Comparison
OpenSolar vs Pylon
12 differences · 15 identical · 1 could not be read
- Entry price
- Free
- Charged
- Free
- Free tier or trial
- Free tier, no time limit
- Named integrations
- 0
- Verified data points
- 11
- Entry price
- USD 4.00
- Charged
- Per project
- Free tier or trial
- Limited free allowance
- Named integrations
- 8
- Verified data points
- 15
The differences that matter most
- Pricing model free per-project
- Free tier free-forever free-tier-limited
- Entry price 0 USD free of charge 4.00 USD per project
OpenSolar or Pylon?
They differ most on pricing model. OpenSolar publishes Free; Pylon publishes USD 4.00. They use different pricing models, so those figures do not compare directly.
We do not name a winner. Below are 12 differences drawn from the same sourced dataset that powers both product pages.
Verified against the vendor’s own pages.
Pricing
These cannot be compared on a single number
OpenSolar is priced free and Pylon is priced per-project. These are different pricing models, so a single side-by-side figure would be misleading. Each is shown as its vendor states it.
OpenSolar
Free
0 USD free of charge
Free
Pylon
USD 4.00
4.00 USD per project
Per project
Size ceiling: 30 kW (Standard) / 99 kW+ (Pro)
Prices are shown exactly as each vendor writes them and are never converted between currencies.
Where they differ
12 differences, ordered by how much they are likely to matter — pricing transparency first, then capabilities the vendor explicitly confirms or denies.
| Capability | OpenSolar | Pylon |
|---|---|---|
| Solar design & simulation | ||
| Bill of materials generation | Advanced Verified | — Not found |
| Battery sizing and modelling | — Could not read | Advanced Verified |
| Proposals & sales | ||
| E-signature | Yes Verified | — Verified |
| AI & automation | ||
| AI agent / copilot | — Could not read | vendor-claimed Verified |
| Integrations & extensibility | ||
| Named, documented integrations | 0 Verified | 8 Verified |
| Pricing & commercial terms | ||
| Pricing model | free Verified | per-project Verified |
| Free tier | free-forever Verified | free-tier-limited Verified |
| Entry price | 0 USD free of charge Verified | 4.00 USD per project Verified |
| System size cap | — Could not read | 30 kW (Standard) / 99 kW+ (Pro) Verified |
| Market fit & availability | ||
| Geographic availability | global; AU; US; EU Verified | AU; NZ Verified |
| Jurisdictional compliance capability | — Could not read | au-as-nzs-5033 Verified |
| Target buyer | solo-installer; small-installer Verified | small-installer Verified |
Scroll the table sideways to see both products. The capability column stays in place.
Where they are the same 15 data points
- Currency
- Price published
- Lead capture
- Pipeline and deal stages
- Single-line diagram
- Design/proposal tool integration
- Public API
- Product status
- C&I
- Residential
- Utility-scale
- Permit package / plan set generation
- Delivery model
- Web application
- Proposal document generation
Which might suit you
Framed as requirements, not a verdict. Both descriptions come from the same data.
Consider OpenSolar if…
- you need a price you can plan against before talking to sales
- you want to start without a budget approval
- your work is mostly residential
It suits installers of any size who want a full design-to-proposal workflow without a per-seat software line item, and who are comfortable with a platform whose revenue comes from the suppliers sitting inside it. It is not for a buyer who wants the software vendor's incentives to be aligned solely with the installer, nor for one who reads "100% free of charge" as meaning there is nothing on the platform to pay for — there are published paid tiers and pay-per-use imagery.
Full OpenSolar profileConsider Pylon if…
- you need a price you can plan against before talking to sales
- your systems fit within 30 kW (Standard) / 99 kW+ (Pro)
- you need it to connect to tools you already run (8 named)
- AI-assisted workflows matter to you
- your work is mostly residential
It fits small and mid-sized Australian and New Zealand installers with lumpy deal flow, who would rather pay $4 for a project than a monthly seat fee in a quiet month — the vendor adds unlimited users at no extra cost, which makes the economics unusual and genuinely favourable for a spiky pipeline. It is not for a buyer outside Australia and New Zealand who needs the compliance outputs to mean anything locally: the design engine is built around AS/NZS 5033:2021 and Voltage Rise Calculation reports, and high-resolution imagery is only "available in select countries."
Full Pylon profileWhat we could not compare
1 data points could not be read
For these capabilities one vendor’s surface could not be read — a bot block, a dead certificate, a page behind a login. That is a fact about our access, not about the product, so we leave them out of the comparison rather than scoring a blank as a “no”.
- Shading analysis
Frequently asked
What is the main difference between OpenSolar and Pylon?
They differ most on pricing model. In total we recorded 12 verified differences and 15 points where they are the same.
Which costs more, OpenSolar or Pylon?
OpenSolar is priced free and Pylon is priced per-project. These are different pricing models, so a single side-by-side figure would be misleading. Each is shown as its vendor states it.
Is OpenSolar or Pylon better?
We do not name a winner. Both are described from the same verified data, and which suits you depends on your requirements — the differences above are the facts; the choice is yours.
Last verified
Vendors change pricing and features without notice. Check the vendor’s own page before deciding.
This comparison is generated from the feature database, not written by hand. A pair is only published when the data holds at least five stateable differences — which is why 281 candidate pairs were refused. How comparisons are built