Sunrun and Tesla are two notable solar energy companies, but they offer different customer experiences and products. Choosing between them requires a keen understanding of each company’s business model and an understanding of the products and services each company offers. That’s where I come in.
I’ve spent countless hours reviewing solar installers, so I know what separates a good solar provider from a great one. I put that knowledge to work in this guide, covering the main differences between Sunrun and Tesla and explaining each company’s strengths and weaknesses.
By the end of this article, you’ll have all the information you need to make an informed decision and choose the company that better suits your needs.
10 to 25-year panel warranty and 10-year labor warranty
Offers affordable power purchase agreement (PPA) & lease options
Only installs tier-one panels
Available in all 50 states
User-friendly mobile app to track performance
Outstanding technology and energy outputs
My Take: Sunrun Vs. Tesla
Sunrun is my pick for the solar company that offers the best protection against damage, making it a good choice for people who live in areas with extreme weather. The company’s solar warranty offers a 10- to 25-year warranty for its panels {specific terms vary by panel brand) and 10 years’ worth of workmanship protection guaranteeing the company’s labor.
Sunrun also offers an outstanding warranty for leased panels, which includes 25-year total system coverage and protection against roof leaks. If you’re worried about your solar panels getting damaged or damaging your home, it’s hard to beat the peace of mind you get from Sunrun.
Tesla is a bit of an unusual company compared to most solar installers. On the one hand, it offers some of the consensus-best solar batteries on the market in its Powerwall and Powerwall+ batteries and offers a one-of-a-kind solar roof that you simply can’t find anywhere else.
On the other hand, the company recently stopped manufacturing its own Tesla panels, opting to install Qcells panels instead. It also doesn’t perform in-house installations and instead relies on a sprawling network of third-party installers throughout the country. Using third-party installers is what makes Tesla my pick for the most widely available solar installer, but it also leads to some inconsistency in the customer experience.
Tesla and Sunrun appeal to different customer bases, which makes it difficult to choose one as the best option for everyone. However, Tesla’s superior technology, widespread coverage area, and price matching make it my pick for the better of the two companies for most people.
Sunrun Best Protection Against Damage | Tesla Best Technology | |||
3.7 / 5 | Our Score | 4.3 / 5 | ||
$3.93 | Average Installation Cost per Watt | $2.30 | ||
Canadian Solar | Panels Offered | Qcells | ||
Lease, loan, PACE programs | Financing Options | Cash & loans | ||
15% to 22% | Power Rating / Efficiency | 19.3% to 20.6% | ||
10-25 years | Warranty | 10-25 years | ||
In-house & third-party installers | Installer Options | Third-party installers | ||
Let’s take a quick look at each company at a high level to get a sense of its strengths and weaknesses.
Sunrun
3.7
Our Rating
Sunrun is known as one of the most budget-friendly solar installers in the country. The company was founded in 2007 and is currently available in 20 states and Puerto Rico.
Sunrun distinguishes itself from other solar installers by providing the best solar leasing program I’ve seen, which makes going solar a possibility for many people who would otherwise be unable to make the switch to clean energy.
The company’s focus on leases is a bit of a double-edged sword, however. Sunrun has a history of pushing customers to lease rather than buy, which is better for the company’s bottom line but worse for customers’ lifetime savings. The company is also known for its less-than-stellar customer support, especially for customers who purchase panels rather than lease them.
Tesla Energy
4.3
Our Rating
Tesla is the opposite of Sunrun in some ways. The company is known for having some of the best technology in the solar industry, specifically when it comes to solar batteries and electric vehicle (EV) charging stations.
Tesla’s Powerwall batteries are the gold standard energy storage solution for residential solar customers. They have excellent battery storage capacity and a slew of features you can manage from the Tesla solar monitoring app. The only negative is that they’re expensive, although on a per-kWh (kilowatt-hour) basis, they’re actually more affordable than most other options.
Tesla is a national company with a presence in all 50 states. Unfortunately, it doesn’t perform its own installations, which makes its customer experience extremely varied.
Solar Panels Offered: Sunrun Vs. Tesla
Winner: Sunrun
Sunrun offers more tier-one panels than Tesla, making it the better choice for people who want some variety to choose from. The company installs panels from an impressive list of manufacturers, including JA Solar, Qcells, JinkoSolar, Trina Solar, LONGi, REC, and Canadian Solar — availability of each varies by location.
