Peak sun hours in West Virginia
West Virginia averages 3.9 peak sun hours a day across the year, 46th of the 50 states. At that figure a 400-watt panel produces about 1.20 kWh a day after real-world losses, and covering the 900 kWh average US bill takes about 25 panels. Charleston, the state's biggest city, sits at 3.9 hours, close enough to the statewide figure to use either, though elevation and distance from water still move the number street by street.
modest sun: 3.9 of a possible ~6.5 hours
Panel counts for West Virginia bills
Computed at West Virginia's 3.9 hours with 400W panels and the 0.77 derate; the US-average column shows what the same bill takes at 4.5 hours, so you can see what your state's sun is worth in hardware.
| Monthly usage | West Virginia | System size | US average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 500 kWh/mo | 14 panels | 5.6 kW | 12 panels |
| 750 kWh/mo | 21 panels | 8.4 kW | 18 panels |
| 900 kWh/mo | 25 panels | 10 kW | 22 panels |
| 1,000 kWh/mo | 28 panels | 11.2 kW | 24 panels |
| 1,500 kWh/mo | 42 panels | 16.8 kW | 36 panels |
| 2,000 kWh/mo | 55 panels | 22 kW | 48 panels |
What 3.9 hours means in practice
West Virginia runs 13% below the national solar average, 46th of 50 at 3.9 hours. That is workable sun, not bad sun: the 900 kWh bill takes 25 panels here versus 22 nationally, 3 more. Germany built the world's densest solar fleet on worse.
How a West Virginia year is shaped
The 3.9-hour figure is an annual average, and no month is average. These are the twelve monthly means for West Virginia from NASA's 2001-2020 solar climatology, each as a share of the state's own annual mean, with that share applied to the 3.9-hour planning figure. June and December are marked.
| Month | Share of the annual average | Peak sun hours (est.) |
|---|---|---|
| January | 47% | 1.8 |
| February | 66% | 2.6 |
| March | 93% | 3.6 |
| April | 123% | 4.8 |
| May | 138% | 5.4 |
| June | 154% | 6.0 |
| July | 148% | 5.8 |
| August | 136% | 5.3 |
| September | 113% | 4.4 |
| October | 81% | 3.2 |
| November | 59% | 2.3 |
| December | 41% | 1.6 |
West Virginia's curve tops out in June at 154% of the annual average and bottoms in December at 41%, a 3.7-to-one spread with 48% of the year's light landing in four months. In hours: 6.0 a day at the peak, about 1.6 in December.
Half the West Virginia calendar sits above the annual average and half below: April through September are the six months that beat it, carrying 68% of the year's light. April is already worth about 4.8 hours a day, so the productive half of the year starts earlier than most people expect.
Set that against what West Virginia homes actually draw. EIA measured 1,027 kWh a month for the average household here in 2024, 19% above the US figure, which is 29 panels at the annual average sun. Hold the same house to a December and the count goes to 69, 2.4 times higher. Net metering is what makes the first number the one that matters.
West Virginia is more uniform than most. The 6 grid cells sampled across the state span 7%, sunniest in the southwest and dimmest in the northeast, which scales to about 4.0 hours against 3.8. Enough to notice on a production estimate, not enough to change which system you buy. Charleston sits inside that band, not at the edge of it.
What that sun is worth on a West Virginia bill
| EIA, 2024 residential averages | West Virginia | United States |
|---|---|---|
| Average home's monthly use | 1,027 kWh | 863 kWh |
| Price per kilowatt-hour | 15.07¢ | 16.48¢ |
| Average monthly bill | $154.76 | $142.26 |
| One 400W panel, a year's output | 438 kWh | 506 kWh |
| What that output displaces | $66 | $83 |
At 15.07¢ a kilowatt-hour West Virginia sits 9% below the national 16.48¢, 21st of the fifty states on price. One 400-watt panel offsets roughly $66 of West Virginia power a year. Mid-table on rates means the project lives or dies on the quote and the net-metering terms rather than on either the sun or the tariff.
Rank West Virginia by what a panel earns rather than by sunlight and it moves up 5 places, from 46th to 41st. Rates do that. Rhode Island gets more sun (4.1 hours to West Virginia's 3.9) and pays 28.65¢ against 15.07¢, so one panel is worth about $66 less a year in West Virginia than in Rhode Island.
Two warnings on those dollar figures. They are displaced electricity and nothing else: no install cost, no incentive, no financing, and no assumption about how your utility settles a surplus, which is the single biggest unknown in the sum. And a state average hides the utility you are actually on; 15.07¢ is every West Virginia residential customer averaged together, and neighbouring territories can differ by more than the gap between two states in the ranking.
Getting a number for your address
For a location-exact figure, run your address through NREL's free PVWatts; it uses measured weather for your grid cell and will also model roof tilt and direction, which statewide numbers cannot. Then compare its annual kWh against a quote's promise before you sign anything.
Questions people ask
How many solar panels do I need in West Virginia?
About 25 400-watt panels (10 kW) for the 900 kWh a month an average US home uses, at West Virginia's 3.9 peak sun hours. For the average West Virginia home specifically, which EIA measured at 1,027 kWh a month in 2024, it is 29. Your own bill is the variable that matters, and the calculator takes any figure.
Is 3.9 peak sun hours good for solar?
It is below the 4.5-hour national average but far from disqualifying. Panel counts run about 15% higher here for the same bill, and the December trough measured above deserves respect in any off-grid plan. Grid-tied systems ride through it on net metering.
How much is one solar panel worth a year in West Virginia?
About $66. One 400-watt panel at West Virginia's 3.9 peak sun hours makes roughly 438 kWh a year after the 0.77 derate, and West Virginia residential electricity averaged 15.07¢ a kilowatt-hour in 2024 (EIA), which puts West Virginia 41st of the 50 states on this measure against 46th on sunlight alone. That figure is displaced electricity only. It says nothing about install cost, incentives, or how your utility settles a surplus.
Do peak sun hours change with the seasons in West Virginia?
Yes, by a factor of 3.7 here. NASA's 2001-2020 climatology puts West Virginia's June at 154% of the annual average and December at 41%, so the 3.9-hour figure on this page is the midpoint of a curve running from roughly 6.0 hours a day down to 1.6. Grid-tied homes bank the summer surplus as credit; off-grid designs have to size for the trough, and in West Virginia that means 69 panels for an average local bill instead of 29.