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# When Will Solar Energy Get Cheap?
- URL: https://ivn.us/when-will-solar-energy-get-cheap/
- Published: 2013-08-20T19:37:14.000Z
- Updated: 2026-06-22T19:41:29.000Z
- Author: Jane Susskind
- Tags: News

*This video clip was originally posted on [The Atlantic](http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2013/08/when-will-solar-get-cheap-enough-for-everyone-to-use/278779/?ref=ivn.us) and is part of a six-part series in [The User's Guide to Energy](http://www.theatlantic.com/special-report/users-guide-energy?ref=ivn.us).*

Solar energy is transforming the energy market. In places like California, for instance, sunshine is not only fueling our electricity grid, but has fueled our economy, [employing 43,700](https://ivn.us/california/2013/04/19/california-leads-nation-in-solar-jobs/) people in the solar industry.

But just how affordable is it to "go solar" right now and when will solar energy get cheap?

This question is explored by Alexis Madrigal, *The Atlantic*'s senior technology editor, in a six-part series on "how energy really works in America."

The cost of solar photovoltaics cells, she argues in this clip, has dropped an average of 20% every time the world's manufacturing capacity has doubled.

*Essentially, the more solar energy you produce, the less it costs.*

This, of course, is referring to the cells used to produce energy, and does not account for the set up. In fact, cells only account for 50% of the cost of the solar module, which leaves the additional cost of installation, financing, wiring, converters, and storage a major obstacle to solar power.

##### *Is investing in solar economically advantageous? Environmentally advantageous? Share your thoughts in the comments below!*