Do you still get a utility bill with solar in Illinois?

Yes. You still get a power bill with solar in Illinois. State rules say you stay responsible for a utility billyou stay a utility customer, responsible for a utility billWhat marketing about the utility relationship must sayIllinois Power Agency, Consumer Protection Handbook for Illinois Shines and Illinois Solar for All, program year 2026-27Section I.C.1, General Requirements (page 11)Verified Nov 3, 2026. Net metering can change some bill lines. Fixed charges and delivery charges can still stay.

1. Why does a bill still come?

Your home stays connected to the grid. That matters at night, on cloudy days, and any time the home uses more power than the panels make.

Illinois Power Agency rules say marketing about solar must tell you that you remain a utility customer. The same rule says a seller may not claim that the bill goes away. The handbook says sellers may not say customers no longer receive a utility billno seller may say your utility bill goes awayClaims about the utility bill going awayIllinois Power Agency, Consumer Protection Handbook for Illinois Shines and Illinois Solar for All, program year 2026-27Section I.C.1, General Requirements (page 11)Verified Nov 3, 2026.

A bill can still show grid power, fixed charges, taxes, fees, and net metering credits. The exact lines depend on your utility account and contract.

2. What charges can stay on the bill?

Illinois Shines says your electric bill can include customer charges and fees that do not depend on how much power you usecustomer charges and fees that do not depend on how much power you useCharges that stay on the bill whatever you useIllinois Shines, FAQs Related to Changes in Net Metering in Illinois (July 26, 2024)Question 2, last sentence of the answerVerified Nov 3, 2026. Those charges do not depend on how much power you use.

For new net metering in Illinois, delivery can also stay on the bill. Illinois Shines says customers pay delivery charges on all the power you pull from the griddelivery charges on all the power you pull from the gridDelivery charges under supply-only net meteringIllinois Shines, FAQs Related to Changes in Net Metering in Illinois (July 26, 2024)Question 2, What changes are coming to net metering in Illinois?Verified Nov 3, 2026. That rule is explained in our guide to net metering in Ameren Illinois.

That is why the bill can still exist even when solar is working. The credit changes part of the math. It does not erase the whole account.

3. What should a solar company tell you?

The Illinois Power Agency homeowner handout calls it a green flag when a company explains that you will still have a utility bill. The handout says a good company explains that you will still have a utility billa good solar company tells you that you will still have a utility billGreen flag: the company explains you keep a utility billIllinois Power Agency, Selecting a Solar Company: Green and Red Flags (homeowner handout)Green Flags columnVerified Nov 3, 2026.

Be careful with any pitch that treats the bill as gone. Ask to see the Disclosure Form and the contract. Those papers should show the offer, the charges, and what you pay each month for the power the system makes if your home fits a PPA.

4. What can change after solar is on?

Solar can change how much power your home pulls from the grid at certain times. Net metering can also add a credit when extra power goes out to the grid.

Those credits are separate from the basic point. You should still expect a utility bill. Read the bill, read the contract, and compare each line to the Disclosure Form before you sign.