The Solar Installers AI Recommends in 26 US Cities (2026 Data)

When we asked ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude and Google AI Mode for the best solar installer in 26 US cities in October 2026, 70.3% of the 411 installers they named did not appear in Google's map top 20 for "solar installer" in the same city. The five AIs agreed completely on very few companies: 17 installers were named by all five in their city, while 55.5% were named by only one. This page lists, city by city, which installers the AI assistants named, how often, and how those picks line up with Google Maps.

TL;DR

• In our October 2026 test of 130 AI answers across 26 US cities, 70.3% of the 411 solar installers that ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, Claude and Google AI Mode recommended were missing from Google's map top 20 for the same city.
• Only 17 installers were named by all five AIs in their city, and 55.5% of all named installers came from a single AI.
• EnergySage was cited in 106 of the 130 answers (81.5%), and in Orlando the five installers named by three or more AIs were exactly the five on EnergySage's Orlando list.
• 38.5% of answers named at least one national brand, led by Sunrun in 24 answers, and Claude named a national brand in 23 of its 26 answers.
• The 13 unanimous picks that also appear in the map top 20 had a median of 361 Google reviews, against a median of 57.5 for the map top three across all 26 cities.

Orkkid is an SEO and GEO agency for solar companies, so we study how AI assistants choose installers. This list reports what five AI assistants said when a homeowner asked them for a recommendation. It is not Orkkid's ranking, and an installer's inclusion is not an endorsement by us. Each AI was asked once, and the same question asked again can return a different list.

How to read this list

The cities run in alphabetical order. For each one you get the installer or installers that most of the five AIs agreed on, with how many of the five named them; their Google Maps rank and review count when they appear in that city's map top 20 for "solar installer"; how many different installers the five AIs named in total; and the median Google review count of the top three map listings, which tells you what a strong local profile looks like there. Each section ends with something specific from that city's answers, quoted word for word where it is a quote. "Not in the map top 20" means the installer did not appear in the 20 map results we pulled from that city's location, which can happen to well-known companies based in a suburb.

1. Albuquerque, New Mexico

All five AIs named Positive Energy Solar, which sits at #4 on the Albuquerque map with 173 Google reviews. Four named Affordable Solar (#6, 374 reviews) and three named SunState Solar (#19, 190 reviews). The five AIs named 15 installers in total, and the map top three had a median of 58 reviews. Gemini described Positive Energy Solar as "Widely considered the gold standard in New Mexico. Founded in 1997, they are an employee-owned Certified B Corporation." Claude added national options, noting that Sunrun was ConsumerAffairs' best overall pick for the city.

2. Atlanta, Georgia

All five AIs named Better Tomorrow Solar, the #1 map listing with 73 Google reviews. Four AIs named each of Sunpath Solar (#4, 43 reviews), Solar Energy Partners (#9, 67 reviews) and Custom Solar Solutions (#13, 72 reviews), which made Atlanta one of three cities with four installers named by four or more AIs. The five AIs named only 12 installers, and the map top three had a median of 70 reviews. Claude explained its first pick this way: "It's the one pick headquartered inside the city, on Memorial Drive in Reynoldstown." None of the five Atlanta answers named a national brand.

3. Austin, Texas

Four of the five AIs named Atma Energy, which was not in the Austin map top 20. Three named 512 Solar (#9, 587 reviews) and three named Alba Energy (#12, 54 reviews). The AIs named 18 installers, and the map top three had a median of just 18 reviews. ChatGPT gave a reason built entirely on EnergySage data: "Atma Energy is Austin-based, has a 5.0/5.0 rating from 74 EnergySage reviews, and was named 2026 EnergySage Local Installer of the Year for Texas." Google AI Mode was the exception, naming Greenbelt Solar, Native Solar, Lonestar Solar Services and Good Faith Energy instead.

