Sales Mode Variables

Variables are dynamic fields you can insert into your proposal templates in Sales Mode. When a proposal is generated, Aurora automatically fills in each variable with real project data — design specs, financing details, customer information, and more — so your proposals are always accurate and personalized without manual updates.

This article covers:

How to add a variable to a proposal template
A complete list of all available variables, organized by category

📘 Variables can only be added by admins in the proposal template editor. Sales reps see the populated values when they present or share a proposal.

How to add a variable

To add a variable to your proposal template:

Go to Database > Proposal templates
Select a proposal template or create a new one, then click Edit
Under Blocks, drag and drop a Text box into your template. Hover over an existing text box where you want to insert a variable — the toolbar will appear at the top of the text box.
Select Variable from the right side of the toolbar.
Use the search bar to find a specific variable, or scroll through the list by category.
Select the variable — it will appear as a tag in your text box.
For variables with sub-options (such as AC vs. DC system size), a configuration panel will appear. Select the appropriate option.
Save your template. When a proposal is generated, Aurora replaces each variable tag with the corresponding project data.

💡 Tip: Before publishing a template, preview a proposal with real project data to confirm all variables populate correctly. If a variable shows as blank, check that the relevant data (financing, storage, etc.) is configured in the project.

All available variables

The variables below are organized by category. Select a category to jump to it:

Design

AC System Size: The system size of the design in Alternating Current (AC), measured in kilowatts (kW).
Design System Size: The system size of the design.
- Note: Use the sub-option selector to choose AC or DC system size. If DC, you can also select whether the variable should display the new system only, the combined system (new + existing), or the existing system only.
Energy Offset: The percentage of energy consumption offset by solar energy production within the first year after installation.
- Note: Use the sub-option selector to choose whether the variable should display the new system only, the combined system, or the existing system only.
Groundmount Count: The total number of ground-mounted arrays in the design.
Groundmount Name: The name of the modules used in any ground-mounted arrays.
Inverter Manufacturer: A comma-separated list of inverter manufacturers used in the design.
Inverter Name: A comma-separated list of inverter model names used in the design.
Module Count: The total number of modules in the design.
Module Manufacturer: The name of the module manufacturer.
Module Name: The name (model) of the module.

Environmental

Barrels of Oil Saved: The estimated CO₂ emissions equivalent, expressed as barrels of oil, that the solar system offsets over its lifetime.
Trees Planted: The number of trees that would need to be planted to produce an equivalent reduction in CO₂ emissions.
Vehicles Per Year: The equivalent number of vehicles removed from the road per year based on the system's projected CO₂ reduction.

Financing

These variables apply to the financing option selected for the project. For TPO-specific guidance, see How to Optimize Sales Mode Proposals for Third-Party Ownership (TPO).

Escalation Rate: The rate by which financing payments increase over time. Common in third-party ownership (TPO) and lease arrangements, this specifies how much the payment amount grows each year over the financing term.
Finance Payback Period: The number of years it will take for the system to produce a positive return on investment.
Financing Name: The name of the financing option selected for the project.
Interest Rate: The interest rate associated with the selected financing option.
IRR (Internal Rate of Return): The interest rate at which the net present value of all cash flows — both costs and savings — from the solar project equals zero. A higher IRR indicates a more financially attractive investment.
Levelized Cost of Electricity (LCOE): The effective cost per kilowatt-hour of energy generated by the solar system over its lifetime, accounting for total system costs and total lifetime energy production. Useful for comparing solar against utility rates.
Lifetime Savings (Nominal): The total projected savings over the life of the solar project, expressed as a nominal dollar amount — that is, without adjusting for inflation or the time value of money.
Lifetime Savings (NPV): The total projected savings over the life of the solar project, adjusted to present-day dollars using the discount rate configured in Financing Settings. NPV accounts for the time value of money and is a more conservative measure than nominal lifetime savings.
Loan Principal: The principal amount of the loan, in the project currency.
Post-solar average bill savings, with financing (first year): The average monthly utility bill savings in the first post-solar year, net of costs associated with the selected financing option.
Post-solar average bill, with financing (first year): The average monthly utility bill in the first post-solar year, including remaining utility charges and the cost of the selected financing option.
Prepayment Amount: The total prepayment amount associated to the selected financing product. This will reduce the financing amount at a time specified by the financing product.
Solar Rate: The price per kilowatt-hour (kWh) that the homeowner pays for the electricity generated by the solar system. This applies to third-party ownership (TPO) agreements.