All the manufacturers Sunrun works with make monocrystalline photovoltaic (PV) panels, which are more efficient than the alternative polycrystalline PV panels. Even though polycrystalline panels are less efficient, they’re also more affordable, leading some homeowners to choose them to save some money.
On the other hand, Tesla only installs monocrystalline panels made by Qcells. The company used to manufacture its own solar panels but stopped doing so in 2022 to focus its solar efforts on its Powerwall batteries and solar roofs.
Tesla’s limited selection — really lack of selection since you only have one option — makes this one of the easier sections to score. If you value choice and want the freedom to choose between different brands with different efficiency ratings and price points, you should go with Sunrun. However, Tesla’s Qcells panels offer an excellent balance between cost and efficiency, which makes them good for most people.
Read also: Budget-Friendly Solar Panels
| Sunrun | Solar Panels Offered | Tesla |
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Monocrystalline
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Polycrystalline
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Thin Film
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PERC
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Canadian Solar |
Brands Offered
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Qcells |
Solar Installation Costs: Sunrun Vs.Tesla
Cheapest options: Sunrun / Best value: Tesla
Sunrun’s panel variety gives it a wider price range as well. The company offers premium high-efficiency panels from SunPower that get quite expensive, but it also installs lower-cost options from REC, Qcells, and Trina. If you’re looking for a cheaper option, Sunrun is the way to go.
With that said, Tesla is better value for the money, in my opinion. Tesla has a price-matching program that makes its systems very affordable as long as your quote meets the company’s eligibility requirements. To be considered for price matching, the quote must be recent — within the last 14 days — and for a sufficiently similar system. That means it must be a similar size and quality to the Tesla system you purchase.
Both Sunrun and Tesla are more affordable than the solar industry average, although some Sunrun systems can get expensive.
The bottom line here is that Sunrun has more affordable options, but Tesla’s price matching gives it unbeatable bang for your buck.
Solar Financing Options: Sunrun Vs. Tesla
Winner: Sunrun
Sunrun has more financing options available than Tesla, giving it a slight edge if you’re on a tight budget. The company accepts cash, solar loans, solar leases, and PPAs. While I don’t recommend leasing or entering into a PPA, the options are nice to have if they’re the only way you can afford to go solar.
Sunrun’s leasing program is one of the best in the business. The company covers the equipment it leases for 25 years and also offers roof leak protection, which is a nice touch that could save you a lot of money on repairs if something goes wrong.
Tesla only accepts cash purchases and solar loans, which makes it less accessible to people looking for a low-cost solar option. Paying for your panels upfront in cash or taking out a solar loan will save you more money in the long run than leasing your panels or using a PPA. Switching to solar energy is always worth it, but leases and PPAs reduce your savings by tens of thousands of dollars on average.
The winner in this category is Sunrun. Even though I don’t recommend PPAs or solar leases, having those options available makes Sunrun easier to afford for more people.
Solar Warranties Offered: Sunrun Vs. Tesla
Winner: Tesla
Sunrun’s solar warranty covers purchased equipment for between 10 and 25 years, depending on the specific panel brand you choose. It also offers a 10-year workmanship warranty for all purchased solar panel systems it installs.
If you lease your panels from Sunrun instead of purchasing them, you get 25 years’ worth of coverage for your entire system, along with roof leak coverage.
Now for the bad news: Sunrun is notorious for dragging its feet or simply ignoring warranty claims. Customer reviews of Sunrun are littered with displeased homeowners who can’t get the company to respect its warranties. While Sunrun’s warranties look great on paper, I can’t say they instill confidence, given the overwhelming evidence that the company doesn’t honor its agreements.
Tesla’s solar warranty is similar to Sunrun’s, offering a 25-year energy production guarantee and a 10-year workmanship warranty, both of which are right at the industry average. Even though Sunrun’s warranties sound better, the lack of follow-through in dealing with claims gives Tesla the edge in this category.
Solar Installation Process: Sunrun Vs. Tesla
Winner: Tie
The solar panel installation process for Sunrun and Tesla is very similar. Both companies use third-party installers, although Sunrun does have an in-house team that performs some of its solar installations.
