Updated for 2026 · Last reviewed July 2026 by the MySolarFY editorial team, who verify every rate, incentive, and net-metering figure against a primary source using our published methodology.
Freeport is unusual: the incorporated village runs its own municipal utility, Freeport Electric, so your rate and net metering are set locally, not by PSEG Long Island. At about 13.4 cents per kWh (2026), Freeport’s power is cheaper than its neighbors, which makes rooftop solar’s payback longer, roughly 13 to 15 years on our 2026 estimate below. Solar can still pay, but the local math is different.
- Your utility inside the village: Freeport Electric, a municipal utility since 1898 (Freeport Electric; NY Department of Public Service).
- Freeport Electric base residential energy charge: 9.594 to 11.515 cents per kWh (the utility’s currently posted base schedule, last revised August 1, 2014, Freeport Electric); a monthly power-supply adjustment floats the 2026 all-in average to about 13.41 cents per kWh (WattBuy, 2026).
- Modeled production, 6 kW system at ZIP 11520: about 8,261 kWh per year (NREL PVWatts, as of July 2026).
- Estimated simple payback for a Freeport village home: roughly 13 to 15 years after the New York State credit (MySolarFY estimate, 2026, method below).
- Headline incentive that still applies here: New York State Solar Energy System Equipment Credit, 25% of cost up to $5,000 (NY Tax, 2026).
Freeport homeowners face a solar picture that no generic New York guide gets right, because most of the incorporated village is not on PSEG Long Island at all. The Village of Freeport has run its own municipal electric utility, Freeport Electric, since 1898, one of only three municipal electric utilities on Long Island alongside Rockville Centre and Greenport (New York Association of Public Power), and that changes almost everything about your solar decision: your rate is lower than your PSEG Long Island neighbors pay, your net metering is set by the village rather than by New York State’s investor-utility rules, and the interconnection for your panels runs through Freeport Electric, not PSEG Long Island. This page covers what solar actually costs in Freeport, how Freeport Electric credits the power your roof exports, which New York incentives you can and cannot stack as a municipal-utility customer, and the permit details for a Village of Freeport home, then you can check your address in about a minute. If your home sits just outside the village line, our PSEG Long Island solar guide covers that territory instead.
Is solar worth it in Freeport in 2026?
Often yes, but the payback is roughly 13 to 15 years, slower than the rest of Nassau County. Because Freeport Electric owns its own generation and distribution, village customers pay an all-in average near 13.41 cents per kWh (WattBuy, 2026), well below the roughly 28.55 cents per kWh New York residential average that PSEG Long Island customers see (EIA, as of March 2026). Cheaper power is great for your monthly bill, but it means each kilowatt-hour your roof offsets is worth less, so the payback runs longer here than in Hempstead or Valley Stream. A 6 kW array at a Freeport ZIP code (11520) is modeled at about 8,261 kWh per year (NREL PVWatts, as of July 2026), which on our estimate below gives a simple payback near 13 to 15 years after the New York State credit. Savings are never guaranteed and depend on your roof, your usage, and how you pay.
So why do Freeport homeowners still go solar? Panels are warrantied for about 25 years, so even a longer payback leaves a decade or more of largely free power, and owning your production hedges against future rate increases if Freeport Electric’s power-supply cost climbs. You also keep the 25% New York State credit, which lands the same regardless of which utility serves you. Because output depends on your roof’s pitch, shading, and orientation, estimate your own roof with NREL’s free PVWatts production calculator rather than a generic number before you size a system.
What a Freeport solar system costs and when it pays back
Our estimate: about $14,625 net for a 6 kW system, paying back in roughly 13.2 years. Here is how we get there, built from the local municipal rate and the local sun. The table starts from Freeport Electric’s all-in rate context (about 13.41 cents per kWh, WattBuy, 2026) and the modeled production for ZIP 11520 (NREL PVWatts, July 2026), then applies the New York State 25% credit against a representative installed price of about $3.25 per watt before incentives (a 2026 Long Island market illustration, not a quote). It deliberately uses Freeport’s lower municipal rate, not the higher PSEG Long Island rate, so the payback is honest for a village address. Treat it as a planning range, not a promise.
| System size | Est. production (PVWatts, 11520) | Year-1 bill offset at 13.41 cents | Gross cost (~$3.25/W) | NY 25% state credit | Net cost | Simple payback |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 kW | about 8,261 kWh per year | about $1,108 | about $19,500 | about $4,875 | about $14,625 | about 13.2 years |
| 8 kW | about 11,015 kWh per year | about $1,477 | about $26,000 | $5,000 (capped) | about $21,000 | about 14.2 years |
| 10 kW | about 13,769 kWh per year | about $1,846 | about $32,500 | $5,000 (capped) | about $27,500 | about 14.9 years |
MySolarFY estimate, 2026. Inputs: Freeport Electric all-in residential rate about 13.41 cents per kWh (WattBuy, 2026), consistent with the utility’s base energy charge of 9.594 to 11.515 cents per kWh plus a monthly power-supply adjustment (Freeport Electric rate schedule, effective August 1, 2014); production from NREL PVWatts for ZIP 11520 (6 kW = 8,261 kWh per year, about 1,377 kWh per kW per year); representative installed price about $3.25 per watt before incentives; New York State credit at 25% of cost capped at $5,000. Year-1 offset assumes production offsets grid power at about the retail rate. It does not model the 4% sales-tax exemption, the 15-year property-tax exemption, panel degradation, future rate changes, monthly customer charges, or financing costs, so your real payback will differ. Get quotes for your address.
Over the 25-year life of the panels, a Freeport system still nets real savings, just less than a PSEG Long Island home would. Stretching the same estimate across a 25-year warranty life, and after subtracting the net cost above, a Freeport village system nets an estimated planning range of about $11,000 to $19,000 for a 6 kW array, about $14,000 to $23,000 for 8 kW, and about $16,000 to $28,000 for 10 kW (MySolarFY estimate, 2026). The low end assumes flat electricity rates and the high end a modest 2% annual rate increase, both after about 0.5% per year of panel degradation. The ranges are smaller than in higher-rate Nassau County towns, which is the honest trade-off of Freeport’s cheaper municipal power.
Note: this is a planning estimate, not a quote. The single biggest lever on your real payback is your own electricity usage and roof, and the second is the price you are quoted. Because Freeport Electric’s rate is lower than PSEG Long Island’s, the payback here is longer than a generic Long Island calculator will tell you, so be skeptical of any quote that assumes the higher PSEG rate. Run the numbers on your actual Freeport Electric bill before you decide.
See what solar programs are available at your Freeport address
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How Freeport Electric credits the power your roof sends back
Freeport Electric offers net metering on its own municipal terms, not New York’s state net-metering rules. This is where a Freeport village home differs most from the rest of Long Island. New York’s net-metering law governs the investor-owned utilities and PSEG Long Island, but municipal utilities like Freeport Electric are not bound by it and set their own terms (NY Department of Public Service). Freeport Electric offers net metering to residential solar customers, crediting the power your panels export against the power you draw. PSEG Long Island next door has moved residential accounts onto time-of-day peak and off-peak credit banks; Freeport Electric sets its own approach as a municipal utility, so ask exactly how it credits your exports. Because a municipal utility sets and can revise its own export-credit and reconciliation terms, and those terms are not published in a state tariff, confirm the current net-metering rules, and whether any interconnection cap applies, directly with Freeport Electric before you size a system rather than assuming the state 1-to-1 rule. For the plain-English mechanics of how export credits work in general, see how net metering credits your solar exports.
Note: are you actually on Freeport Electric, or on PSEG Long Island? Freeport Electric serves the incorporated Village of Freeport, roughly 15,000 customers (New York Association of Public Power). A small number of homes with a Freeport mailing address sit just outside the village line, in unincorporated Nassau County, and those are served by PSEG Long Island instead, which puts residential rooftop solar on retail net metering (not the VDER value stack, which New York applies to community and commercial projects), with time-of-day credit banks and a monthly Customer Benefit Contribution. The fastest way to know which utility you have is to look at the name on your electric bill. If it says PSEG Long Island, use our PSEG Long Island solar guide and the Hempstead and Valley Stream pages, which model the higher PSEG rate.
New York incentives a Freeport homeowner can and cannot stack
Being a municipal-utility customer changes which incentives you qualify for, and this is where generic guides mislead Freeport homeowners. The state income-tax credit and the two statewide tax exemptions apply to you the same as any New Yorker, but the NY-Sun rebate that most Long Island guides promise generally does not, because it is funded through the investor-owned utilities and PSEG Long Island, not through Freeport Electric. Read the table and the notes below carefully.
| Incentive | What it gives you | The Freeport detail |
|---|---|---|
| NY State Solar Energy System Equipment Credit | 25% of system cost, capped at $5,000, on Form IT-255 with a 5-year carry-forward (NY Tax) | A state income-tax credit, so it applies to Freeport Electric customers exactly like everyone else in New York |
| Property-tax exemption (RPTL 487) | A 15-year exemption from the added assessed value of the system (NY RPTL 487) | A local jurisdiction may opt out, so confirm the Village of Freeport and your school district have not before you count on it |
| NY State sales-tax exemption | Residential solar equipment and installation are exempt from the 4% state sales tax (DSIRE) | Your installer applies the state exemption to the quote; Nassau County local sales tax is separate |
| NY-Sun Megawatt Block rebate | An upfront dollars-per-watt rebate paid through the installer in some NY regions (NYSERDA NY-Sun) | Generally not available to municipal-utility customers; confirm your eligibility with NYSERDA if you are inside Freeport Electric territory |
| Freeport Electric Residential Solar Grant | A former $4-per-watt village rebate, funded by a $250,000 NYPA grant (Freeport Electric) | Now fully allocated and closed; Freeport Electric states rebates are not currently available, so do not count on it |
Note: do not plan on a NY-Sun rebate as a Freeport Electric customer. The NY-Sun Megawatt Block program is funded through New York’s investor-owned utilities and PSEG Long Island, so municipal-utility customers are generally outside it. In the past, the Village of Freeport instead received a $250,000 grant from the New York Power Authority that funded a local $4-per-watt residential solar rebate and helped put a 51.7 kW array on the Freeport Fire Department headquarters, but Freeport Electric states that program has expired and rebates are not currently available (Freeport Electric). Plan your numbers around net metering, the 25% state credit, and the two tax exemptions, and ask Freeport Electric whether any new village program has opened. For the statewide picture, see our New York solar incentives hub.
What the federal tax-credit change means for Freeport
The 30% federal homeowner credit ended after December 31, 2025, so a 2026 Freeport buyer cannot claim it. This applies whether you are on Freeport Electric or PSEG Long Island. The 30% federal Residential Clean Energy Credit (Section 25D) ended for systems placed in service after December 31, 2025, under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, so a Freeport homeowner who buys solar with cash or a loan in 2026 cannot claim it (IRS, as of January 1, 2026). You will still see installer pages asking whether the 30% credit is going away; the accurate answer for 2026 is that the homeowner version already ended. The 25% New York State credit and the two tax exemptions were not affected. For the full timeline, see what the end of the federal solar tax credit means in 2026.
One federal exception exists, and it is not yours to claim. A separate commercial credit, Section 48E, can apply to leased and power-purchase-agreement systems, but the business that owns the system claims it, not the homeowner (IRS Clean Electricity Investment Credit, as of 2026). On a leased system in Freeport you do not file for a federal credit yourself; the company that owns the panels does. The 25D homeowner credit, by contrast, ended after December 31, 2025, so do not let a 2026 sales pitch tell a cash or loan buyer otherwise.
Permits and interconnection for a Village of Freeport home
Your permit goes through the Village of Freeport building department and your interconnection through Freeport Electric, both local. Because Freeport runs its own utility, neither runs through PSEG Long Island. A solar permit for a Village of Freeport home goes through the village building department, not the Town of Hempstead and not the New York City Department of Buildings, which only covers the five boroughs. Your grid interconnection and permission to operate then run through Freeport Electric rather than PSEG Long Island, so an installer who has done Freeport Electric projects before will move faster than one who only knows the PSEG process. Long Island is also carved out of New York State’s Unified Solar Permit, which specifically excludes Nassau and Suffolk Counties (NYSERDA, as of June 2026), so your installer works to the local village requirements. Freeport’s housing stock is mostly single-family homes with pitched roofs, the classic South Shore layout, which usually takes a straightforward roof-mounted array.
How you pay for solar in Freeport: cash, loan, lease, or PPA
There is no single right way to pay for solar; the best fit depends on whether you want to own the system and claim the 25% state credit yourself, or avoid an up-front cost. The table below compares the common paths. A lease or PPA can mean no up-front cost for eligible homeowners, but it is a long-term agreement with monthly payments, not free solar, and on those plans the third-party owner captures the state credit. Given Freeport’s longer payback, weigh the long-run numbers carefully; see whether solar panels are worth it.
| Path | Up-front cost | Who keeps the 25% state credit | Best when |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cash purchase | Full system cost | You, the owner | You want the fastest payback and the most lifetime savings |
| Solar loan | Little to none, financed | You, the owner | You want ownership without paying cash up front |
| Lease or PPA (10+ years) | $0-up-front where eligible | The third-party owner (though New York lets you claim the 25% credit on qualified lease or PPA payments) | You prefer no up-front cost and a simpler, fixed monthly bill |
How to choose a solar installer in Freeport
Long Island is a mature, competitive solar market, so you have many licensed installers to choose from. Rather than chasing a “best installer” list, screen any company against objective criteria, and prioritize one that has actually worked inside the Village of Freeport:
- NABCEP certification, the industry’s professional standard for PV installers.
- A valid New York Home Improvement Contractor license, which in Nassau County is issued at the county level.
- Real experience with Freeport Electric interconnection and the Village of Freeport permit, since a municipal utility works differently from PSEG Long Island.
- A clear workmanship and equipment warranty in writing.
- A written production estimate and a transparent quote built on the Freeport Electric rate, not the higher PSEG Long Island rate, so your payback is honest. For a checklist, see the right questions to ask a solar installer.
MySolarFY matches you with licensed installers that serve your area so you can compare real local quotes side by side, with no obligation. If you are weighing nearby Nassau County towns, most of which are on PSEG Long Island, see our guides to Hempstead solar, Valley Stream solar, and Garden City solar. To see who we are and how we research these pages, read how MySolarFY works and our data and methodology.
Check which solar programs are available at your Freeport address →
Frequently asked questions about Freeport solar
Who is my electric utility in Freeport, NY, for solar?
If your home is inside the incorporated Village of Freeport, your utility is Freeport Electric, a municipal utility the village has run since 1898 (NY Department of Public Service). Freeport Electric, not PSEG Long Island, sets your rate, your net metering, and your interconnection. A small number of homes with a Freeport mailing address sit just outside the village line and are served by PSEG Long Island instead. The name on your electric bill tells you which one you have.
Is solar worth it in Freeport, NY in 2026?
It can be, but the payback is longer than elsewhere on Long Island because Freeport Electric’s power is cheaper. Village customers pay an all-in average near 13.41 cents per kWh (WattBuy, 2026), well below the roughly 28.55 cents PSEG Long Island customers see (EIA, as of March 2026). A 6 kW system at ZIP 11520 is modeled near 8,261 kWh per year (NREL PVWatts, as of July 2026), giving a simple payback of roughly 13 to 15 years after the 25% state credit on our estimate. Savings are not guaranteed and depend on your roof, usage, and how you pay.
How does net metering work with Freeport Electric?
Freeport Electric is a municipal utility, so it is not bound by New York’s net-metering law and sets its own terms (NY Department of Public Service). It offers net metering to residential solar customers, crediting the power your panels export against the power you draw, and it is not required to follow PSEG Long Island’s time-of-day credit banks. Because the village can revise the credit and reconciliation terms, confirm the current rules directly with Freeport Electric before you size a system.
Can I get the NY-Sun rebate in Freeport?
Usually not, if you are a Freeport Electric customer. The NY-Sun Megawatt Block rebate is funded through New York’s investor-owned utilities and PSEG Long Island, so municipal-utility customers are generally outside it (NYSERDA). The Village of Freeport once ran its own $4-per-watt rebate funded by a $250,000 New York Power Authority grant, but Freeport Electric states that program has expired and rebates are not currently available (Freeport Electric). You still qualify for the 25% New York State credit and the two statewide tax exemptions.
Is the 30% federal solar tax credit gone in 2026?
For homeowners, yes. The 30% federal Residential Clean Energy Credit (Section 25D) ended for systems placed in service after December 31, 2025, under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, so a Freeport homeowner who buys solar in 2026 with cash or a loan cannot claim it (IRS, as of January 1, 2026). A separate commercial credit, Section 48E, can apply to leased and PPA systems, but the business that owns the system claims it, not the homeowner. New York’s 25% state credit and the tax exemptions were not affected.
Can I get solar in Freeport with no up-front cost?
Some homeowners can, through a lease or power purchase agreement (PPA) where eligible, which can mean no out-of-pocket cost at installation in exchange for monthly payments. This is not free solar; it is a long-term agreement, typically 20 to 25 years, and total payments may exceed the cost of a cash purchase. On a lease or PPA the third-party owner captures the incentives, though New York still lets you claim the 25% state credit on your qualified lease or PPA payments (NY Tax, as of 2026). Because Freeport’s payback is already longer, check the total lifetime cost of any lease carefully before deciding.
Reviewed by the MySolarFY team. Figures were verified against the linked Freeport Electric, NY Department of Public Service, WattBuy, NYSERDA, DSIRE, EIA, New York State Department of Taxation and Finance, and IRS sources as of June and July 2026; municipal rates, net-metering terms, incentive availability, and the power-supply adjustment reset over time, so confirm current terms with Freeport Electric and NYSERDA before you decide. MySolarFY does not provide tax or financial advice; consult a licensed professional about your own situation. Learn more about our data and methodology.
MySolarFY is a free service that matches homeowners with licensed solar installers. We are not an installer, financing company, or government program. “No up-front cost” refers to qualifying lease or PPA financing, where eligible homeowners may have no out-of-pocket cost at installation. Lease and PPA terms typically run 20 to 25 years, may include an annual price escalator, and total payments may exceed the cost of a cash purchase; on a lease or PPA the New York state credit calculation favors the company that owns the system. Homeowners do not get the federal residential credit that ended after December 31, 2025. Solar panels are not free and monthly payments apply. Eligibility, savings, incentives, and rates vary and are not guaranteed. See our full disclaimer.