pays $2,000 toward an eligible battery, up to $3,500 with its add-ons, while funding lasts (CPA, checked September 24, 2026); ask whether a bid's price depends on it and whether the rebate is still open.

Permits in Downey

Downey's choice of SolarAPP+ covers more ground than several nearby platforms: panels, panels with a battery, a main panel upgrade and a main breaker derate can all go through it. That means a typical rooftop design, even one that needs new service equipment, can usually be approved automatically instead of waiting for plan review, as long as it matches the SolarAPP+ checklists.

What is missing is a public track record. Downey has no annual permit report in the Energy Commission's file, so nobody outside City Hall can say how many local permits went through instantly. The installers can: ask each one how many Downey jobs it has permitted this year and how many days its last one took from application to final inspection.

What a Downey quote needs to explain

A comparison to ask for

CPA's Solar Billing Plan values exports hourly, and CPA says solar paired with a battery can provide higher value than solar alone. Its Sun Storage Rebate pays $2,000 toward an eligible battery, with up to $1,500 more for homes in Public Safety Power Shutoff areas and Medical Baseline, CARE or FERA customers, first come, first served (CPA, checked September 24, 2026). Ask each bidder to show your CPA and SCE bill with and without a battery, and whether its price assumes the rebate.

Verify the company behind the Downey quote

Match the business name and license number on each Downey proposal to the CSLB record, then use our contractor verification steps, the quote comparison guide and the PPA, loan, lease and cash comparison.

Downey solar quote questions