People search for HelioScope pricing because the HelioScope website hides the per-seat number behind a “request a quote” call to action. The reason is the same playbook every solar SaaS uses: a discovery call lets the sales team match the discount to seat count and pipeline volume. For a C&I designer running ten to fifty-megawatt projects per quarter, that opaque starting point is a problem. You need a public, plan-by-plan view of what HelioScope costs in 2026, what the four most common bolt-ons add (proposal tool, AHJ presets, simulation overage, enterprise pipeline commitment), and whether a browser-native replacement at one-third of the per-seat rate covers the bankability bar. This guide breaks down the real HelioScope plan tiers, the hidden costs that surface after the contract closes, and where SurgePV lands as the cheaper alternative for installers who want simulation plus proposal in one license.
Direct answer. HelioScope costs roughly $99 to $300 per user per month in 2026 depending on tier and pipeline commitment. SurgePV runs $1,299 per user per year on the five-seat tier, which is about $108 per user per month equivalent, and includes the interactive proposal that HelioScope does not. The three-year delta over HelioScope for a five-seat C&I shop is between $20,000 and $60,000 once you factor the proposal tool that HelioScope forces you to buy on the side.
What HelioScope Costs in 2026
HelioScope publishes plan names but not seat prices. The numbers below come from RFQ responses, public installer forum threads, and reseller pages that quote HelioScope at multi-seat volume. The accuracy band is roughly 10 to 15 percent depending on the pipeline commitment Folsom Labs negotiates.
$99
HelioScope entry, per user, per month
Annual commit, low pipeline, 2026
$199
HelioScope mid, per user, per month
Annual commit, mid pipeline, 2026
$300
HelioScope enterprise, per user, per month
Pipeline commit + premium support
$108
SurgePV per user, per month equivalent
$1,299 annual on the 5-seat tier
The three HelioScope tiers
| HelioScope Tier | Per-user list | What it includes | What it does not |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | ~$99/user/month | Single-line layout, basic bankable yield, limited simulations per month | No interactive proposal, limited AHJ presets, simulation cap |
| Mid | ~$199/user/month | Higher simulation cap, module-level shading, advanced layout, basic API access | No interactive consumer proposal, limited NEC SLD output |
| Enterprise | ~$300/user/month + pipeline commit | Premium support, higher API limits, pipeline-tier discount, white-label option | Still no consumer-facing interactive proposal; AutoCAD export still separate workflow |
The pricing structure is unusual in one respect: Folsom Labs typically negotiates an enterprise contract against pipeline volume (the megawatts of project the buyer expects to design per year), not just seat count. A team that promises 50 MW of pipeline per year tends to land below $250 per seat per month. A team that promises only 5 MW pays closer to $300 per seat per month even at the enterprise tier. The published HelioScope plans page does not mention this.
Five-seat C&I team, three-year total
A five-seat commercial team on the mid tier is paying approximately $199 multiplied by 5, multiplied by 12, multiplied by 3, which equals $35,820 over three years before any add-on. Add a separate proposal tool (most teams either run Solargraf at roughly $80 per user per month or pay for Aurora Sales Mode purely for the consumer-facing motion), and the three-year stack lands between $50,000 and $65,000.
By comparison, a five-seat SurgePV pricing stack runs $1,299 multiplied by 5, multiplied by 3, which equals $19,485 with the proposal already included. The three-year delta is roughly $30,000 to $45,000 once you account for the proposal tool that HelioScope forces you to bolt on.
What the Sticker Hides
HelioScope’s published tier prices cover simulation and layout. Four real costs surface after the contract is signed.
1. HelioScope ships no interactive consumer proposal
HelioScope produces an excellent bankable yield PDF. It does not produce a shareable, e-signable, interactive proposal that a homeowner or facilities director can click through. The market workaround is to buy Solargraf at roughly $80 per user per month or Aurora Sales Mode at roughly $60 per user per month per rep, and re-key the design into the proposal tool. That is $4,800 to $9,600 per year for a five-rep sales team. SurgePV ships an equivalent white-label solar proposals builder in every paid tier.
2. AHJ presets are not 50-state
HelioScope’s simulation is bankable and that is what 90 percent of buyers care about. Where it lags is the jurisdictional overlay library. For installers permitting in California, Hawaii, or New York City, the SLD overlay that meets the AHJ usually comes from a separate AutoCAD workflow. That is a 0.5 to 1 hour per project hit on engineering labor. Over a year of 200 projects, that is between 100 and 200 engineering hours. SurgePV publishes a US-mode AHJ overlay library that covers the top 1,500 jurisdictions natively.
Watch out. Folsom Labs' enterprise quote often includes a pipeline minimum (megawatts designed per year) tied to the discount. If your shop misses the minimum, the contract may automatically reprice to the mid-tier rate in year two. Read the renewal clause carefully before signing the multi-year commit.