4. Baltimore, Maryland

All five AIs named Lumina Solar, #2 on the Baltimore map with 842 Google reviews. Four named Solar Energy World (#11, 995 reviews) and four named Nova Solar, which was not in the map top 20. The five AIs named 19 installers in total, and the map top three had a median of 151 reviews, one of the higher bars in the study. ChatGPT pointed to a trade credential: "I’d start with Lumina Solar because it’s Baltimore-based, highly rated on EnergySage, and listed by NABCEP as a company-accredited solar installer in Maryland." Four of the five Baltimore answers named a national or multi-state brand.

5. Boston, Massachusetts

All five AIs named Great Sky Solar (#9 on the map, 783 Google reviews), and four named Boston Solar (#20, 1,360 reviews) and Viridis Energy Solutions (not in the map top 20). Boston had six installers named by three or more AIs, tied for the most of any city, from 15 named in total. Its map top three had a median of only 4 reviews, the lowest of the 26 cities. Claude relied on a third-party count that trailed the live map: "National Solar Ratings ranks it the top solar company in Massachusetts for 2026, citing a perfect 5.0-star Google rating across 576 reviews." The map showed 783.

6. Charlotte, North Carolina

All five AIs named Renu Energy Solutions, which ranks #10 on the Charlotte map with 610 Google reviews. Four named 8MSolar, a Raleigh-area company that was not in the Charlotte map top 20, and three named Emerald Energy. The AIs named 14 installers, and the map top three had a median of only 12 reviews, so the AIs' first choice held far more reviews than the companies above it on the map. Google AI Mode called Renu "A heavily reviewed, locally owned pioneer based right in Charlotte that has served the Southeast since 2010."

7. Chicago, Illinois

Four AIs named Certasun, which was not in the Chicago map top 20. Three named RxSun (#7, 150 reviews), and three each named the national brands Sunrun and Palmetto. The AIs named 18 installers, and the map top three had a median of 9 reviews. Perplexity was explicit about its source: "The best overall Chicago installer to start with is Certasun, based on its top ranking among Chicago solar shoppers on EnergySage." Google AI Mode went its own way, and three of its five Chicago picks were national brands: Blue Raven Solar, Sunrun and Freedom Forever.

8. Dallas, Texas

All five AIs named Good Faith Energy, which did not appear in the Dallas map top 20 we pulled, although Google AI Mode listed it at "4.9 / 5 (~860 reviews)". Three named Solartime USA (#20, 383 reviews), and three each named GNRG, OTG Installs and Bluesun Services. The AIs named 17 installers, 82.4% of them outside the map top 20, and the map top three had a median of 80 reviews. Claude flagged thin data behind EnergySage's top five in Dallas: "They have high ratings, but from only 3 to 8 reviews each, so the sample sizes are small."

9. Denver, Colorado

All five AIs named Solar Power Pros, and four named Photon Brothers. Neither appeared in the Denver map top 20 for "solar installer", even though Google AI Mode displayed Solar Power Pros' own listing at 4.8 stars from 279 reviews in Centennial. The AIs named 13 installers, and the map top three had a median of 69 reviews; one of those three map spots went to SolarReviews, a consumer advice site. Google AI Mode described Solar Power Pros as "A veteran-owned Centennial-based company recognized for deep technical expertise, NABCEP-certified professionals".

10. Honolulu, Hawaii

All five AIs named both Independent Energy Hawaii (#1 on the map, 361 Google reviews) and Sunspear Energy (#2, 127 reviews), and four named RevoluSun (#4, 129 reviews). Honolulu and Raleigh were the only cities where the top two map listings were both unanimous AI picks. The AIs named 14 installers, and the map top three had a median of 215 reviews. The engines split on order: ChatGPT put Sunspear first, while Perplexity and Claude led with Independent Energy Hawaii, which Claude said "has served Honolulu and nearby areas since 2008, and has completed more than 2,000 installations."

