Solar Savings Calculator
Estimate the savings from installing solar panels.
Battery Storage Guide
How home batteries work and whether they pay off.
SEG Export Tariffs
Get paid for the solar power you export to the grid.
Solar Payback Guidance
How long solar takes to pay for itself in the UK.
Green Energy Guide
Renewable tariffs and greener home energy choices.
Installation cost ranges used in our solar tools are taken from published UK datasets and carry the data date on the tool page. See the methodology behind these figures.
What do you need help with?
- Estimate solar bill savingsIndicative saving from self-consumption
- Estimate solar paybackHow long an installation takes to repay
- Estimate export incomeSmart Export Guarantee payments
- Assess a home batteryReturn over the battery's working life
- Understand battery basicsSizing, chemistry and realistic benefits
Solar panels and battery storage: the essentials
Three different numbers, often confused
Solar economics involve three distinct figures. Bill savings come from electricity you generate and use yourself. Export income comes from surplus units sold back under the Smart Export Guarantee, paid at an export rate that is usually far below your import rate. Total financial return combines both against the installed cost. Quotations that blur these together tend to overstate the result.
Generation depends on your roof, not a national average
Output varies with location, roof orientation, pitch, shading, panel specification and how well the system is commissioned. We do not publish a single national generation figure and treat any quotation that relies on one as a warning sign. Every calculator result on this site is indicative and states the assumptions it used.
What a battery actually earns
A battery can pay in three separate ways: storing your own solar generation for evening use, charging cheaply on a time-of-use tariff and discharging at peak, and providing backup power. Those benefits are not additive in every household, and the battery ROI calculator keeps them separate rather than summing best cases.
Checking a quotation before you sign
Ask for the assumed annual generation and where it came from, the export rate assumed, the inverter and battery warranty terms, the workmanship warranty and who honours it, and whether prices include VAT. Our quotation guidance covers the checks that most often reveal an inflated payback claim.
Guides in this topic
- Home battery storage guide — How home batteries work, what they cost and where the savings come from.
- SEG export tariffs explained — What suppliers pay for exported solar electricity under the Smart Export Guarantee.
Calculators for this topic
- Solar savings calculator — Estimate the electricity bill saving a solar system could produce.
- Solar payback calculator — Estimate how long a solar system takes to repay its installation cost.
- SEG earnings calculator — Estimate export income separately from bill savings.
- Battery storage savings calculator — Compare battery sizes and tariffs to estimate an annual saving.
- Battery ROI calculator — A 15-year view of battery return, payback and degradation assumptions.
- Independent solar quotation checker — Screen a solar quotation against published UK cost and warranty benchmarks.
PowerGuardian research and data
- Solar Savings Report 2026 — PowerGuardian research on UK solar costs and savings.
- Battery Storage Report 2026 — PowerGuardian research on home battery economics.
Official sources
- Ofgem — Smart Export Guarantee — How SEG works and which suppliers must offer it.
- MCS — Certification scheme normally required for SEG eligibility.
Your next step
Run your own figures before you compare installer quotations.
Estimate solar paybackCommon questions on this topic
Last reviewed 13 August 2026
Written and maintained by the PowerGuardian Energy Analyst Team. The PowerGuardian editorial and data team tracks UK energy markets, Ofgem price cap reviews and household tariff data. We monitor wholesale gas, electricity and gas-storage feeds daily so the figures published here reflect the current market rather than an older cap period.
PowerGuardian publishes independent guidance for UK households. We do not provide regulated legal or financial advice. Read our editorial policy.
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