Affordable Rooftop Solar in Tamil Nadu: What Subsidies Cover and the Bill You Still Pay

Published September 4, 2025 · Updated September 30, 2026 · Reviewed by Karthikeyan E

A 3 kW rooftop system for a home in Coimbatore costs Rs 2,05,000. After the central subsidy and the Tamil Nadu top-up, you pay Rs 1,05,000. That is the number most people want first, so here it is.

The rest of this page is about what sits around that number: what the two subsidies cover, how a bank loan spreads the balance, which part of your EB bill the panels remove, and the small costs no subsidy pays for. Every figure is from a government order or from our own price list.

The short answer

System	Our price	PM Surya Ghar	TN top-up (G.O. 102)	You pay
1 kW	Rs 86,400	Rs 30,000	Rs 5,000	Rs 51,400
2 kW	Rs 1,55,000	Rs 60,000	Rs 10,000	Rs 85,000
3 kW	Rs 2,05,000	Rs 78,000	Rs 22,000	Rs 1,05,000

Prices are our current quotes within 50 km of the city and include the panels, inverter, structure, wiring, earthing and the net-meter paperwork. For most homes we visit, 2 kW or 3 kW is the right size. The 3 kW system page lists what is in the box.

Three things that bring the cost down

The subsidy is a one-time payment into your bank account. It cuts the price of a 3 kW system almost in half.

The bank loan spreads the balance over a few years. The scheme was designed with this in mind, so the loan is collateral-free and the rate is low.

The bill you stop paying is the part people forget. A home on 800 units in two months pays Rs 4,770 for power. Remove that and the system pays for itself in about four years.

PM Surya Ghar: what you get and who qualifies

The Centre pays 60% of the benchmark cost for the first 2 kW and 40% of the cost of the third kilowatt. Nothing above 3 kW is covered. In rupees that is Rs 30,000 for 1 kW, Rs 60,000 for 2 kW and Rs 78,000 for 3 kW or more.

To qualify you need a domestic connection in your name, a roof you own, and an installer from the empanelled list on the national portal. The panels and cells must be Indian-made from the approved list. The money comes to you after the net meter is fixed and the installation is inspected. The step-by-step claim is on our rooftop subsidy page.

The Tamil Nadu top-up

The state adds Rs 5,000 for 1 kW, Rs 10,000 for 2 kW and Rs 22,000 for 3 kW and above, under G.O. (Ms) No. 102 of the Energy Department. It is limited to the first 1,00,000 households that registered on the national portal on or after 5 August 2026. Together the two subsidies come to Rs 1,00,000 on a 3 kW system. The conditions are in our note on what G.O. 102 says.

Paying the balance with a bank loan

The Cabinet note for the scheme says households can get collateral-free loans at around 7% for systems up to 3 kW. We prepare the bank file for you. You come in once and sign; the rest of the paperwork is ours.

An example, not a quote: Rs 1,05,000 over five years at 7% is an EMI of about Rs 2,080 a month. A home on 800 units in two months saves about Rs 4,490 per bill, or Rs 2,245 a month. So the EMI is roughly what the bill used to be. The exact rate and tenure are set by the bank on the day.

Farms: solar pumps under PM-KUSUM

PM-KUSUM is the scheme for farmers, not homes. Its Component B replaces diesel pumps with stand-alone solar pumps, and Component C puts panels on grid-connected pumps so the farmer can sell the daytime surplus. The Centre pays a share of the benchmark cost, the state adds its share, and the farmer pays the balance. Applications go through the state agency, not the rooftop portal. Our note on how central and state schemes fit together covers the wider picture.

What your EB bill looks like after

A 3 kW system in Coimbatore gives about 16.5 units a day, or close to 990 units in a two-month billing cycle. Under net metering, TNPDCL bills you on what you draw minus what you send out. For most homes that leaves the energy charge at zero and a small network charge in its place.

Two-month use	Bill before	Bill after (3 kW)	Saving per bill
800 units	Rs 4,770	About Rs 280 (network charge only)	About Rs 4,490
600 units	Rs 2,880	About Rs 280	About Rs 2,600
400 units	Rs 940	About Rs 280	About Rs 660
200 units or less	Rs 0	About Rs 280	Nothing. You pay more.

The saving depends on which slab your units sit in, which is why an 800-unit home saves seven times more than a 400-unit home. The 2026 slab rates and the 200 free units explain the slabs. How exported units are credited, and why unused credit lapses every March, is in our guide to net metering rules in Tamil Nadu.

Payback for a Coimbatore home

Take the 800-unit home. It pays Rs 1,05,000 after subsidy and saves about Rs 4,490 on each of six bills a year, or about Rs 26,900 a year. Payback is a little under four years. The 600-unit home saves about Rs 15,600 a year and takes closer to seven years.

The panels carry a 30-year warranty, so the system keeps producing long after the payback. To run the sums on your own units, use the calculator.

Costs the subsidy does not cover

Item	What to expect
Net-meter registration	Rs 500, paid to TNPDCL with the application.
Network charge	20% of Rs 1.53 on every unit the system generates. About Rs 280 per two-month bill for 3 kW.
Capacity above 3 kW	The central subsidy stops at 3 kW and the state top-up at Rs 22,000. A 5 kW system gets the same Rs 1,00,000 as a 3 kW one.
Cleaning and servicing	Panels need a wash every few weeks in dusty areas. Do it yourself or take a service contract.
Loan interest	If you finance the balance, the interest is yours. See the EMI example below.

Questions people ask

Is the subsidy paid to me or to the installer?

To you. After the net meter is fixed and the installation is inspected, the central subsidy and the Tamil Nadu top-up are transferred to your bank account. You pay the installer the full price; the subsidy comes back to you.

Can I take the subsidy and a bank loan together?

Yes. The loan covers what you pay the installer. The subsidy arrives later in your account and can be used to close part of the loan early.

My bill is under 200 units. Is a rooftop system worth it?

No. The first 200 units in a two-month bill are already free, so there is no energy charge for panels to remove. The network charge would make your bill higher, not lower.

Does the subsidy cover a 5 kW system?

Only the first 3 kW. A 5 kW system gets Rs 78,000 from the Centre and Rs 22,000 from the state, the same as a 3 kW one. The extra 2 kW is paid by you in full.

Sources and disclaimer

PIB: Cabinet approves PM-Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana, 29 February 2024. Subsidy rule, loan at around 7% and the 300-unit figure.
PM Surya Ghar national portal. Registration and vendor selection.
PM-KUSUM portal, Ministry of New and Renewable Energy. Solar pumps for farmers.

Subsidy amounts, slab rates and prices were checked on 30 September 2026. Subsidy schemes have quotas and end dates, and banks set their own loan terms. RK Solar Solutions is an installer, not a government agency. Confirm the current figures before you sign.

Want the number for your own roof? Send us your last two EB bills and we will reply with the size, the net price and the payback in writing.