11. Houston, Texas

All five AIs named KW Solar, which was not in the Houston map top 20; Google AI Mode showed its listing as "KW Solar (Kilowatt Solar)4.8 (69)". Four named Atma Energy, a San Antonio company, and four named Freedom Power Solar (#11, 459 reviews), although three of those four answers spelled it Freedom Solar Power. Three named Solstice Solar (#17, 433 reviews) and three named Sunrun. The AIs named 19 installers, and the map top three had a median of 26 reviews. Claude quoted local media: "Solstice Solar is a Houston-based company that is voted Houston's Best Solar Company by Houston Chronicle readers in 2025 and 2026."

12. Las Vegas, Nevada

Las Vegas was the only city where no installer was named by four or more AIs. Three AIs each named Sol-Up (#4 on the map, 2,324 Google reviews, the largest review count of any installer three or more AIs named), Panda Solar, Caballero's Electric and Tesla. The AIs named 22 installers, tied for the most of any city, and the map top three had a median of 234 reviews. All five Las Vegas answers named at least one national brand. Gemini tied its Sol-Up pick to local conditions: "Founded by solar engineers, they emphasize system design tailored specifically to extreme desert heat".

13. Los Angeles, California

Solar Optimum was the only installer that three or more AIs named in Los Angeles. Four AIs named it. Beyond that the answers barely overlapped: the five AIs named 22 different installers, tied for the most in the study, and the map top three had a median of 28 reviews. Claude wrote: "Solar Optimum (Glendale) is an EnergySage Elite Installer with a 4.8/5.0 rating across 857 reviews." Google AI Mode named none of the other engines' picks, leading with Echelon Solar Power, which it showed at 4.9 stars from 136 reviews.

14. Miami, Florida

Four AIs each named Goldin Solar (#7 on the map, 163 Google reviews), Sprightful Solar and Lunex Power; the last two were not in the map top 20. Three named PayOli Energy. The AIs named 13 installers, and 92.3% of them were missing from the map top 20, the second-highest share of any city. The map top three had a median of 87 reviews. Claude summed up the overlap: "Goldin Solar is the one name that shows up across several lists." All five Miami answers cited EnergySage.

15. Minneapolis, Minnesota

All five AIs named All Energy Solar, #4 on the map with 1,356 Google reviews. Four named Wolf River Electric and Cedar Creek Energy (neither in the map top 20), and three named TruNorth Solar (#3, 81 reviews) and Sisu Solar (#12, 23 reviews). The AIs named 13 installers, and the map top three had a median of 81 reviews. ChatGPT used public permit data alongside EnergySage: "They also show up as the most permit-active installer in Minneapolis in one public-records-based ranking, with 1,409 Minneapolis permits reported."

16. Newark, New Jersey

All five AIs named Infinity Energy, which was not in the Newark map top 20. Four named Public Service Solar, Exact Solar and the national brand Palmetto, and three named Sea Bright Solar and Momentum Solar. Newark had six installers named by three or more AIs from only 12 named in total, and all five answers named a national brand. Even so, 91.7% of the installers named were missing from the map top 20. The map top three had a median of 5 reviews. Perplexity was the one AI that led with a different company: "Trinity Solar is the strongest overall starting point because of its extensive New Jersey installation history."

17. Orlando, Florida

Four AIs named Goldin Solar and PRIME Green Solutions, and three named Sunlight Solar (#1 on the map, 743 Google reviews), Lunex Power and Affordable Solar, Roof, & Air. Those five are exactly the five installers on EnergySage's Orlando list, which Claude spelled out: "According to solar shoppers on the EnergySage Marketplace, the top five Orlando installers are PRIME Green Solutions", followed by the other four. Google AI Mode named none of them. The AIs named 20 installers, 85% outside the map top 20, and the map top three had a median of 208 reviews.

