GoodLeap solar loans are commonly reported at about 4.99% to 8.99% APR. That range is only half the story: the dealer fee your installer adds to the loan is not part of the APR, and it can matter more than the rate itself.
GoodLeap does not publish a public rate sheet. The figures below come from third-party reviews and installer disclosures, so treat them as a starting point rather than a quote.
| Product | Commonly reported APR | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Solar, standard installment | 4.99% – 8.99% | Terms up to 25 years |
| Solar, low-rate promotions | Below 4.99% | Usually paired with a higher dealer fee |
| Home improvement (HVAC, roofing, windows) | Varies by contractor program | Promotional and deferred-interest options exist |
| Mortgage (FHA, VA, conventional) | Market rate | Quoted by a GoodLeap loan officer |
Here is a worked comparison on a $25,000 cash price over 25 years. We calculated each line with a standard amortization formula.
| Offer | Amount financed | Monthly payment | Total over 25 years | Paid in 7 years + payoff at year 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.99% APR, 30% dealer fee | $32,500 | $153.95 | $46,185 | $38,623 |
| 6.99% APR, 15% dealer fee | $28,750 | $203.02 | $60,905 | $41,966 |
In this example the low-rate offer costs less, both over the full term and if you sell or refinance after seven years. A rate buy-down is not automatically a bad deal. What the example does show is that neither offer is cheap next to the $25,000 cash price, and that you cannot tell which offer is better from the APR or the monthly payment alone. Ask for the amount financed and the total of payments for every option, then compare.
A longer term lowers the monthly payment but raises the total you repay. The table holds the amount financed at $31,250 (a $25,000 system with a 25% dealer fee) and the rate at 6.99%, so only the term changes.
| Term | Monthly payment | Total repaid | Total interest |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 years | $362.68 | $43,521 | $12,271 |
| 15 years | $280.71 | $50,528 | $19,278 |
| 20 years | $242.09 | $58,102 | $26,852 |
| 25 years | $220.67 | $66,201 | $34,951 |
Stretching from 10 to 25 years cuts the payment by about $142 a month and adds about $22,680 in interest. In practice the gap is wider, because longer terms usually come with a higher rate or a bigger dealer fee.
The CFPB solar financing issue spotlight (August 2024) identified four main risks in solar lending: hidden markups and fees, misleading claims about what borrowers will pay, ballooning monthly payments, and exaggerated savings claims. On fees, it found that lenders often build dealer fees into the loan principal without showing them as a markup over the cash price, and without reflecting them in the stated APR.
That is why the cash price matters so much. If an installer quotes $31,250 for a system it would sell for $25,000 in cash, the $6,250 difference is part of what you borrow and pay interest on, even though the APR on the paperwork looks low.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act (Public Law 119-21, signed July 4, 2025) ended the 30% Residential Clean Energy Credit (Section 25D) for systems completed after December 31, 2025, and ended the Energy Efficient Home Improvement Credit (Section 25C) for property placed in service after the same date. For a system completed in 2026, there is no federal credit to put toward the loan, so the full payment comes out of your budget.
This matters most for loan structures designed around a lump-sum prepayment in the first 18 months. The CFPB had already flagged loans that assume a prepayment equal to the federal credit. If a lender or installer still describes a payment that depends on a tax-credit prepayment, ask what the payment will be if you never make it.
Your real numbers are in the Truth in Lending disclosure that comes with the loan documents. Before signing, find four figures: the APR, the finance charge, the amount financed and the total of payments. Then ask the installer for the cash price of the same system in writing. The gap between the cash price and the amount financed is the dealer fee, whatever it is called on the paperwork.
You can confirm GoodLeap's license (NMLS #30336) on NMLS Consumer Access.