Both Tesla and Sunrun are large national companies, which means that getting in touch with them can be a challenge if you have any questions during your installation. Customer reviews across the internet suggest that Tesla and Sunrun have similar communication issues that can make the installation process more painful than it needs to be.
Overall, neither Sunrun nor Tesla is known for having an outstanding installation process, so I’m calling this category a wash.
Additional Solar Products Offered: Sunrun Vs. Tesla
Winner: Tesla
Sunrun carries an impressive selection of brands, but Tesla has higher-quality solar add-ons that give it a decided edge in this category.
Tesla’s Powerwall and Powerwall+ batteries are the best in the home solar industry, and they integrate seamlessly with your solar system via the Tesla solar monitoring app. The company’s EV charging stations are also excellent and are the standard by which other chargers are measured.
Sunrun also offers EV charging stations, but its website only lists the Ford Lightning F-150 charging station as an option. Sunrun also installs Tesla Powerwall batteries through its Sunrun Brightbox program, but I would recommend purchasing them directly through Tesla if you’re interested in adding a battery backup to your system.
| Sunrun | Solar Products Offered | Tesla |
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Solar Panels
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Solar Batteries
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Solar Inverters
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Ground mounts
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EV Charging Stations
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Customer Reviews: Sunrun Vs. Tesla
Winner: Tesla (by a small margin)
This is where things get dicey. Sunrun and Tesla are both notorious for having customer service issues, so it’s not so easy to choose a winner. Let me explain why.
Sunrun has a history of customer service- and warranty-related issues that have given it a reputation for having poor customer support. Countless customer reviews mention that Sunrun is extremely slow at responding to warranty claims, which is frustrating given that its warranties seem solid on paper.
Sunrun also has misrepresented certain aspects of the federal solar tax credit (ITC) — one of the best national solar incentives — in the past, misleading customers into thinking its systems are more affordable than they actually are. Several customer reviews specifically mention this as a reason that they warn other people not to use Sunrun.
Tesla isn’t a shining example of customer service done right, but it doesn’t have the same glaring issues as Sunrun. Tesla customer reviews are wildly varied, largely due to the fact that the company outsources its installation services to local contractors. That means that some Tesla solar customers have smooth installations and solid customer support, while others have a negative experience.
My advice is to research your local Tesla installers and see what existing customers say about the experience.
Coverage Area: Sunrun Vs. Tesla
Winner: Tesla
Sunrun is available in 20 states plus Puerto Rico, giving it a respectable coverage area. However, if you live in a state that Sunrun doesn’t operate in, you’re out of luck.
Tesla has some presence in all 50 states. That doesn’t mean that there’s necessarily a Tesla installer near you, but you’re much more likely to find a Tesla subcontractor in your area than you are a Sunrun office.
An interesting side note is that Sunrun is available at many Costco locations throughout the country. You might want to check with your local Costco if you’re interested in Sunrun.
Of course, the overall coverage a company has doesn’t matter when it comes time to hire an installer. Use this handy tool to locate installers near you and find the right solar company for your home.
Find Solar Cost Estimates In Your State
Bottom Line: Is Sunrun or Tesla Better For Your Home?
Tesla is the better choice for most homeowners, in my opinion, but Sunrun is a good option for people looking for low-cost solar, especially solar leases. Tesla’s QCells panels are the right balance between affordable and performant, and the company’s Powerwall batteries, EV charging stations, and solar roof tiles give it an edge over Sunrun’s smattering of assorted equipment from other manufacturers.
10 to 25-year panel warranty and 10-year labor warranty
Offers affordable power purchase agreement (PPA) & lease options
Only installs tier-one panels
Available in all 50 states
User-friendly mobile app to track performance
Outstanding technology and energy outputs
Here are the answers to some of the questions I get asked most often about Sunrun vs. Tesla.
FAQs About Sunrun Vs. Tesla
Is Sunrun or Tesla cheaper?
Sunrun has a wide range of budget-friendly options, including low-cost, no-money-down solar leases. While I don’t recommend solar leases to most homeowners because they limit the amount of money you can save, they’re a great way to make the switch to renewable energy if you can’t afford to pay cash and can’t get a solar loan.
