Photovoltaics has become considerably cheaper over the last decade – above all the modules, whose price has fallen massively. An installed kilowatt peak today costs a fraction of what was standard ten years ago. But this trend has slowed: the big price crashes are behind us, and the curve is flattening. For your decision, that means: waiting for even lower prices rarely pays off – the lost production and the current one-off incentive outweigh a possible small further price drop. (As of July 2026)
Key points in brief
- PV prices have fallen considerably over the decade – especially for modules.
- The decline has slowed: the big jumps are behind us.
- Not all cost blocks fall equally – scaffolding, electrics and labour are more stable than the modules.
- Waiting for lower prices costs production and ignores today's incentives.
- You will find the current guideline prices for your project at a glance below – details and price factors in the cost guide.
What does photovoltaics cost in 2026? Guideline prices at a glance
For a typical single-family home system, the 2026 guideline prices are CHF 2,000 to 2,800 per kWp, turnkey and before incentives. Larger systems are cheaper per kWp because fixed costs such as scaffolding and grid connection are spread more widely.
| System size | Turnkey system – guideline price |
|---|---|
| 5 kWp | CHF 12,000–15,000 |
| 10 kWp | CHF 20,000–27,000 |
| 15 kWp | CHF 28,000–37,000 |
Guideline prices as of July 2026, incl. installation and VAT, before incentives. The binding figure is the individual quote. Details, price factors and additional costs: Solar system cost Switzerland 2026; if you start from the roof area: Cost per m².
How have photovoltaic prices developed?
Clearly downward – that's the big picture of recent years. An installed kilowatt peak cost several times today's value around ten years ago; over the decade, the price has roughly halved or more. The biggest driver was the module price: through the massive expansion of global production, solar modules are now available at a fraction of their former price. What used to be the most expensive item in a system is today often the cheapest.
This trend is the reason photovoltaics makes financial sense for so many households today – it's no longer a niche technology, but a fully calculated standard product. The specific current prices for your project are in the cost guide and the article Cost per kWp; this article puts the trend in context.
Are prices still falling – is it worth waiting?
This needs an honest answer: the big price crashes are behind us. The module price is already very low, and there's limited room for further falls – at some point a module is so cheap that it can hardly get any cheaper. The curve is flattening instead of continuing to fall steeply.
On top of that comes an often-overlooked point: not all cost blocks fall equally. The module price has fallen, but scaffolding, electrical installation, mounting work and connection follow the general cost trend and are rather stable or rising slightly. These items make up a bigger share of the total price today than they used to – precisely because the modules have become so much cheaper. A further drop in the module price would therefore only have a limited effect on the final price.
| Cost block | Trend over the decade |
|---|---|
| Modules | fallen sharply |
| Inverter | fallen, now flatter |
| Scaffolding / mounting work | stable to slightly rising |
| Electrical installation / connection | stable to slightly rising |
Simplified assessment, as of July 2026. Sources: Swissolar, SFOE. Market trends change – see the cost guide for current prices.
Anyone waiting for another big price crash is therefore probably waiting in vain – and pays a real price in the meantime: the production the roof would have delivered during those years.
What does that mean for my decision?
That the strategy of waiting rarely pays off. Let's work through it honestly: a possible small price drop in the future stands against two certain losses in the present. First, lost production – every year without a system is a year the roof delivers no electricity and you buy expensive grid power instead. Second, today's incentives: the one-off feed-in incentive applies at current rates, and no one can guarantee it will stay at the same level in future.
On top of that comes the price side of electricity: as long as grid electricity is considerably more expensive than power you produce yourself, a system works for itself from day one. The question «is it worth it?» – covered comprehensively in the article Does a solar system pay off? – therefore hardly depends on waiting for cheaper hardware, but on your own consumption and the current incentive situation. Both usually argue for not waiting.
«Maybe I'll wait a bit longer, prices are falling after all» – we hear that sentence less often than we used to, but it still comes up. Our answer is always the same calculation: even if the system were a few percent cheaper in two years – which is by no means certain – you'd have produced no electricity of your own for two years and kept paying the full grid price. That lost production can no longer be made up by the small price advantage. What's really changed is the composition: we used to talk about module prices, today about scaffolding, electrics and labour – and those aren't getting cheaper. Anyone with a good offer today shouldn't wait for a better one that will probably never come.
Frequently asked questions
Have solar systems become cheaper in 2026?
Considerably over the decade, yes – above all, modules are now available at a fraction of their former price. But this decline has slowed; the big price crashes are behind us. The current guideline figures for your project are in the cost guide, not in the long-term price trend.
Are photovoltaic prices still falling?
Only to a limited extent. The module price is already very low, with little further room to fall. In addition, scaffolding, electrics and mounting work follow the general cost trend and are stable to slightly rising – they make up a bigger share of the final price today. A further big price crash is unlikely.
Should I wait to buy until it gets cheaper?
As a rule, no. A possible small price drop stands against two certain losses: the production the roof would have delivered during the wait, and the current one-off incentive, whose future level no one can guarantee. Anyone with a good offer is usually better off taking it.
Why aren't prices falling as sharply as they used to?
Because the biggest driver – the module price – has already largely run its course. At some point a module can hardly get any cheaper. The other cost blocks, such as scaffolding, electrical installation and labour, don't fall; they follow general inflation. That's why the overall price curve is flattening.
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We'll show you what your system costs right now – including the one-off incentive – and honestly work through why waiting rarely pays off.
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Sources: Swissolar, SFOE (photovoltaic market trends), standard industry price indices (as of July 2026). See the cost guide for current project prices.
Last updated: 9 July 2026 · Author: ecoEn editorial team
