Semper Solaris

Semper Solaris has built one of the largest veteran-owned residential solar practices in California, with the company positioning itself as the number-one volume residential solar and battery installer in San Diego and operating from a San Diego County base that extends across Southern California and into multiple additional state markets. Founded by a Marine Corps veteran, the company carries the kind of brand identity that resonates with a meaningful share of the California homeowner market, and it has translated that identity into substantial scale — the firm's San Diego Google profile carries a 4.8 rating across nearly 1,500 reviews, one of the larger verified review bases for any solar installer in California.

What stood out is the dual licensing structure. Semper Solaris carries California Contractors State License Board licenses #978152 and #1083681, which is unusual in residential solar and reflects a deliberate decision to run both a C-46 solar contracting practice and a C-39 roofing practice under the same roof. The company is also an Owens Corning Platinum Preferred Contractor on the roofing side — the manufacturer's top installer tier — which means homeowners replacing a roof in conjunction with solar can have both scopes completed under a single contract with manufacturer-backed roofing and panel/battery warranties layered together. Tesla Powerwall and Enphase battery storage round out the equipment offering.

Our research team did note that Semper Solaris operates with scale that occasionally translates into the kind of customer-experience friction that smaller installers avoid. Prospective customers should ask which specific install crew will be assigned to their project, whether the same project manager will own the job from sales handoff through final inspection, and how warranty truck-rolls are dispatched across the company's multi-county service area. We also recommend buyers compare an itemized Semper Solaris quote against at least one regional independent installer, since the company's marketing and brand operations come with overhead that smaller competitors may avoid.

The operating fundamentals — dual contractor licensing, Tesla and Enphase certifications, Owens Corning Platinum status, deep California operating history, and a substantial verified review base — give Semper Solaris a credible third-place position behind Option One Solar and Five Star Solar in our 2026 California ranking.

With a composite score of 75.0 out of 100, Semper Solaris holds the third-ranked position in California for 2026.