OpenSolar Pricing 2026: True Cost of Free

OpenSolar leads with a free tier and publicly describes its model as free to installers, funded through partner and marketplace relationships rather than seat fees. This guide breaks down the real cost math and shows the head-to-head against SurgePV at flat per-seat pricing. For the feature-by-feature comparison, see our OpenSolar alternative guide and the broader solar design software pricing roundup.

• SurgePV ships the same residential workflow plus engineering depth at $1,299 to $1,899 per user per year flat.
• Book a free SurgePV demo and see the real total cost on a project from your pipeline.

OpenSolar Pricing Structure

OpenSolar does not publish a single seat-based price for the full feature set. The realised cost is the sum of paid add-ons used.

What Is Limited in the Free Tier

• A lighter shading analysis model rather than a full 8,760-hour module-level run
• Positioned around sales and design rather than project-finance reporting, so P50, P75, P90 evidence usually comes from a dedicated simulation tool
• Multi-country code coverage narrower than tools built for multiple markets
• Advanced proposal templates offered as paid add-ons at time of writing, a gap covered in our solar proposal software guide
• Integrations delivered through OpenSolar’s partner network

Feature scope changes often, so confirm the current free-tier boundaries with OpenSolar before you plan around them.

For full PV simulation, bankable yield reports, and a hardware-neutral database, SurgePV’s flat plan is the typical upgrade path, the same methodology detailed in our PV yield simulation software guide.

Realised Cost: a Real Installer Math

A residential installer doing 10 systems per month per designer, mostly straightforward roofs with occasional C&I.

• OpenSolar free plus paid extensions at 10 systems per month: roughly $80 to $150 per month in realised cost = $1,000 to $1,800 per year per seat
• SurgePV Individual: $1,899 per year flat, full feature set, no add-ons

At 5+ projects per designer per month with any C&I in the mix, the realised cost on OpenSolar typically matches or exceeds SurgePV’s published seat price, and SurgePV includes bankable simulation and the integrated proposal stack at that price.

Total Cost: OpenSolar vs SurgePV at Team Size

At every team size past pure solo small-residential, SurgePV’s flat plan matches or beats the realised OpenSolar cost while shipping bankable simulation and integrated proposals.

What You Get for the Same or Less With SurgePV

• AI 3D roof modeling from satellite in under 60 seconds, the technique covered in our satellite roof measurement guide

• Clara AI natural-language design assistant, part of the broader shift covered in AI solar design software

• Full 8,760-hour module-level shading on every paid plan

• Bankable P50, P75, P90 yield reports

• Solar financial modeling with country tariffs

• DXF/DWG export for AutoCAD handoff

• Branded proposals with e-signature in 9 languages, no add-on tier

• QuickEstimate as the sister CRM

Who Should Choose Each

• Choose OpenSolar free if pure small residential with simple roofs is your entire scope and the partner-delivered integrations suit your workflow.
• Choose SurgePV if you run 5+ systems per designer per month, design any C&I work, or want bankable simulation and integrated proposals.

For most installers in 2026, SurgePV is the alternative that wins on engineering depth, hardware neutrality, and realised total cost at the same time.