3. Simulation overage on the entry tier
The entry tier caps simulations per month. Teams that grow into commercial work hit the cap and either upgrade tier or pay overage. The overage cost is rarely published and is usually quoted in the discovery call. A team running 30 to 40 simulations per month on the entry tier almost always upgrades inside six months. SurgePV ships unlimited 8,760-hour simulation on every paid tier with no overage.
4. AutoCAD export is a separate workflow
HelioScope exports a design PDF and a simulation report. The DXF or DWG layout that an electrical engineer uses to draft the NEC SLD is a separate export. Most C&I shops keep a dedicated AutoCAD seat at roughly $30 to $50 per user per month for one or two engineers. That is $720 to $1,200 per year per CAD seat. SurgePV bundles AutoCAD DXF export in every paid tier.
HelioScope vs SurgePV: The Real Comparison
| Line item | HelioScope Mid + proposal tool | SurgePV (5-seat tier) |
|---|---|---|
| Per user, per year | ~$2,388 plus $960 proposal tool = $3,348 | $1,299 |
| Bankable 8,760-hour simulation | Yes, capped on entry tier | Yes, unlimited |
| Module-level shading | Yes (mid tier and above) | Included on all paid tiers |
| Interactive consumer proposal | No, requires Solargraf or Aurora Sales Mode | Included |
| AI 3D roof design | No (drone or external 3D required) | Included on all paid tiers |
| NEC 2023 single-line diagram | Not native, AutoCAD bolt-on | Included native |
| AutoCAD DXF export | Separate workflow | Included |
| 50-state AHJ overlay | Limited preset library | Included (US mode) |
| Free trial without card | No | Yes |
| Five-seat, three-year cost (with proposal tool) | ~$50,000 to $65,000 | $19,485 |
The delta over three years for a five-seat C&I team is roughly $30,000 to $45,000 once you account for the proposal tool that HelioScope forces you to bolt on, and roughly $20,000 if you only count the design seat alone. For a 20-seat enterprise team, the delta climbs north of $200,000.
For the feature-by-feature view, see the HelioScope vs SurgePV comparison, and for the migration playbook the HelioScope to SurgePV migration guide walks through how to port simulation history and AutoCAD overlays.
The HelioScope Stack Test
If you are sitting on a HelioScope renewal quote and trying to decide whether to negotiate or switch, this is the four-question test we run for installers who hire us for engineering support. Score one for each “yes.”
Proposal tool question
Are you paying for Solargraf or Aurora Sales Mode purely to produce the consumer-facing proposal that HelioScope does not generate? If yes, that is between $60 and $80 per rep per month that disappears with a tool that bundles the proposal.
AHJ preset question
How many of your top three AHJs require an SLD overlay or label that HelioScope's preset library does not generate? If your engineer redraws the SLD in AutoCAD every project, the AHJ savings are smaller than the sticker implies.
Simulation overage question
Did you upgrade from the entry tier purely because you hit the simulation cap? If yes, the tier delta is paying for capacity that competitor tools ship unlimited at the base tier.
Enterprise pipeline commit question
Did you sign an enterprise contract with a pipeline minimum tied to the discount? If your projected megawatts miss the minimum, the renewal will reprice. A flat per-seat tool removes that risk entirely.
A score of two or higher means a switch will likely save more than it costs to migrate. A score of three or four means you are leaving thousands of dollars per seat per year on the table.
Pricing Comparison: Stack vs Stack
C&I teams rarely run HelioScope alone. The full stack usually includes a proposal tool, an AutoCAD seat, and either a CRM or a sales-led tool that doubles as a CRM. Stack-vs-stack is the comparison that matters.
| Stack | Annual cost, 5-seat shop | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| HelioScope Mid + Solargraf + AutoCAD (1 seat) | ~$18,000 | Simulation, proposal, DXF |
| HelioScope Entry + Aurora Sales Mode + AutoCAD | ~$16,500 | Limited simulation, proposal, DXF |
| Aurora Grow + Sales Mode + AutoCAD (1 seat) | ~$19,000 | Design, shading, proposal, DXF |
| SurgePV 5-seat tier (all-in) | $6,495 | Design, shading, NEC SLD, proposal, DXF, AI 3D, simulation |
According to the SEIA US solar market research, commercial installer gross margins are tighter than residential, often 14 to 18 percent in 2025. Saving $11,000 per year on software stack is roughly 1 percentage point of margin back on a one-million-dollar commercial pipeline. The IEA PVPS Task 13 research on PV performance modeling is a useful reference for what “bankable” actually means across simulation engines.
See the C&I design samples we ship for HelioScope and SurgePV clients
Download the Heaven Designs sample pack. C&I three-line diagram, structural placement, 8,760-hour yield report, and an AutoCAD-exported SLD overlay.
Download the sample pack →When HelioScope Is Still the Right Call
There are three scenarios where staying on HelioScope is the cheaper outcome.