18. Phoenix, Arizona

All five AIs named Solar Topps, #4 on the Phoenix map with 256 Google reviews. Four named Simple Solar and three named Aneva Solar; neither was in the map top 20. The AIs named 17 installers, and the map top three had a median of only 17 reviews. Claude cited an EnergySage award: "It was named the 2026 EnergySage Local Installer of the Year for Arizona." Perplexity put Simple Solar first, based on EnergySage's Phoenix ranking.

19. Raleigh, North Carolina

Raleigh had the strongest overlap between AI picks and the map. All five AIs named NC Solar Now (#1, 782 Google reviews) and 8MSolar (#2, 588 reviews). Four named Emerald Energy (#5, 155 reviews) and Southern Energy Management (#12, 279 reviews), and three named Yes Solar Solutions (#4, 394 reviews). The AIs named only 10 installers, the fewest of any city, and just 40% were outside the map top 20, the lowest share. The map top three had a median of 588 reviews, the highest bar in the study. ChatGPT explained its approach: "I’d prioritize established local/regional installers over national door-knocker-style companies."

20. Sacramento, California

Four AIs named Solar Optimum, and three named Next Solar and American Array Solar and Roofing; none of the three was in the Sacramento map top 20. The AIs named 19 installers, and the map top three had a median of only 7 reviews. The engines disagreed about where to start. ChatGPT wrote, "My top overall pick would be Five Star Solar if you want a highly reviewed local Sacramento-area installer", Perplexity began with American Array, and Google AI Mode led with Aztec Solar, "Operating out of Rancho Cordova since 1980".

21. Salt Lake City, Utah

Four AIs named Creative Energies (#4 on the map, 97 Google reviews), and four named Smart Wave Solar and Spring Solar, neither of which was in the map top 20. Three named Intermountain Wind & Solar (#14, 484 reviews) and ION Solar. The AIs named 15 installers, and the map top three had a median of 49 reviews. Their first picks differed: ChatGPT led with Smart Wave Solar, Perplexity with ION Solar, and Gemini, Claude and Google AI Mode with Creative Energies, which Gemini described as "a Certified B Corp with deep roots in renewable energy."

22. San Antonio, Texas

All five AIs named Atma Energy, which holds the #1 map spot with 107 Google reviews. Four named Alba Energy (#14, 37 reviews), and three named Solar Edge Pros (#9, 410 reviews) and Freedom Solar Power. The AIs named 16 installers, and the map top three had a median of 75 reviews. ChatGPT pointed to the local utility's list: "Atma Energy is San Antonio-based, listed as a local residential/commercial contractor on CPS Energy’s registered solar contractor list". Atma Energy was also named by four AIs in both Austin and Houston.

23. San Diego, California

Four AIs named Stellar Solar, and three named Baker Home Energy and Sunline Energy. None of them was in the San Diego map top 20, and 94.4% of the 18 installers the AIs named were missing from it, the highest share of any city. Google AI Mode still displayed Stellar Solar's own listing, at 4.8 stars from 386 reviews in Oceanside. The map top three had a median of 87 reviews. Claude based its pick on track record: Stellar Solar "was founded in 1998 and has over 16,000 completed installs".

24. Seattle, Washington

All five AIs named Sunergy Systems, #7 on the Seattle map with 251 Google reviews. Four named Puget Sound Solar (#2, 95 reviews) and A&R Solar (#16, 142 reviews), and three named SolTerra (#6, 151 reviews) and Blossom Solar. Four of Seattle's five consensus picks were in the map top 20, and only 46.2% of the 13 installers named were missing from it. The map top three had a median of 50 reviews. Google AI Mode wrote of Sunergy: "Being employee-owned often translates to exceptional pride in workmanship and low-pressure consultations."

