If your electricity bill feels impossible to predict, you're not imagining things. According to the California Public Utilities Commission, average residential electricity rates in PG&E territory increased by more than 100% between January 2015 and April 2025. That's not a typo. Your bill has more than doubled in a decade.
And the increases haven't been gradual. Since 2022, a series of rate hikes totaling more than 40% arrived in stages, each one compounding on top of already elevated prices. For most Bay Area families, the monthly bill has gone from a manageable expense to one of the biggest line items in the household budget.
The average combined PG&E gas and electric bill has climbed from around $179 per month in 2020 to approximately $300 today. That's a $1,452 annual increase from just a few years ago.
PG&E's own rate filings point to a few major cost drivers:
Solar + battery isn't just about going green. For Bay Area homeowners, it's increasingly about insulation from utility volatility.
A prepaid solar lease through Golden Bear Solar locks in your energy costs and eliminates dependence on PG&E for the electricity your panels generate. You don't pay a monthly lease bill, and you&'re protected from future rate increases for the life of the system.
"You save from day one; no tax filing, no waiting for a refund. You just stop giving PG&E as much money every month."
And here's something most homeowners don't realize: you no longer need the federal residential solar tax credit to get 30% off your system. Our financing structure passes through an equivalent upfront discount, no IRS forms required.
PG&E rates may stabilize in the near term, but the long-term trajectory in California is higher. Every year you wait to go solar is another year of paying rates that have historically done one thing: go up.
If you're in PG&E territory, the math is increasingly simple. Get a free quote from Golden Bear Solar and see exactly how much of your monthly bill you could eliminate.
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