Your roof,
earning its keep.

A solar system for a typical UK home in 2026 costs £4,000 to £8,000 fully fitted — that's everything (panels, control box, scaffolding, paperwork). Adding a home battery brings the total to £6,500 to £10,500. Prices vary with roof complexity and access. There's no VAT on domestic solar in the UK until 2027, so the sticker price is what you pay.

A typical UK solar system with no battery pays back in 8 to 12 years at 2026 electricity prices — you save 27p for every unit you use directly from the panels, and get paid 3 to 15p for extra electricity sold back to the grid. Adding a battery lets you use more of what you generate and typically cuts payback to 6 to 9 years for households with electricity bills over £800 a year.

For most UK homes, no — rooftop solar counts as a normal home improvement you don't need permission for, as long as the panels don't stick more than 200mm above the roof line and don't cover the highest part of the roof. Listed buildings and Conservation Areas DO need planning permission; check with your local council before you commit.

A typical home battery adds around £3,500 to the install. It stores daytime solar for you to use in the evening, letting you use about 75% of what your panels generate instead of 35% without one. Worth it if your electricity bill is over £800 a year or you're planning an electric car — payback usually 8 to 12 years. Not worth it for low-usage homes.

Not for a first quote. Propertoasty combines your address with satellite imagery of your specific roof to work out how many panels it fits, which direction each roof face points, and how much sun it actually gets over a year. A qualified installer can quote from that remotely. A visit is still needed before the install itself, to confirm fixings and cable routing.