In short: Wildwood has about 35,100 people and sits in St. Louis County. Union Electric Co and City of Kirkwood serves different parts of St. Louis County, so your utility depends on your address; their 2024 home averages range from 12.56¢ to 14.35¢ per kWh (EIA). FEMA rates St. Louis County heat waves “very high”. Rooftop solar here makes roughly 1,220 kWh a year per kW of panels by our estimate, which is about average for the U.S..
This page covers what is local to Wildwood: its utility, outage records, sunshine, weather risks and charging. Statewide rules such as net metering, incentives and electrician licensing are in our Missouri energy guide and the wider area is covered in the St. Louis guide.
Wildwood at a glance
- Place: Wildwood, St. Louis County, Missouri; about 35,082 residents (Census Bureau estimate, July 2024).
- Utility: Union Electric Co (investor-owned). Homes paid an average 12.56¢ per kWh in 2024 (EIA-861); the average customer lost 94 minutes of power on normal days and 148 counting major storms, with 0.7 interruptions a year (utility-wide, not just Wildwood).
- Utility: City of Kirkwood (city-owned). Homes paid an average 14.35¢ per kWh in 2024 (EIA-861); the average customer lost 134 minutes of power on normal days and 167 counting major storms, with 1.1 interruptions a year (utility-wide, not just Wildwood).
- Sun: 4.17 kWh per square meter per day on average, from 1.81 in December to 6.42 in June (NASA POWER). Our rough estimate: about 1,220 kWh a year per kW of panels.
- Climate: about 1,500 cooling degree-days and 4,760 heating degree-days a year (base 65°F, NASA POWER), so heating and cooling both matter.
- Top hazards in St. Louis County: heat waves “very high”, hail “very high” and lightning “very high” (FEMA National Risk Index; overall county risk rated “relatively high”).
Your utility and what it means
Union Electric Co is an investor-owned utility and served about 1,095,619 home customers in 2024; its 12.56¢ average was below the 16.09¢ statewide average for July 2026. City of Kirkwood is a city-owned utility and served about 9,084 home customers in 2024; its 14.35¢ average was below the 16.09¢ statewide average for July 2026. Those are utility-wide averages, not a quote for your address; your own bill is the real number.
For reliability, City of Kirkwood reported 134 minutes per customer without major storms in 2024, more than the statewide figure of 106 (EIA-861). Utility-wide numbers hide a lot: a home at the end of a long rural line usually has more outages than the average.
Net metering, export rates and incentives are set at state level and by each utility. Start with the Missouri guide and then ask your utility for its current interconnection steps before you sign anything.
Backup power in Wildwood
- Heat waves (very high): Heat waves strain the grid just when air conditioning matters most. Decide what must stay cool, such as one room, medicine and the fridge, and size backup to that rather than the whole house.
- Hail (very high): Hail is hard on rooftop solar; ask installers about impact-rated panels and your insurer about coverage.
- Short outages: a portable power station covers phones, Wi-Fi, a CPAP and lights; a home battery switches over automatically.
Size your setup with the generator sizing tool and the battery backup calculator, and compare options in backup power. Generator safety (CPSC): outdoors only, at least 20 feet from the house, exhaust away from doors and windows, never in a garage, and battery-powered carbon monoxide alarms inside. A licensed electrician should install any transfer switch, with a permit; see generator installation.
Solar in Wildwood
By our rough estimate each kW of panels makes about 1,220 kWh a year in Wildwood (NASA sunshine data times 365 days times 0.80 for system losses). Valued at Union Electric Co’s 2024 average of 12.56¢, that is about $153 a year per kW if all of it offsets your own use (an estimate, not a promise). Production swings with the seasons: June is the sunniest month at 6.42 and December the dimmest at 1.81, a 3.5-to-1 gap, so a battery or a bigger system helps in winter.
Check your own roof with the solar potential tool, see solar costs and net metering vs net billing, and read the steps in solar installation. Hail and storm exposure are worth raising with installers and your insurer.
Batteries and EV charging
A home battery earns its place when outages are frequent, when your utility pays little for exported solar, or when evening prices are high; compare in home batteries and battery costs. The federal station list shows few or no public chargers listed under Wildwood, so a home charger matters more here: see the EV charging cost calculator and EV charger installation.
Drive on another fuel? See every alternative fuel station in Wildwood: hydrogen, propane, natural gas, E85 ethanol, biodiesel and renewable diesel.
Permits and inspections
Solar, generator transfer switches and EV chargers normally need an electrical permit from the Wildwood building or permitting department, or from St. Louis County if you live outside city limits, and often a utility interconnection approval. We have not verified a local permit page for Wildwood, so check the city and county websites or ask your electrician, who will know the process. Hire only a licensed electrician or installer; the Missouri guide lists the state licensing rules.
Nearby guides
More local guides: St. Louis energy guide, Chesterfield, O’Fallon, St. Peters and St. Charles, or the whole Missouri energy guide.
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Wildwood energy FAQ
Who is my electric company in Wildwood?
Union Electric Co and City of Kirkwood both serve parts of St. Louis County. Which one serves you depends on your street, so check the top of your bill. Their 2024 home price averages differ (Union Electric Co 12.56¢, City of Kirkwood 14.35¢) so it matters for solar math.
How much power will solar make in Wildwood?
About 1,220 kWh a year per kW of panels by our estimate, so a 6 kW system would make roughly 7,320 kWh. Shade, roof direction and tilt change this; run your address through the solar potential tool for a better number.
Is a generator or a battery better for heat waves in St. Louis County?
It depends how long the outage lasts. A battery is quiet, automatic and good for short outages and for pairing with solar; a standby generator keeps going as long as it has fuel, which suits multi-day events. Many homes use a battery for everyday outages and add a generator for the rare long one.
Do I need a permit for solar or a generator in Wildwood?
Almost always an electrical permit for a transfer switch, solar or an EV charger, issued by the city or county where you live. Your licensed electrician or installer normally pulls it. Never connect a generator to your house wiring without a transfer switch.
Sources: EIA Form 861 (2024) for utility prices and outages; NASA POWER climatology (2001 to 2025) for sun and degree-days; FEMA National Risk Index for county hazards; AFDC station locator for public charging; Census Bureau for population. Estimates are ours and are not promises; see our editorial policy. Prices and programs change, so check each program page.