25. Tampa, Florida

No installer was named by all five AIs in Tampa, but three were named by four: Florida Electric & Solar (#1 on the map, 804 Google reviews), Transform Solar (#5, 201 reviews) and Tampa Bay Solar (#10, 390 reviews). Three named Lunex Power (#12, 639 reviews). Tampa had six installers named by three or more AIs from 13 in total, and its map top three had a median of 287 reviews. Google AI Mode described Florida Electric & Solar using the map itself: "A massive local favorite on Google Maps with over 800 reviews and a stellar 4.9/5 rating".

26. Tucson, Arizona

Four AIs named Net Zero Solar (#4 on the map, 168 Google reviews) and Technicians for Sustainability (#5, 548 reviews), and three named The Solar Store (#2, 309 reviews) and Clayco Electric. The AIs named 14 installers, half of them outside the map top 20, and the map top three had a median of 223 reviews. Claude showed how it weighs third-party lists, saying Net Zero Solar "tops the Bluetti list, leads the Forbes list, and has a 5.0 rating on Yelp." ChatGPT started elsewhere: "If I were getting quotes in Tucson, I’d start with Clayco Electric".

The 26 cities side by side

Across the 26 cities, the share of AI picks missing from the map top 20 ranged from 40% in Raleigh to 94.4% in San Diego, and it was above half in 21 cities.

The table below puts the agreement numbers next to each other. "Named by 3+ AIs" counts installers that at least three of the five AIs named in that city. The last two columns count answers out of five.

For each city's review benchmarks and the installer most AIs agreed on, sort and search the table below.

National and multi-state brands showed up most where local agreement was weakest. Las Vegas and Newark were the only cities where all five answers named one, and Claude named a national brand in 23 of its 26 answers, far more often than any other engine.

The 17 installers all five AIs named

Seventeen installers were named by all five AIs in their own city. Thirteen of the 17 appear in their city's map top 20, with a median map rank of 2 and a median of 361 Google reviews. Seven hold a top-three map spot.

What the AIs' picks have in common

If you own or market a solar company, the named installers share a handful of traits you can act on. These are correlations from one run, so treat them as where the evidence points rather than as a formula.

1. They had more Google reviews. Among the 520 map listings, installers that at least one AI named had a median of 129 Google reviews, against 16 for those no AI named. Listings with 500 or more reviews were named 58.8% of the time, and those with under 25 only 4.6%. Our city-by-city review benchmarks for solar companies show the number to aim for in your market, and a direct link from our Google Review Link Generator makes asking easier.
2. Their ratings were high but rarely perfect. Listings rated 4.8 to 4.99 were named 53.1% of the time, against 14.8% for the 196 listings at a perfect 5.0. The 5.0 listings had a median of 10 reviews, compared with 101 for the 4.8 to 4.99 group, so volume carried the weight.
3. Their websites covered batteries. 121 of the 130 answers mentioned batteries, Powerwalls or storage. On the 335 installer websites we could reach, 80.4% of AI-named installers mentioned batteries or backup power and 62.7% had a battery or storage page, against 51.5% and 33.9% of the rest, the two widest gaps of the 23 signals in our solar installer website study.
4. They had a strong EnergySage profile. EnergySage was cited in 106 of 130 answers, 33 answers repeated an installer's EnergySage "Elite Installer" status, and 19 mentioned an "Installer of the Year" award. ChatGPT, Perplexity and Claude cited EnergySage in at least 25 of their 26 answers each, while Google AI Mode cited it in 6.
5. They gave the AI credentials to repeat. 47 answers (36.2%) mentioned NABCEP certification and 82 (63.1%) mentioned in-house crews or subcontracting. Named installers mentioned NABCEP on their homepage 20.6% of the time, against 6% of the rest, and they were more likely to state years in business (41.2% against 22.7%).
6. Their map listing pointed to a website. 99.2% of the named map listings had a website attached, against 79% of listings no AI named. An AI that cannot read your site has less to quote.

