In residential solar, a rep's commission usually depends on a job that takes weeks or months to finish after the sale. The contract gets signed, then the job moves through permitting, install, inspection, PTO, and funding. When commissions are tracked in a spreadsheet away from the job, reps can't see where their pay stands, and the office spends time answering "when do I get paid?" This guide is for the owner or office manager who has to keep that clear.
Why solar commissions are hard to track
- The sale and the payout are far apart. A lot can happen to a job between the sale and funding.
- The job status and the pay status live in different places. Operations updates the project, and someone else updates the commission sheet.
- Reps can't see their own jobs. They ask the office, the office asks operations, and the answer is out of date by the time it gets back.
- Plan rules live in someone's head. Splits, overrides, advances, and cancellations get handled one at a time instead of by a written plan.
The milestones to track on every job
The names change from company to company, but most plans tie pay to a few points in the job.
- Sold. The homeowner approves the scope of work (SOW). The commission is recorded on the job as pending. When it's earned depends on your written plan.
- In progress. The job moves through site survey, engineering, permitting, installation, inspection, and PTO. The commission stays tied to that job while it does.
- Funded. The job reaches the funding milestone your plan uses. Some plans mark the commission earned at this point.
- Paid. The office pays the commission and records when it went out.
Your written plan decides which milestone triggers what. Tracking should follow the plan, not replace it.
An example of one job, start to finish
Example only. A rep sells a job and the homeowner approves the SOW on March 3. The commission is recorded on the job as pending. When it's earned depends on your written plan. The job moves through permit, install, and PTO, and the rep can see each step without calling the office. The job is funded on May 20, and the commission is marked earned. The office pays it on the next pay run and marks it paid, with the date.
What reps should be able to see
- Every job they sold, in one list.
- The current step of each job.
- Whether each commission is pending, earned, or paid.
- The date each one changed.
Reps can check where each commission stands without calling the office.
What the office should be able to see
- Every open commission, by rep and by job.
- Which jobs are funded and which commissions are now earned.
- What has been paid, and when.
- The approved SOW on the same record as the commission.
See commission tracking on one of your jobs. Book a 30-minute demo.
Things your written plan should cover
These are questions to settle in writing with your own advisor. This guide doesn't answer them for you.
- Which milestone makes a commission earned.
- How splits between reps, and any overrides for managers, are handled.
- Whether the plan pays any advance or draw before a job is funded.
- What happens to a commission when a job cancels or changes.
Put your commission plan in writing and have it reviewed for your state.
Signs you've outgrown a commission spreadsheet
- The sheet is only right after someone spends time updating it from the job list.
- Reps keep their own copies, and the copies don't match yours.
- You find out a job funded days after it happened.
- Pay questions take up part of every week.
How Solar Nest tracks commissions
Each rep's commission sits on the job and moves through pending, earned, approved, and paid, on the same project record as the permit, the install, and the funding milestone, instead of a separate spreadsheet. The commission ledger and the rep portal show each rep the jobs they sold and where each one stands. Solar Nest calculates each rep's commission from the rates and rules your company sets up, and tracks it to paid. The payment itself goes out through your bank or payroll provider. It does not calculate taxes or withholding.
Read more: Solar CRM covers sales and rep commissions. Solar installer software covers the whole job from sold to funded. Solar project management covers permitting through PTO. Permit-to-PTO checklist covers the steps between the sale and funding.