Solar panels in the UK: 2026 cost + SEG guide by town

How solar panels work on UK roofs

A typical UK solar install puts 10 to 14 panels on the roof — enough to cover most of a family’s daytime electricity use. How much they generate over the year depends on which way the roof faces, its angle, and any shading. A south- facing roof in southern England generates roughly 3,400 units of electricity a year; the same system in northern Scotland does about 15% less. Around half of what you generate gets used in the home directly (worth 25–35p per unit you avoid buying), and about half gets sold back to the grid (worth 3 to 15p per unit, depending on your energy supplier).

Adding a battery (typically 5 to 15 kWh) shifts the self-consumption share upward — usable solar at night instead of selling cheap and buying back expensive. The marginal-return point in 2026 sits around the 5 kWh tier: smaller batteries don’t cover an evening peak; larger batteries cost more than the export savings recover.

Browse by town

Each town page below carries live EPC band data for the area + solar-specific context (roof age, common property type, install considerations). Sample size shown next to each town. We’re expanding coverage steadily — if your town isn’t listed yet, the suitability checker below works for every UK address.

Check your specific home

Town pages give the local picture; whether solar pays back on your specific home comes down to which way your roof faces, how much usable space it has, shading from neighbours or trees, and how much electricity you use during the day. Our free pre-survey uses satellite imagery of your specific roof alongside your energy certificate to size a system and estimate payback in about five minutes.

Run a free pre-survey check on your home — number of panels, how much electricity you’d generate each year, payback in years, and a list of qualified installers covering your area.