Homeowner

Customer Address: The street address of the customer.
Customer Email: The email address of the customer.
Customer First Name: The first name of the customer.
Customer Last Name: The last name of the customer.
Customer Phone Number: The phone number of the customer.

Incentives

Estimated Value of ITC: The estimated value of the federal Investment Tax Credit (ITC) for the project.
Incentive Name: A formatted list of all incentives applied to the project, by name only.
Incentive Name and Amount: A formatted list of all incentives applied to the project, showing each incentive's name and dollar amount.
Incentive Name and Value: A formatted list of all incentives applied to the project, showing each incentive's name and value (may differ from amount depending on incentive type).
Total Value of Incentives: The combined total value of all incentives applied to the design.

Loan

Down Payment: The total down payment amount for the installation, in the project currency.
Loan Duration (Months): The total length of the financing term, expressed in months.
Useful Project Life: The expected lifespan of the solar system (modules), typically expressed in years. This value is used in financial calculations such as payback period and lifetime savings.

Pricing

Annual Degradation Factor: The annual rate (%) at which the solar system's output is expected to decline over time due to panel aging.
Base PPW: The price per watt (PPW) of the solar system only, before adders, storage, dealer fees, or incentives.
Discount Rate: The rate used to convert future cash flows to present-day dollars. Configured in Financing Settings and used in NPV calculations.
Gross PPW with Storage: The system PPW including storage and dealer fee, before incentives or discounts.
Gross PPW without Storage: The system PPW excluding storage, plus dealer fee, before incentives or discounts.
Gross Price before Incentives: The total system price including storage and fees, before any incentives are applied.
Gross Price before Incentives and Discounts: The total system price including storage and fees, before incentives and discounts are applied.
Gross Price with Storage: The gross system price with storage included.
Gross Price without Storage: The gross system price excluding storage.
Net Cost: The loan principal minus the cumulative value of all applied incentives.
System PPW with Storage: The net price per watt including adders, discounts, applicable incentives, and storage.
System Price with Storage: The total system price with storage included, after adders, discounts, and incentives.
System Price without Storage: The total system price excluding storage, after adders, discounts, and incentives.

Project

Current Date: The date on which the proposal is generated.
Expert Model Accepted Date: The date and time when the expert design was accepted via Aurora's Expert Design Service. This variable will not display if Expert Design Service was not used on the project.
Owner Company Name: The name of your company or organization, as configured in your account settings.
Owner Email: The email address of the project owner (the Aurora user who created the project).
Owner First Name: The first name of the user who generates the proposal.
Owner Last Name: The last name of the user who generates the proposal.
Owner Phone Number: The phone number of the project owner.
Project Name: The name of the project as entered in Aurora.
Tenant Address: The address of the tenant, if different from the project owner.
Tenant Name: The name of the tenant.

Storage

These variables only populate when a battery storage system is included in the design.

Average Daily Surplus: The average daily surplus energy for a solar system in the first year, with or without storage.
Average Grid Use: The average daily energy imported from the grid in the first year, with or without storage.
Battery Capacity: The total usable capacity of all batteries in the design, measured in kilowatt-hours (kWh).
Battery Count: The total quantity of batteries included in the design.
Battery Inverter Count: The total quantity of battery inverters included in the design.
Battery Inverter Manufacturer: The manufacturer name of the battery inverter selected in the storage design.
Battery Inverter Name: The model name of the battery inverter selected in the storage design.
Battery Manufacturer: The manufacturer name of the battery selected in the storage design.
Battery Name: The model name of the battery selected in the storage design.
Battery Operating Mode: The storage operating mode of the battery — for example, self-consumption, backup, or time-of-use optimization.
Battery Output: The discharge rate (power output) of the battery, measured in kilowatts (kW).
Storage Backup Allocation (Percentage): The percentage of storage capacity reserved for backup power, when homeowners are primarily self-consuming stored electricity.
Storage Backup Duration: The estimated number of hours or days the storage system can power the home during an outage, based on the backup allocation and selected appliance load profile.
- Appliances: The number of days a homeowner can expect their storage to last, powering appliances during an outage event. This value is only populated when the selected battery operating mode is Backup.
- Essentials: The number of days a homeowner can expect their storage to last, powering only essential electricity loads during an outage event. This value is only populated when the selected battery operating mode is Backup.
- Whole Home: The number of days a homeowner can expect their storage to last, powering their entire home during an outage event. This value is only populated when the selected battery operating mode is Backup.
Storage Cost: The total price of all batteries and inverters included in the storage configuration.

