Bengaluru rooftop solar: the real net cost after subsidy — a worked example

Ask three companies what rooftop solar costs in Bengaluru and you will get three versions of the same non-answer: "starting from around ₹55,000 a kilowatt", "roughly two-and-a-half lakh for 3 kW", "depends, sir, let us do a site visit first". None of those is a price. They are opening positions — and the gap between the number you are quoted at the start and the number you pay at the end is where most of the frustration in this industry lives.

This article does the opposite. It takes one ordinary Bengaluru home, puts every line of the build-up on the table, explains what each line is for, and arrives at the net figure. Nothing rolled up, nothing left for later.

What actually goes into a rooftop solar price?

Four things, and only four.

The solar system itself. Panels, inverter, mounting structure, cabling, protection, labour, commissioning. This is the bulk of the cost and it scales with size — a bigger system needs more of everything. A meaningful part of it is fixed, though: the inverter, the safety gear and the day of skilled work do not halve when the system does. That is why the per-kW price of a 2 kW system looks worse than a 5 kW system, and why "starting from ₹X per kW" is a nearly useless way to quote a small residential job.

Regulatory handling. Solar is not a purchase, it is a connection to the grid. Somebody has to file with BESCOM, get the net meter sanctioned, submit the subsidy application, collect the society or RWA NOC, and clear civil-work permissions where they apply. That work is real, it takes weeks, and it costs money whether or not it appears on your quote.

GST. Set by the government, not negotiable, and applied at different rates to different parts of the job.

A BESCOM sanctioned-load increase — only if you need one. More on this below.

Everything else you may have been told about — "processing", "documentation", "liaisoning", "site charges" — is one of those four, renamed.

What does a 3 kW system actually cost in Bengaluru?

Here is the full build-up for a 3 kW DCR system on an owner-occupied independent house, where the existing sanctioned load is already sufficient. This is the canonical line-by-line breakdown — when our other guides mention the net cost after subsidy, this is the table they are pointing at:

This is an illustration, not a quote. Your own figure depends on your roof, your bill and your sanctioned load — three things we cannot know from an article. You can get the real number for your home in under a minute: helira.in/start.

Now take the lines one at a time.

₹2,25,000 for the system. DCR panels — Domestic Content Requirement modules, cells and panels both made in India. They are mandatory if you want the PM Surya Ghar subsidy, and they cost more than the imported equivalent. That premium is inside this line, not bolted on later.

₹15,000 for regulatory handling. One fee, one point of accountability: the PM Surya Ghar application (where you opt in), your society or RWA NOC, civil-work permissions (BBMP or BWSSB where applicable), the net-metering paperwork and the BESCOM coordination behind it. You sign the forms; we prepare them, file them, and follow up with the sub-divisions until they clear. It is a single line — not a pile of small charges with impressive names.

₹22,725 of GST. Two rates, one line. The solar system is taxed at an effective 8.9% (₹20,025 here) because a solar power generating system is a composite supply — 70% goods at 5%, 30% services at 18%. Regulatory handling is a service, taxed at 18% (₹2,700). Add them and you get ₹22,725. Any quote showing a single flat GST percentage on the whole job has either simplified it or got it wrong.

− ₹78,000 of subsidy. PM Surya Ghar pays ₹30,000 per kW for the first 2 kW and ₹18,000 for the third — ₹78,000 at 3 kW, ₹69,000 at 2.5 kW, ₹60,000 at 2 kW.

Why is the subsidy shown last, not first?

Because that is when you get it.

The PM Surya Ghar subsidy is credited directly to your bank account after your system is commissioned and your net meter is installed. It is not a discount your supplier books against the invoice. So the money that leaves your account is ₹2,62,725, and ₹78,000 comes back to you afterwards. Anyone who quotes you "₹1,84,725 all-inclusive" without saying that has misrepresented the timing of your own cash — and you will discover it at payment time.

There is a second honesty point worth making, because almost nobody makes it: the ₹78,000 is not ₹78,000 of pure gain. The scheme requires DCR panels, and DCR panels cost more, so a slice of the subsidy is spent buying the panels the subsidy obliges you to buy. Netted against that premium, the true incremental benefit of the subsidised route is closer to ₹59,000 than to ₹78,000. Still worth having — comfortably. But ₹59,000 is the number to plan around.

What if my sanctioned load is too low?

Then there is one more line, and it is the only one not in the table above.

BESCOM will not sanction net metering for a system larger than your sanctioned load. Most Bengaluru homes are sanctioned well below what their roof warrants, so this comes up often. Where it does, the increase is a separate statutory line, charged extra — on the increase only, rounded up to the next whole kW:

All plus 18% GST. It is nil if your existing sanction already suffices, and nil if you would rather arrange it yourself. It is not part of the regulatory-handling bundle and never quietly folded into it — you either need it or you do not, and you should be told which before you commit, not after.

Who stands behind the system?

Helira Energy Private Limited is a brand and technology company for residential rooftop solar. The physical installation is carried out by installers certified to Helira’s standard — but your contract is with Helira, and the warranty and accountability stay with us, not with whoever held the drill. If something goes wrong in year four, you call one company, not three. Full coverage, including exclusions: Warranted by Helira.

That is also why we are willing to publish a price build-up at all. If the accountability sits with the brand, the pricing may as well sit in the open.

Get your own number

A 25-year decision deserves an honest figure on day one — not a range, not a "starting from", and not a subsidy quietly netted off to make the headline look smaller than your bank balance will feel.

Get a transparent estimate for your own roof and bill in minutes at helira.in/start, or message us on WhatsApp: wa.me/918073291022. We work with owner-occupied independent houses in Bengaluru with a monthly bill above about ₹1,500.