Job costing for solar installers

On a solar job, the equipment is bought up front and the margin is made in the field: how fast racking and panels go on, how long the lift stays, and whether interconnection drags. JobFigure keeps equipment and field costs apart, so the job’s real progress isn’t hidden behind the panel invoice.

What solar installers track in JobFigure

• Equipment versus field costs. Panels and inverters, racking, and electrical materials each get a budget, separate from labour and rentals.
• Bid by the kilowatt. Line items can be priced per kW, per panel, or per square foot, and progress is logged against them.
• Permits and interconnection. Utility and permit fees post to the job, so a slow interconnection’s cost is visible.
• Crews on rooftops and ground mounts. Crews clock in on their phones at the site, and hours post to the job automatically.

Set up for solar from the first day

When you pick Solar as your trade, JobFigure loads these cost categories for budgets, receipts, and job costs. You can rename or add your own at any time.

• Panels & Inverters
• Labour
• Racking & Mounting
• Electrical Materials
• Permits & Interconnection
• Equipment Rental
• Fuel
• Subcontractor
• Other

Bid line items use the units solar actually bid in: kilowatts (KW), each (EA), square feet (SF), and lump sum (LS).

Example: what a solar job looks like mid-way

Ballasted racking and about 560 panels on a flat roof. The racking is done, the panels are about 60% set, and the electrical tie-in is still ahead.

Panels and racking were bought up front, so they’re fully spent, as expected. Labour is 57% spent with the racking done and panels about 60% set, which is on pace. The lift rental, at 65%, is worth watching: it has to stay through the last 40% of the panels.

Invoices the Canadian way

Set your company to Canada and each invoice applies GST, HST, or GST plus PST or QST for the province where the work is, and tracks the 10% holdback. At year end, the subcontractor payments report gives you the totals for T5018 slips. Prices are in Canadian dollars. More in our guide: GST/HST, PST and holdback on construction invoices in Canada.

Guides and tools for solar installers