Rooftop photovoltaics have become a prominent solution for the development and utilization of distributed energy due to the advantages of cleanliness, high efficiency, low cost, land conservation, and easy installation. Under the background of promoting the Carbon Peaking and Carbon Neutrality Goals in China, evaluating the power generation efficiency and carbon reduction potential of rooftop photovoltaic systems in low rise communities was essential for supporting the construction of the low-carbon community. The study comprehensively considered the dynamic shading effect of tree growth on photovoltaic panels, established a combination model of trees and photovoltaic panels. Beijing, Xi'an, and Shenyang were selected as representative cities, and Sophora japonica was chosen as the typical tree species. Key parameters including the height of photovoltaic panels above the ground, the vertical distance between trees and photovoltaic panels, and the age of trees were used to calculate the cumulative rooftop photovoltaic power generation and carbon reduction under the joint action of trees and photovoltaic panels in simulated years. A comparative analysis was conducted on the power generation efficiency of low rise community rooftop photovoltaic systems and the carbon reduction contribution of tree-panel system through the calculation results. The results demonstrated that during the first photovoltaic panel lifecycle, the tree-panel communities in three representative cities were not significantly affected, nevertheless, the impact of trees on the photovoltaic panels increased patently in the later stage of the lifecycle. Among the 84 parametric scenarios, household electricity satisfaction rates attained 40.5%, 47.6%, and 29.8% in Beijing, Xi’an, and Shenyang respectively. When the height of the photovoltaic panel above the ground exceeded 6.5 meters, the vertical distance exceeded 6 meters, and the age of trees was within 30 years, the photovoltaic panels in the northwest and north China regions basically meet the needs of users, simultaneously, the tree-panel matching was ideal. However, in the northeast region, the satisfaction was merely enhanced when the height of the photovoltaic panel above the ground exceeded 6.5 meters, the vertical distance exceeded 5 meters, and the age of the trees was within 20 years. Compared with the northwest and north China regions, the northeast region is less suitable for planning tree-panel communities. Additionally, in all settings, the carbon reduction contribution of photovoltaic panels surpassed 80%, and the carbon sequestration brought by planting trees in three regions was insufficient to offset the reduced carbon reduction of photovoltaic systems. These findings provided important references for the rooftop photovoltaic configuration and tree planting planning of low rise urban and rural communities in northern China.