Scenario 1: You ship bankable yield to project finance teams
HelioScope’s simulation has been the reference for project finance underwriting since 2014. If your buyer is a tax-equity investor or a debt provider who specifically asks for HelioScope output, switching simulation engines introduces underwriting friction that costs more than the seat savings. The right move is to run HelioScope alongside a cheaper proposal tool. SurgePV runs alongside HelioScope without conflict, and the bankability glossary explains what bankers actually look for.
Scenario 2: You are on a 50-plus MW pipeline commit
If you signed a multi-year enterprise contract with Folsom Labs at a pipeline commit that is delivering a per-seat rate below $200 per month, the migration math takes two years to break even. Negotiate the renewal and switch on the next contract cycle.
Scenario 3: Your engineers run shared simulation workflows
HelioScope’s collaboration model (shared project view, comment threads, sim history) is well-developed for teams of five-plus engineers running the same project. Browser-native competitors are catching up but are still 12 to 18 months behind on the collaboration polish.
How Heaven Designs Helps
Heaven Designs is an outsourced solar engineering team that ships permit-ready packets for US installers and developers regardless of which design tool they run. We have produced over 25,000 PV designs across HelioScope, Aurora, PVsyst, OpenSolar, and SurgePV. The tool is the buyer’s choice; the engineering output is what we deliver.
When a C&I installer hires us during a HelioScope-to-SurgePV migration, we run two services:
- The rooftop detailed engineering design service. We produce the NEC 2023 SLD, the structural overlay, and the AHJ packet from whichever simulation engine the installer is running, then re-issue from the destination tool once the migration completes.
- The 3D pre-design service. We produce the 3D roof model and the conceptual layout that drives the HelioScope or SurgePV simulation, so the design engineer is not also doing the roof measurement.
For installers shopping the broader market, our guides on commercial solar design software, utility-scale solar design software, and the HelioScope alternatives breakdown cover the trade-offs in depth. The US solar design software roundup walks through every meaningful option. The solar proposal software guide is useful if you are specifically shopping for the proposal layer to bolt onto HelioScope. The PVsyst glossary and AHJ glossary are useful when comparing simulation output and permit reviewer expectations across tools.
If you want to talk through a specific HelioScope renewal quote, the contact form is the fastest path. Enterprise contracts are timed, so the eight to twelve weeks before auto-renew is when negotiation works.
FAQ
How much does HelioScope actually cost per user in 2026?
Between $99 per user per month on the entry tier and $300 per user per month on the enterprise tier. The mid tier sits at roughly $199 per user per month with an annual commitment. Enterprise pricing is tied to a pipeline minimum (megawatts designed per year) that Folsom Labs negotiates per contract.
Why does HelioScope hide pricing on its website?
HelioScope’s parent company, Folsom Labs (now part of Aurora), uses a discovery call to negotiate pipeline commits against discount. The downside for the buyer is you cannot compare HelioScope against alternatives without sitting through a demo. Public pricing pages like SurgePV pricing let you compare on the same page.
Does HelioScope include an interactive consumer proposal?
No. HelioScope produces a bankable yield PDF and a simulation report, not an interactive proposal that a homeowner or facilities manager can click through and e-sign. Most installers buy Solargraf or Aurora Sales Mode as a separate proposal tool. The cost runs $60 to $80 per rep per month. SurgePV bundles the white-label proposal builder in every paid tier.
Is HelioScope’s simulation bankable?
Yes. HelioScope’s simulation has been considered bankable by US project finance teams since 2014. According to the NREL 2024 US PV cost benchmark, the underwriting reference list includes HelioScope, PVsyst, and increasingly SurgePV. The simulation engine is not the place HelioScope loses on price; the proposal gap is.
Does HelioScope ship a 50-state AHJ overlay library?
The preset library covers the most common US jurisdictions but is not exhaustive. For California, Hawaii, parts of New York City, and the strictest Florida counties, the SLD overlay typically comes from a separate AutoCAD workflow. SurgePV’s US mode covers the top 1,500 jurisdictions natively.
What is the cheapest credible alternative to HelioScope in 2026?
SurgePV at $1,299 per user per year on the five-seat tier, which works out to roughly $108 per user per month equivalent. It ships 8,760-hour simulation, module-level shading, AI 3D roof design, NEC 2023 SLD, AutoCAD DXF export, and an interactive proposal in one license. The HelioScope alternatives guide covers six others.
Will switching off HelioScope break our existing simulation history?
HelioScope’s project files do not export cleanly into other simulation engines, but the underlying inputs (weather file, module spec, inverter spec, array layout) do. SurgePV’s HelioScope to SurgePV migration guide walks through how to re-run the simulation from the same inputs and validate the yield delta sits within the 1 to 3 percent band that most underwriting allows.
How much can a five-seat C&I team save by switching?
Roughly $30,000 to $45,000 over three years once you factor the proposal tool that HelioScope forces you to bolt on. The savings come from the proposal being bundled rather than added, AutoCAD DXF being bundled rather than added, and the AHJ overlay being native rather than redrawn.
