The short answer
- Most SoCal home batteries are about one Tesla Powerwall's worth: 13.5 kWh. Nationally, the median home battery in 2025 was 13.5 kWh (Berkeley Lab).
- Added at the same time as solar, a battery cost cash buyers about $2.10 more per watt of solar than solar alone nationally in 2025, most of that data from California (Berkeley Lab).
- There's no federal credit for homeowners after 2025, and the state's SGIP rebates are closed except a waitlisted low-income budget. Burbank, Riverside, Pasadena and Anaheim offer local battery rebates.
What drives the price
- Capacity: 10–15 kWh covers most homes' evening use; whole-home backup with air conditioning needs more, often two units.
- Backup wiring: backing up the whole home costs more than a few critical circuits, and may need a main panel upgrade (guide).
- Adding to existing solar usually costs more per kWh than installing with new solar, because it's a separate job and permit (guide).
Does a battery pay for itself?
With SCE or SDG&E net billing, a battery stores cheap midday solar for the 4–9 p.m. peak, when power costs the most (61¢ per kWh on SCE's TOU-D-PRIME in summer; 80.2¢ on SDG&E's EV-TOU-5 as of Aug 2026). That's why most new systems include one. With LADWP's retail net metering, a battery saves little on the bill and is mostly about backup power.
Compare models in Powerwall vs. Enphase vs. FranklinWH, and size one for outages in battery backup for outages.
Checked against official sources on Oct 1, 2026. Sources are linked in the text. Not legal, tax or financial advice.