How long is a piece of string?
We know that’s not very helpful but the price of solar panels is not an easy question to answer as the variables involved affect every stage of an install.
So, it’s best to offer a few averages with the caveat that the numbers will change from home to home.
For the average installation, for a three-bed semi-detached house with four occupants, will set you back £6,500 – without battery storage.
That would include an inverter, wiring and panels but, with technology improving year on year, that price will certainly come down.
How much does a solar energy system cost?
A full system would cover much more than panels though. It would include an inverter and some battery storage to ensure you can use, or sell, the energy you generate.
So:
Price Of Solar Panels
To estimate the price of your panels you first need to work out how much energy your home is using … and ensure you are over-producing a little.
As we have said, we will use averages to keep things simple.
A Type 1, 104 Half Cell Monocrystalline panel that is 1.7 x 1.1 metres will produce 405W and generally retails for between £100 and £150.
These panels offer an efficiency rating up to 24%, and they function at between 98% and 84% of that over 25 years.
So, based on that, we would say that panels alone would cost:
3 kWh System – 8 Panels – £800 – £1,200
4 kWh System – 10 Panels – £1000 – £1,500
5 kWh System – 13 – 14 Panels – £1300/1950 – £1400/2100
6 kWh System – 15 – 16 Panels – £1500/2250 – £1600/£2400
Price of Solar Inverters
Unless you are happy to use a DC supply, which will power about 6 things in your house, you will need an inverter – actually, the system won’t work without an inverter.
Inverters convert the DC electricity that the panels produce into AC electricity that you can use throughout the home.
The most efficient kind of inverters are micro inverters as each unit connects directly to the solar panel. Unfortunately, this means they are exposed to the elements, so they are more susceptible to damage.
Microinverters generally cost £100 – £150 which may sound cheap but when you need one for every panel the cost soon starts to ramp up.
String inverters are the kind that are generally used on Solar installations as they can handle multiple panels at once – and they can be stored inside.
String inverters can cost between £500 – £1000 depending on the size of the system.
The only problem with string inverters is that, if a panel is shaded or broken it will produce less power than the other panels, and the system will only perform at the level of that shaded/broken panel.
This is where power optimisers come in. They can be attached to the low performing panels to bring its output inline with the other panels in the system.
Power optimisers cost around £40 and you will only need them for low performing panels in your system.
EV Charger
If you are jumping feet first into the green revolution and have an electric vehicle it’s going to need charging.
An EV charger is very much an ‘add on’ to any solar energy system but it’s certainly one worth having, especially as they are pretty cost effective.
Charging your car at home would be free, or at least just the price of a kWh if you are using the grid, charging at a charging station adds an extra 15% VAT … then there will be extra costs so the station makes a profit.
A standard 7kW home fast charger would cost around £500 – £1,000 to buy and install.
However, you can spend 1000s if you are looking for multi-chargers or something with a much bigger power output.
So, what is the average cost of Solar Panels for different property types?
Once again there are a lot of factors that would affect this.
If you lived in a one bedroom bungalow but had the electric heating on all the time, used the tumble dryer every day and had a front room full of vivariums, you’d be using a massive amount of electricity.
But, you probably don’t live like that so we’ll work on average usage, in average homes, with an average amount of occupants.
1 Bedroom House may get away with 3 panels, at £150 each. So, we would be looking at £450 for the panels.
1-2 Bedroom House would need twice as many panels so they would cost £900.
A 3 bedroom home would need a covering of about 20 metres squared, so about 10 panels, at a cost of £1500
And a 4 bedroom home with 12 panels would be spending £1800.
| Home | Number Of Panels | Price | Space |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 bedroom house | 3 | £450 | 6 m² |
| 1 – 2 bedroom house | 6 | £900 | 12 m² |
| 3 bedroom house | 10 | £1500 | 20 m² |
| 4 bedroom house | 12 | £1800 | 24 m² |
Though, it’s worth noting this is the price for the panels only, it does not include fitting, labour, monitoring, inverters, batteries or anything else.
When you add in the whole cost the figures, for a system with 1 or 2 batteries, the average would be:
| Home | Number Of Panels | Cost | Batteries |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 bedroom house | 3 | £5000 | 1 |
| 1-2 bedroom house | 6 | £6000 | 1 |
| 3 bedroom house | 10 | £13,000 | 2 |
| 4 bedroom house | 12 | £14,500 | 2 |
What factors can affect Solar Panel Costs in the UK?
We have looked at average cost here for various different parts of a solar energy system, but there can be several factors that affect costs for equipment, fitting and maintenance.
So, let’s take a look at the variables.
