Solar explained to clever people by people who are not trying to be clever
Home Regions
Insights
Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in AB4 (Aberdeenshire)

See if solar pays off for you in Aberdeenshire — price, savings and payback in under a minute (official UK data).

Solar Calculator

Change the settings below to see how costs and savings work for your situation.

System Size

Roof Direction

Battery Storage

Export Value

Your Numbers

Break-even
13.9 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£10,173
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£734
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£8,183
After paying itself off, you're this much ahead

Ready to Get Started?

Get your free quote from Blue Ape Renewables. They'll connect you with MCS-certified installers in your area and handle all the paperwork.

Get Solar Quote →
4.8★ Trustpilot • Octopus Energy trusted partner • MCS certified • No obligation
How we calculate this

Solar generation: Based on typical south-facing roof at 35° angle. We account for weather, dirt, and system losses (14%).

How much you'll use directly:

  • Without battery: You'll use about 40% of what you generate. The rest gets sold back to the grid.
  • With 5 kWh battery: You'll use about 70% (battery stores extra for evening use).
  • With 10 kWh battery: You'll use about 75% (more storage means less exported).
  • Panel-only payback: Bigger systems don’t shorten payback—cost and savings rise together per kW.
  • Battery & payback: Batteries raise self-use and cut bills, but added hardware cost often lengthens break-even at typical UK rates.
  • When a battery can still make sense:
    • Evening-heavy usage patterns
    • Time-of-use tariffs / cheap night rates
    • Low export rate vs. high unit rate
    • Heat pump or EV charging synergy
    • Optional backup/resilience (system-dependent)
    • Lower evening-hour CO₂ vs. grid

Costs: Battery prices are typically £700 per kWh. Export tariffs vary by supplier (usually 5–15p per kWh).

Grid connection: Systems up to about 3.7 kW typically need just a notification (G98). Larger systems may need permission (G99).

These are typical values based on average usage patterns. Your actual results will vary based on your roof, shading, and how you use electricity.

Your area in context

In Northern Scotland, the current unit rate is 27.06p/kWh with a 61.00p/day standing charge. Your postcode’s south-facing sunshine yield is 873 kWh/kW — 58 above the regional median (815).

Read the full story

A typical roof here lands around 5.0 kW, with most eligible homes comfortably fitting within 3–6 kW. Each kilowatt of panels produces roughly 873 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 27.1p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
27.1p/kWh
Standing charge
61.0p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
873 kWh/kW
Export price (baseline)
10p/kWh

Browse the scenarios below. Each battery size has its own expand — open the one that matches your plan (or just explore). For each system size (2–8 kW) we show annual output, how much you use directly, what gets exported, annual benefit, upfront cost, break-even, and a 20-year net. Negative numbers are possible — that’s the honest trade-off when adding more battery than your usage profile justifies.

No battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £734, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 13.9 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1746 kWh 698 kWh 1047 kWh £189 £105 £294 £4,069 13.9 yrs £1,805
3 kW 2619 kWh 1047 kWh 1571 kWh £283 £157 £441 £6,104 13.9 yrs £2,707
4 kW 3491 kWh 1397 kWh 2095 kWh £378 £209 £587 £8,138 13.9 yrs £3,610
5 kW 4364 kWh 1746 kWh 2619 kWh £472 £262 £734 £10,173 13.9 yrs £4,512
6 kW 5237 kWh 2095 kWh 3142 kWh £567 £314 £881 £12,207 13.9 yrs £5,415
7 kW 6110 kWh 2444 kWh 3666 kWh £661 £367 £1,028 £14,242 13.9 yrs £6,317
8 kW 6983 kWh 2793 kWh 4190 kWh £756 £419 £1,175 £16,276 13.9 yrs £7,219

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

3 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £883, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 13.9 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1746 kWh 1047 kWh 698 kWh £283 £70 £353 £6,169 17.5 yrs £896
3 kW 2619 kWh 1571 kWh 1047 kWh £425 £105 £530 £8,204 15.5 yrs £2,394
4 kW 3491 kWh 2095 kWh 1397 kWh £567 £140 £707 £10,238 14.5 yrs £3,892
5 kW 4364 kWh 2619 kWh 1746 kWh £709 £175 £883 £12,273 13.9 yrs £5,390
6 kW 5237 kWh 3142 kWh 2095 kWh £850 £209 £1,060 £14,307 13.5 yrs £6,888
7 kW 6110 kWh 3666 kWh 2444 kWh £992 £244 £1,236 £16,342 13.2 yrs £8,386
8 kW 6983 kWh 4190 kWh 2793 kWh £1,134 £279 £1,413 £18,376 13.0 yrs £9,884

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £958, Upfront: £13,673, