I thought I would leave feedback after having solar installed in 2022 by Solar Optimum here in the east bay. Solar optimum offered me Panasonic solar panels with a warranty guarantee from Panasonic which essentially guaranteed that as long as Solar optimum or any other certified installer installed our system that even if Solar Optimum were to go out of business, Panasonic would pick up the workmanship and product warranty for 25 years - this was something that no other company I reached out too could offer and to me made it clear that I wanted to go with Solar Optimum. After install Panasonic did send me a warranty certificate warranting the panels should Solar Optimum go out of business. The system works well. In its first year it significantly outperformed the estimated production by about 3MWH and YTD it will soon pass the production estimate for the entire 2024 year. There were two big issues when working with Solar Optimum - communication was brutal and would constantly be a back and forth of unanswered emails, non returned phone calls, and overall poor communication. The second issue was after install the installers drilled holes too deep and through my ceiling drywall and coordinating the install team to come out and fix it wasn't easy and took longer than it should have - when they finally came out to patch my drywall they smeared over some putty in the 8-10 holes, didn't paint it and didn't try and match the patches with my roofs texture leaving that responsibility with me. However because they're a smaller company there are far less mark ups compared to other solar companies and the price was far more competitive than any other company I cross shopped with an outstanding Panasonic backed warranty. read more

Prepare to overpay and feel overvalued if you make the mistake of becoming one of their customers. Read BBB complaints about bait and switch tactics that are common practice here before you do business with these incompetent people. Not one of my complaints were responded to. Extremely poor communication over the full year it took them to complete my project. I wish someone had warned me. Find a local contractor and skip these middle men! read more

We signed an agreement with Solar Optimum in September 2025. We were assured several times by the sales rep that the solar panels and battery with the advised non-export option would be installed and operating by the end of 2025 in order to qualify for the 30% federal tax credit. However, Solar Optimum did not even start construction until January 2026 and it took until July 2026 to get the approval of PG&E and the solar panels operational due to both foreseeable delays by PG&E and delays in response and follow-up by Solar Optimum. We spoke with the customer service manager about some sort of compensation for the delays (paying PG&E for power for an additional 7 months) and the lost 30% Federal tax credit. After several weeks of waiting, senior management decided not to offer ANY compensation. The delay by Solar Optimum resulted in several thousands of dollars in lost tax credits and PG&E power cost savings. Shortly after notifying us that no adjustment would be made to the amount owed, the company's attorney sent a demand letter threatening litigation if we did not pay the full amount within 10 days. This was an extremely frustrating and disappointing experience. Don't give Solar Optimum your business! read more

I had a great experience with Solar Optimum. The team was professional, updated me regularly and the best part was the installation, it went smoothly and headache free. read more

Very consultative and naviagated me through the process. Seamless installation and good customers service.

I sent my SMUD bill as soon as Allan's team asked during our communication on call prior to the actual agents appointment to get a quote for battery installed. Joseph was the agent called me to discuss further. Joseph didn't read the bill and sent a quote to me. When I questioned the $xxx "average," which didn't match my bill, he replied, "That's what you provided and it's from SMUD." That's not an answer--it's dismissive. I have every right to ask for clarification. Instead, they got defensive. Joseph even said it looked like I "wasn't interested" and then muted the call. Extremely disappointing. I'm shocked Google points people to this business. Avoid if you expect basic courtesy or accurate information. read more

Solar optimum did a great job from start to finish. The operations team kept me updated throughout the project, and management was very helpful whenever I had questions or concerns. my system is running perfectly. highly recommend!! read more

Solar Optimum has been great to work with. When my project needed to be escalated, the operations and management team really stepped up. They kept me updated, took care of everything quickly, and made sure the whole process stayed on track. I appreciate their professionalism and how smoothly they handled the situation. My system is up and running and I'm very happy with the service. read more

Great experience with Solar Optimum. The operations team was terrific and kept everything running smoothly. Installation went really well and the crew was professional the whole time. Definitely recommend them. read more

My review is similar to a couple of the lower rated reviews on this page. My husband installed Solar panels to our house a couple years ago and as far as I know, had no trouble with it. We're so grateful we have it, and it typically works excellently! Fast forward a couple years and we're ready to renovate our house. We find some issues with the electrical. Rather than point fingers about who is to blame, we reach out to Solar Optimum and ask them to send a tech out so we can all look at it together. First, I called and talked to a nice woman who said I should email more information to service@solaroptimum. I went ahead that evening and did that - sent info and photos. The next business day, I followed up around 3 PM after not hearing back and received a short, clipped message saying they were looking into it and thanked me for my patience. That evening, around 8 PM, my husband who was at work all day teaching and couldn't answer his phone, discovers that they did indeed send a Tech over to our house to look at the electrical panels, but...we weren't even there! And the service people didn't even send an email or call me to let me know. I wrote yet ANOTHER email, requesting an actual appointment/time slot so we could coordinate it and have our electrician, project manager, and me and my husband present to discuss. I got another email back the next business day that said "They'd send someone out soon." Before I know it, I get a call from my husband again saying the tech is already there at the house. I have to leave work early, rush over to the house in order to meet the tech and my team. Now, the saving grace of this all is that the engineer/electrician's name is Jose, and he is SO NICE. He was warm, informational, so patient with my team, and explained things in a way that was understandable. We decided to exchange contact information and now I have just been directly texting and talking with Jose versus trying to go through the service team at Solar Optimum. In fact, the same day I met him, I wrote back to Solar Optimum to request a feedback link so I could directly share feedback instead of posting on Yelp, and so I could give compliments to Jose in hopes it would reach his management team. That was 7 days ago, and no link was shared. So, two stars for poor communication and terrible customer service from the team, but a million stars for Jose, who is taking time out of his day to make sure all our Tesla wires are up and running during the renovation to ensure we're safe, and have access to our power. Thanks Jose for rectifying this situation! At least Solar Optimum hires the right people who are interfacing with clients. read more

Complete scammers. I put down two deposits for two properties and they decided neither were eligible. I've been chasing them down for weeks trying to get my deposit back which the promised to return. Do not trust this company. read more

My family started the process of purchasing solar panels from Solar Optimum in July 2025. It's now December 2025, and we still don't have an installation date. At the beginning, the company contacted us constantly, and we truly believed this would be a seamless, straightforward process. We were told they had everything streamlined and that going solar with them would be easy. That could not have been further from the truth. As the months went on, communication deteriorated to almost nothing. We repeatedly reached out for updates, only to be bounced from one department to another, each claiming they didn't have the answers we needed. No one seemed to know what was going on with our project, and no one took responsibility for providing clear information or follow-up. Because of the unreasonable delays and the complete lack of organization, we are now going to miss out on the 2025 solar installation tax credit--something we were specifically trying to take advantage of and were assured would not be an issue. This is incredibly disappointing and feels like a major failure on the company's part. After months of frustration, broken assurances, and zero progress, we are seriously considering canceling altogether. This experience has been nothing short of exhausting and extremely unprofessional. read more

I recently had solar and a battery installed by Solar Optimum, which I found through Energy Sage. The process started at the end of December when I signed the contracts (one for solar and one for the battery). Everything proceeded as expected. All work occurred on the day it was originally scheduled, weather permitting. The battery was back ordered so it got installed a few weeks later than the solar panels. Permits were obtained and the installation passed inspection without issues. The building inspector complimented the installation team. There were change orders to my original contract because the contract was written and signed before a human had come to do a site survey at my home. After seeing my house, the location of the battery had to be further away from my electrical panel, which increased the cost, and the type of automatic transfer switch for the battery had to be changed because of the proximity of my electrical panel to my gas meter. I am mentioning this because I think I've seen other reviews where people felt there was a 'bait and switch' because their contract price was increased after the initial contract was signed. That's the nature of getting a contract signed before the site survey occurs at your home. Based on reading reviews here I thought maybe I'd encounter some issues with this project, but I had no issues. I am very happy with the quality of the work and helpfulness of everyone I interacted with in the process of getting my system, from the appointment schedulers, to the delivery drivers bringing materials, to the accountants sending me invoices when stages of the contract were met requiring a payment. I would recommend Solar Optimum to friends and family without hesitation. read more

Absolutely the most frustrating business transaction in my entire life. Two years ago, 2023 Solar Optimum put in our solar array without a snag. We decide to install a battery in September 2025 and were told that there would be no problems getting it installed before Dec. 31, 2025. After dozens of unanswered calls and emails as well as trips to my local city planning commission and fire department we finally told in the middle of December that there was no way that it would get done. We were told that there were not enough installers to complete the contracts that S.O. signed. If I had not driven the application process and called S.O. 5 times a day for them to upload the latest information from the city, I doubt that we would have gotten it done before now. We finally had to contact a supervisor high up the chain to get some action. Our battery was installed in March, six months after we were initially told it would be done in December. On this date I have asked S.O. FOUR times for a printed label for mailing in my payment. Again, no response from the billing department. read more

Had a great experience - very easy to work with, had good communication, even managing through an initially challenging permitting issue and some unexpected layout decisions. Have had to do two service calls during the years I've had the system, and Solar Optimum responded to both in a timely manner and have sorted out the problems smoothly. Would recommend to others. read more

We had a mixed experience with Solar Optimum, the main downside being poor communication and the main upside being the work of the installation crew.  We started the process in April 2022 and the panels were installed in July 2023.  Our project was delayed, in large part, because of PGE hoops we had to jump through (most significantly, our gas and electric meters were 6" too close).  That said, as soon as we signed our contract, Solar Optimum became extremely uncommunicative and unhelpful in moving the project forward past these issues. We had to do extra research ourselves, talk to several outside electricians, and badger the folks at Solar Optimum something like 10 times before they finally put together a plan that moved the meter to comply with PG&E's rules. As we worked towards this solution, it was never clear who our main contact was - we kept getting passed along to different people at the company, with no clear roadmap of where we were going.  After deciding on a design for our system, our contact quit and no one told us.  We were waiting for a response from him for several weeks.  His voicemail still worked.  I finally reached out to customer service find out he left and I had to be proactive to get assigned another representative. Many times, our emails would go unanswered.  We'd get random invoices with no explanation or details.  We'd also get numerous automated emails at weird times that made it seem like our project was moving forward when it really wasn't.  Or we'd get emails like 'Your Final Inspection has been scheduled' with useful information, but we'd receive them several hours after the inspection had already begun. We'd get called by people who clearly were not familiar with our project and just wasted our time being unable to answer our questions.   There were two competent communicators (Nataly the Permitting Coordinator and Jairo the installer). Thank you! When we finally were ready for the install, there was a family emergency and the install had to be cancelled (it happens, we weren't upset about that).  But the poor communication within Solar Optimum meant they delivered all the equipment at 7am without telling us that would be happening.  We don't have a garage or secured area, yet they were going to let that equipment sit out until it could be installed, which would occur at an unknown time, likely weeks in the future.  So we had to call and ensure they picked it up and hold it for us in the warehouse.   We also found out that Solar Optimum did not communicate the change in plans with our city inspector.  So he showed up on the day and waited around to realize no one was home and the installation was not going to happen.   Once we finally came to installation time, the crew was excellent.  They went out of their way to ensure things were set up the way we wanted.  They communicated regularly and clearly about the schedule and what would happen next.  And so far, the system is working great and we are finally mostly free of the PGE headache.  The price for the overall system was comparable or less than other companies we got quotes from.   Solar Optimum - thanks for helping us go renewable, but please work on your communication for future customers! read more

update to my previous review: The quality person from Solar Optimum contacted me and satisfied my concerns. the system has been working flawlessly for the past year and I am now very pleased. read more

Permitting: went smoothly, though not much proactive communication going on - kinda have to trust that they have it covered (or pester them with calls to get updates as I did) Installation: very smooth - materials delivered on site as scheduled and done in a single day. Work appears satisfactory to my untrained eye. Haven't gotten the city inspection or PTO yet, but all-in-all I'm satisfied working with them. Lots of room for improvement when it comes to proactively reaching out and keeping me updated on the process... read more

Really happy we chose Solar Optimum for our solar project. Of all the vendors we spoke with, they were the most honest, straightforward, and easy to communicate with. The price was also good compared to other vendors. We worked with Eddie Rodriguez in sales, and several other folks after signing the contract. The project is now completed and was very hassle-free. Thank you, Solar Optimum! read more

Great and timely service with friendly staff, would recommend. Work was done quickly and whole install process completed sooner than quoted.

Got my system installed last September. Initially reached out to them in July, installed late September , with PTO granted by PGE in October. Crew did a good job. There was a hiccup in getting the hardware delivered so they had to come back the following week. Had to stay on them a bit and called a few times to make sure everything went smoothly but they did always get back to me in a timely manner. Had a good experience, so ended up recommending them to my parents and a neighbor; and so far we're all happy with our systems. read more

Professional, responsive and respectful! The system was professionally designed and installed. Worked very well without any problem. The professionally also managed the whole project and process very well, including collaborating with PG&E to solve all problems. I'm happy with their professionalism and price. read more

With the conversion from NEM 2.0 to 3.0 staring me down, I beat the rush and signed up for solar on Jan 5. My panels came online on March 9, weeks ahead of what I expected. Everything went flawlessly and the crew that did the installation was outstanding. I will say that as we got into late February it took a bit longer to get replies to a couple of inquiries (nothing super important, fortunately), but I completely understand that right now everyone and their uncle are signing up to beat the NEM deadline and the solar providers are swamped. Props to Juan for taking the lead. I highly recommend Solar Optimum. With NEM 3.0, the break even point will be a bit longer, but with the right arrangement it is still a good economic and environmental decision, and Solar Optimum would be a good choice. read more

Solar Optimum Benicia - Solar Installation Near Me - Benicia, California

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I used energysage.com to get quotes from a few contractors. Energysage is a great resource and contractors can use online tools to provide a detailed quote without taking up 3 hours of your time in your home. I got a good price for purchased solar from Solar Optimum when they were still operating out of LA. They have an office in Benicia now and should be more efficient at delivering the finished system. My install was in 2019 before covid but I experienced the delivery of wrong parts on two occasions, numerous delays and failure to show up for scheduled building inspections. My understanding is that they have worked out their process since then and product support post installation has been good. read more

I reached out to Solar Optimum for my getting my house ready with solar support. My project was time sensitive as I wanted to get into CA's NEM2(NET metering 2 program). Solar Optimum prioritized my ask and provided - permits, applications, design, procurement and installation well within the deadline. Also the price they quoted was lower then other companies I reached out to. read more

Had a great experience with Solar Optimum. Especially helpful was Kevin, he was the representative that was helping me. he answered every question I had and always responded in a timely manner to any request I had. Would definitely recommend solar optimum, had a great experience especially thanks to Kevin. read more

Solar Optimum was outstanding at keeping me informed at every step of this complex process. Each step was done on time, or early. Communication was clear and responses were very prompt. I needed a panel upgrade from PG&E; Solar Optimum took care of it all, including rescheduling due to rain, and kept me informed. They installed 29 panels and two Enphase batteries. I could not have asked for a better customer experience! read more

I installed with them a few years ago and my system is working great. Francisco was very helpful and guided me to a good system.

Solar Optimum gave me a contract price so I signed up with them to qualify for NEM2. Then they came up with this roof reinforcement that was necessary for before installing the system on my roof. They have a roofing division that does roof related work. Other contractors were able to install without any roof modifications. The contract price with this change went up by roughly 50%. I switched to another party and asked Solar Optimum to give me access to the application so I can still have my NEM2 status. They did not. Solar optimum is a terrible solar company to work with. They will change the contract on you and will suggest expensive roof modifications you wouldn't need (but their roofing sister company needs). They also subcontract their work. You have been warned! read more

I had my solar added to my roof about a couple of months ago, and was incredibly impressed by the professionalism of the company, Solar Optimum. Since I just got a new roof, I was a bit anxious about having workmen work on it. Not to worry with Solar Optimum! They did an exceptional job and when there was a part that wasn't working properly, they had it ordered the day after the installation. (I just figured it out after receiving the software to monitor it.) Once swapped out, things were perfect! Once I received my first bill for two months, I compared it to the prior one before solar. Without Solar my bill was $538. for two months. With Solar Optimum, it was $40 for two months that were comparable in weather, sun and temperature. Between customer service and the results of the solar panels, I am more than pleased. I would recommend them to anyone considering Solar.....and please, tell them Deborah W. sent you. read more

We talked with several solar companies in Jan2022, before deciding and signing contract with Solar Optimum in Mar2022. Important note on contract : 1. Approximate project completion date is 1 year out. 2. 25 years Limited Warranty started the day you signed the contract 3. Full payment due after approval from city inspection, but *BEFORE* submitting PTO to PGE We proceeded with the project nonetheless. As per the agent we worked with, he cannot change the language of contract. Time line: Mar17 - signed contract Mar24 - site survey. $500 been added to run cable to main panel. Seem absurd. Felt that they were just looking for excuse to raise the final price. Watch out! Mar29 - Design accepted/approved. Apr5 - submitted permit packet to City Apr15 - received City permit Apr 19 - Materials delivered early in the morning (6-7 ish). Contractors were on site from ~8am. There were missing items, so the contractor contacted local warehouse right away during inventory check. Installation was completed in a day Apr28 - City inspection done and passed in 1 shot Apr29 - Submitted PTO to PGE May11- PTO received Pretty smooth process overall. We did called Solar Optimum proactively to make sure that they were on track. Customer service was impressive; We were able to talk to someone who can give us real status every time we call. System working well so far. Will update if anything else pops up. read more

Responsive and good communications. Start to completion was just a little over 10 weeks. Scheduling is often influenced by regulatory and PG&E issues. Solar Optimum quickly did their part. Recommended! read more

We contracted Solar Optimum to install our 5-kw solar panels. Timing was critical as we wanted to get the system installed in time to meet CA's NET metering 2 program. Solar Optimum provided EVERYTHING - permits, applications, design, procurement and installation well within the deadline. They were the best bang for the buck of 5 contractors we solicited bids and we're totally satisfied with our installation. read more

My system has been live for a couple of months now and is delivering more power than promised or expected. i was introduced to Solar Optimum by a 3rd party service called EnergySage and I spoke with several providers. I chose Solar Optimum because their proposed system was a better fit for my goals even though it cost a little more. They took the time to educate me and their advice was helpful. The whole project was well managed and proceeded as promised, with good communication at each step. it was a pleasure working with them. I am particularly enjoying the Enlighten phone app that came with the Enphase battery. It gives real-time information on the power produced and used, and allows me to choose different modes for use of the battery power. Very cool. I would definitely recommend working with them. read more

What I liked most is they did our roof and our solar. And their price was significantly lower than the company we spoke with in the city. We had one issue with a panel, and they got right on it. Their app gives you instant and historical looks at how your power plant is performing. I'm a happy customer. read more

Contacted these guys for a quote back in early October 2022. Quote was good and they promised install would be completed before the end of the year so I agreed to proceed. Things went smoothly at first until it came down to installation. Contractors came by on schedule for the install but they left so suddenly leaving incomplete job and no word whatsoever. Only thing they did was put the frames on the roof. I got a call the following week that installation will need to postponed until next year because contractor is not available for some unknown reason. The battery and the panels were left outside the house and have been exposed to the elements since before Christmas. It's been raining hard these past several days so I'm concerned that water has affected them. I asked solar optimum and haven't gotten any response yet but Manufacturer documents say that unconnected electronics shouldn't be expose to moisture as this may void warranty. I'm disappointed to say the least and I don't normally write negative reviews unless things get really bad. I hope Solar optimum can correct this. Will update... read more

Solar Optimum was good with Quote price and kept me updated with the steps . This was for install in San Ramon, CA. There are many departments so you do have to interact with different team members ,but in general they are proactive and had was in the ballpark timeline. Got quotes from Cory McKenna in early Feb and PGE approved PTO in May 2022. Most of the delays were due to City Permit and PGE. After back and forth with quotes ,the timeline sequence was + 1 week for site survey + 1 week for Initial Design feedback from Andrew. The annual kWH in proposals were much short of the ones in the quotes and then a few design back and forth . + 1 week for final design proposal. 600$ was added to quote to replace tiles during install. +1 week for submission of plan to City +4 weeks for City approval. I called in City to check status and next day got it approved, so maybe good to followup after 3 weeks with City . +2 weeks for Final plan approval from City. And then installation day was scheduled by Solar Optimum. +1 Week Panels and other parts delivered at home +1 day Installation crew arrived . Four member crew which were sub contractors but were good and shared details. The previous day delivery had missed a few parts ,but the delivery team was able to get the part from their local bay area warehouse. + 3 days city inspection was scheduled . The sub contractor was present on this day to walk through inspection process, they waited for 2 hours for inspector to come. Same data PGE PTO applied. + 2 weeks PGE approved PTO. I turned on the solar (it was setup just needed me to turn on a breaker) Will keep updating review , if any issue and how Solar Optimum handles this. read more

Working through the solar process was seamless overall with Solar Optimum from initial consultation through permitting, install, and final inspection. They were very easy to work with, reasonable, and helped us through one hiccup after our system was live. They were responsive and helped us solve quickly and we are very happy choosing them for this level of customer service. We have a 30 panel Panasonic system with Enphase microinverters up and running and pumping out solid kilowatts daily. read more

I selected Solar Optimum after going through a vetting process using Energysage - a market place that lets you avoid all the hassles of dealing with too many calls from too many pushy sales people! Solar Optimum was neither the most expensive or the cheapest. I would like to say that from exploring options and alternatives, signing the contract, design, getting city permits and approvals, scheduling the install, the install process itself (2 days), city inspections, and permission to operate from PG&E - Solar Optimum was on top of things and the process was very smooth. This happened at a time before the April 15, 2023 deadline for NEM2 when there was a big rush to get solar done! Contract was signed on Nov 14, 2022 and PTO (permission to operate) - the final step, was granted on Jan 13, 2023. If I were to redo the whole thing, I would go with Solar Optimum again! I have had no need to follow-up with them on any issues so far, but based on their track record, I expect them to keep their commitments! read more

Solar Optimum installed solar panels for us-- twice! The first time, they came out and did a great job, putting in both panels and a Powerwall. Because they are a certified distributor for Tesla, we didn't face any delays with getting the Powerwall. We decided to increase the number of panels on our house so we could increase our reliance on renewables and decrease natural gas usage for heating, and we went with Solar Optimum again because of the good service and price. The only reason we're going with 4 stars instead of 5 is that sometimes the communication between the office side and guys on the ground is a little slow-- we are waiting for one more CT in order to monitor our non-backed up loads. read more