Utility and Billing

Annual Consumption — One Year (Post-Solar): The total annual energy consumption for the first post-solar year, accounting for the updated consumption profile after energy optimizations are applied.
Annual Consumption — One Year (Pre-Solar): The total annual energy consumption for the first pre-solar year, measured in kWh.
Annual Production: The estimated energy production of the solar system in its first year, measured in kWh.
- Note: Use the sub-option selector to choose whether the variable should display the new system only, the combined system, or the existing system only.
Annual Savings: The total utility bill savings in the first year after going solar.
Average Monthly Utility Bill: The average monthly utility bill in the first post-solar year, with or without storage.
Average Monthly Utility Fixed Charges (First Year): The first-year utility rate fixed charges, averaged over 12 months.
Export Compensation (Germany): The value of all grid exports multiplied by the NSC rate. Uses the German export compensation credit model.
Grid Export: The total annual energy exported to the utility grid in the first post-solar year (kWh), before any netting or true-up adjustments.
Grid Use: The total annual energy imported from the utility grid in the first post-solar year (kWh) that is not covered by real-time solar production.
Net Surplus Compensation (Year 1): The dollar value of compensation received for excess generation after annual consumption is offset in the first post-solar year, based on standard surplus compensation models (typically avoided-cost or wholesale rates).
Post-Solar Annual Utility Bill: The estimated total utility bill for the first full post-solar year, measured in kWh.
Post-solar Average Monthly Bill Savings %: The average monthly utility bill savings percentage for the first year after going solar.
Post-Solar Cost per kWh: The forecasted cost per kWh after solar installation.
Post-Solar Final Year Monthly Bill: The estimated average monthly utility bill in the final year of the project, if the client goes solar.
Post-Solar Lifetime Utility Bill: The total estimated utility bill over the project lifetime, after going solar.
Post-Solar Monthly Average Bill Savings (First Year): The average monthly utility bill savings over the first post-solar year.
Post-Solar Monthly Bill: The average monthly utility bill for the first year after going solar.
Post-Solar Utility Rate Name: The utility rate of the home or building after going solar. This may be the same as the pre-solar rate or a different time-of-use or export rate.
Pre-Solar Cost per kWh: The estimated cost per kWh before solar installation.
Pre-Solar Final Year Monthly Bill: The estimated average monthly utility bill in the final year of the project, if the client does not go solar.
Pre-Solar Lifetime Utility Bill: The total estimated utility bill over the project lifetime, before solar.
Pre-Solar Monthly Bill: The average monthly utility bill for the first year before going solar.
Pre-Solar Present Annual Utility Bill: The current annual utility bill before solar, based on the consumption profile.
Pre-Solar Utility Name: The name of the utility company associated with the pre-solar utility rate.
Pre-Solar Utility Rate Name: The current utility rate of the home or building before going solar, as defined in the consumption profile.
Self-Consumption: The percentage of total annual solar production that is directly consumed on-site (rather than exported to the grid).
- Note: Use the sub-option selector to choose whether the variable should display the percentage with or without storage.
Self-Sufficiency: The percentage of total annual energy consumption that is covered by solar production or battery storage, rather than grid import.
- Note: Use the sub-option selector to choose whether the variable should display the percentage with or without storage.
Utility Bill (First Year): The total estimated utility bill for the first post-solar year.
- Note: Use the sub-option selector to choose whether the variable should display the percentage with or without storage.
Utility Rate Escalation: The expected annual percentage increase in utility rates, used in financial projections.
Year 1 Annual Storage Savings: The annual savings from battery storage in the first post-solar year.

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