You can check what the AIs say about your own company with our AI Citation Checker, and our solar company SEO guide covers the groundwork. For the full cross-industry method, see the Orkkid AI Recommendation Study. This work is what our generative engine optimization service for solar companies is built on. Homeowners comparing quotes can use the Department of Energy's homeowner's guide to going solar, and the SEIA solar market data shows how the residential market is moving.

Every installer the AIs named

All 411 installers are in the table below. Filter by state, search for a company, or sort by how many AIs named it.

How we got this data

Date and engines. We collected the answers on 7 and 8 October 2026 through DataForSEO. ChatGPT (gpt-5.5), Perplexity (sonar-pro), Gemini (gemini-3.8-flash) and Claude (claude-sonnet-5-5) were queried with web search on and no location parameter through the DataForSEO LLM Responses endpoint. Google AI Mode was queried through the DataForSEO Google AI Mode endpoint with "best solar installer in {City}" and the city set as the location.

Prompt and cities. The four chat assistants received the identical prompt "Who is the best solar installer in {City}, {State}? Give me your top picks." in 26 US cities: Albuquerque, Atlanta, Austin, Baltimore, Boston, Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Honolulu, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, Minneapolis, Newark, Orlando, Phoenix, Raleigh, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, San Diego, Seattle, Tampa and Tucson. That gave 130 answers, 778 recommendations and 411 unique installers. Directories and review sites were recorded as sources, not picks.

Google Maps matching. For each city we pulled the Google Maps top 20 for "solar installer" from the city location with the DataForSEO Google Maps endpoint, 520 listings in total. Names were matched automatically after removing legal suffixes, generic trade words and place names, and a partial match had to share at least two meaningful words. Answers sometimes spelled the same company differently; in Houston, for example, ChatGPT wrote Freedom Power Solar where three other AIs wrote Freedom Solar Power.

Limits. This is one run per prompt and engine, so it is a snapshot; answers vary between runs, and a homeowner asking the same question tomorrow may see different names. The map top 20 reflects one search from each city's location, and suburban companies can rank differently from a homeowner's own address. Every pattern above is a correlation. We plan to re-run the same prompts in the same cities each quarter.

Free GEO audit

When a homeowner asks which installer to trust, whose name does AI give?

Buyers now ask AI for a shortlist before they visit a single website. Find out whether your solar company is on it, and how to get there first.

Tested across ChatGPT · Perplexity · Google AI Overviews · Gemini

Get my free GEO audit

FAQ

Which solar installer does ChatGPT recommend in my city?

The 26 city sections above list who ChatGPT and four other AIs named in October 2026, and the explorable table lists all 411 installers. ChatGPT cited EnergySage in 25 of its 26 answers, so its picks often followed EnergySage's local rankings. Ask again and the list may change, because each answer is generated fresh.

Do AI assistants recommend the same solar installers as Google Maps?

Mostly they do not. 70.3% of the 411 installers the five AIs named were missing from Google's map top 20 for the same city, and only 24% of the 520 map listings were named by any AI. Google AI Mode followed the map most closely, with 53.6% of its picks inside the map top 20.

How many solar installers did all five AIs agree on?

Seventeen, each in its own city. Honolulu and Raleigh each had two unanimous picks. Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Sacramento, San Diego, Orlando, Miami, Tampa, Tucson, Chicago, Austin and Salt Lake City had none.

Why doesn't my solar company show up when I ask ChatGPT for the best installer?

In our data, named installers had a median of 129 Google reviews against 16 for the rest, and were far more likely to have a battery or storage page (62.7% against 33.9%). The AIs also cited EnergySage in 81.5% of answers, so a complete, well-reviewed EnergySage profile gives them something to quote. Start by checking what each AI currently says about your company and which sources it cites.

Is this list a ranking of the best solar installers?

No. It records what five AI assistants answered on 7 and 8 October 2026 when asked for the best solar installer in each city. Orkkid did not rank or review the installers, inclusion is not an endorsement, and homeowners should still compare several written quotes before choosing.