1.) Size of your system
Panels are very varied, coming in many sizes, quality and power output. The bigger your energy requirements, the more pancakes you are going to have to install and that will add to the cost of not just equipment but labour also.
An average system size of 4kW will cost around £6,000 to install but an 8kW system would be a good chunk more.
2.) Type of panels
Yep, not only are they different sizes, quality and power output, there are also different types of panels.
These are monocrystalline, polycrystalline, and thin-film solar panels.
Monocrystalline panels have the highest efficiency, and are pretty much the only kind of panels used in domestic installations in the UK.
Although monocrystalline panels are more expensive, costing about £1 to £1.50 per watt, you would need many more polycrystalline to produce the same power.
3. Installation Process
You could install the system yourself – but unless you are a roofer and an electrician we can not stress enough what a bad idea that is.
Solar Panels are large and cumbersome, so only highly skilled people, with a good scaffolding set up., should be carrying them up ladders and lifting them across roofs.
So, we would suggest talking to a well established, MCS registered company about fitting your system
If you are looking to sign up to an SEG with your energy supplier you must have a professional to certify your solar panel system.
Another advantage to using an MCS registered installer is the system will have all the certificates and warranties it should have, making it easier to sell should you be looking to move on.
4. Adding parts to your system
As you get to know your system you may want to start adding in different components or improvements – like extra batteries, optimisers for shaded panels or an EV charger.
You may find you need to ‘pigeon proof’ your panels if you find out feathered friends are congregating on your roof – this could also lead to you needing to install some kind of cleaning system.
5.) Location and labour
If you have your system installed in London, or somewhere remote like the Scottish highlands, you can expect to be paying more for installation and labour than you would in, say, Sheffield as pricing and the time it takes to do the job will be very different.
In the UK you can expect to pay between £300 and £500 a day for labour.
So, when will I break even on my Solar Panel investment?
People are surprised to find that solar panels have a life span of many decades. There are no moving parts to break and, as they are generally on roofs, damage is rare.
Most reputable companies will offer a 25 year performance warranty on PV Solar Panels – so you can be sure they’ll be good to go for many years.
Batteries and inverters also have long lifespans – generally 10 years or more.
So, we calculate, including replacement and maintenance costs, most systems will break even at 10 – 11 years.
Your solar quote should come with a projection of the savings you will make, and that will have been independently verified by the EVPS.
Typically, at current electricity prices, a 10 panel system, with one battery, would cost around £13,000 and, over 25 years, would average saving of £40,420.
Should you buy cheap solar panels?
You’d expect us to straight up say ‘No!’ here, but that would be slightly misleading.
Polycrystalline panels are cheaper than monocrystalline ones as they are easy to make. The downside is they are nowhere near as efficient so you would need many more panels for the same power output.
If you have the space it can be a solution but it wouldn’t work for most domestic installations.
Also, cheaper monocrystalline panels may be made from inferior materials and therefore would be more likely to sustain damage or start to develop faults.
Do solar panels increase the value of your home?
Much like any home improvement that can lead to a drop in day to day costs is going to increase the sales potential of your property.
In the world of solar, estate agents Zillow commissioned a report in 2019 that found house prices increased by up to 4.1% when they included a solar energy system. We can imagine that the last 3 years of fuel scarcity, rising bills and cost of living have increased that percentage quite a bit.
Are there any grants available?
Simple answer – ‘No’ … complicated answer … read on!
0% VAT on Domestic Installations.
You will not be charged VAT on any Solar Energy installations in the UK.
In 2022 the UK Government introduced zero-rate VAT as part of Zero Carbon. This is currently in place until March 2027.
Energy Company Obligation (ECO4) scheme
ECO4 could help you to apply for solar panel grants anytime over the next four years – depending on your circumstances, you could get access to fully-funded solar panels for home installation.
The LA flex scheme
This scheme is an extension of ECO4.
LA Flex is short for Local Authority Flexible Eligibility. Which means that you can apply to your local authority to secure a loan for domestic solar installations.
The Green Deal
The Green Deal started as a government run scheme but thanks to austerity and such like it wasn’t sustainable.
However, private investors the Green Deal Finance Company now offer loans for certain energy-efficient home improvements. Which? Tell us you can still get loans to fund energy-efficient changes in your home and pay the money back through your energy bills.
The Smart Export Guarantee (SEG)
If you are wanting to sell energy back into the national grid you will need to set up an SEG with your energy provider.
The price you will get per kWh will be set by them and will be significantly less than the price you pay them for your energy – but that extra energy will just go to waste if you don;t have an SEG so it’s certainly worth it.