Is Sunrun the same as Tesla?
No. Sunrun and Tesla both install solar panels, but they are two separate companies. It can be a little confusing since Sunrun installs Tesla Powerwall batteries, but the two companies use different installers, have different warranties, and charge different prices. On a related note, Sunrun is the same as Vivint. Sunrun acquired Vivint in 2020, so don’t be confused if you hear people referring to Vivint and Sunrun as if they’re the same company.
Does Tesla work with Sunrun?
Not really, although Sunrun does carry Tesla Powerwall batteries. If you choose Sunrun as your solar installer, you can choose to have Tesla Powerwall batteries installed as part of your solar power system, but you’ll be dealing with Sunrun throughout the entire process. Sunrun and Tesla operate independently and have different pricing structures, installation teams, and company policies. Tesla is kind of a manufacturer as well as an independent installer.
What are the disadvantages of Sunrun?
The main disadvantages of Sunrun are related to its poor customer service. Many customer reviews of Sunrun mention that the company takes forever to handle warranty claims, with some people saying they don’t get service for months at a time. According to third-party reviews, Sunrun is also notoriously difficult to get in touch with, making it difficult to reach the company when a problem arises.
What is the cost of Sunrun?
The cost of Sunrun depends on the equipment you choose. Some Sunrun solar energy systems are more affordable than others, and the brand of panel you choose makes up a significant portion of that cost. REC and Qcells are two popular budget-friendly panel brands that Sunrun installs, while SunPower is a much more expensive brand and is Sunrun’s premium panel option.
Methodology: How We Compared Sunrun vs Tesla
I put a lot of time and effort into my solar company comparisons to bring you up-to-date detailed information that can help you make an informed decision. Over the course of my research, I grade each company based on a set of criteria that I designed to give a fair representation of the company’s overall quality. Here’s how I score the companies I review, including the weights I use to determine each factor’s importance:
- Local reputation and reviews (20%): One of the first things I do before diving into the specifics of a company is seeing what existing customers have to say. Other solar reviews often overlook this step, but I feel that it’s important to hear from current customers since they are the people who know a company best. I aggregate reviews from a variety of sources to avoid site-based biases and get a feel for the overall word of mouth that surrounds each solar installer. Neither Tesla nor Sunrun fares as well in this category as a company like SunPower, for example, but Tesla edged out Sunrun by a hair.
- Pricing and financing (20%): Solar panels are a significant investment for most homeowners, so I give a company’s pricing scheme and financing serious consideration when building my reviews. Companies with more payment options and better prices score better in this category, even if some of their financing options are ones I don’t recommend (like solar leases and PPAs). Sunrun has more low-cost options than Tesla and more variety in financing options, so it takes the win in this category.
- Services offered (20%): Not all solar installers offer the same services, so it’s important to consider how comprehensive a company’s product and service listing is when giving it a grade. I prioritize product selection and the availability of extra services like energy audits and efficiency upgrades. Tesla also beats Sunrun in this category, mostly due to its high-quality solar monitoring app, Tesla Powerwall battery installations, Tesla solar roof, and EV charger installations.
- Warranty coverage (20%): Solar panels are exposed to the elements for their entire lives, so it’s essential to protect them with a solid warranty. The industry standard performance warranty is 25 years, and most companies also offer a 10-year warranty for workmanship. Tesla’s warranty coverage is right in line with the industry’s average, while Sunrun appears to offer a better warranty. I say “appears” because, in practice, getting Sunrun to honor its warranties is a challenge.
- Company Experience (10%): I only give company experience half the weight of the categories I’ve covered so far since I don’t think it’s as important as how the company has been performing recently. Older companies usually have marginally better training practices, which give their technicians a slight edge over technicians at a younger company, but only slightly. Tesla and Sunrun score about the same here, with Tesla getting started in solar around 2006 and Sunrun going into business in 2007 in San Francisco, California.
- Brand quality (10%): The overall quality of a brand is difficult to assess quantitatively, so I also give this category 10% weight. Sunrun has a lot of bad word of mouth on the internet, which loses it some points in this section. Tesla Solar’s reputation is a bit better, although its use of third-party installers makes it unclear how valuable that information is.
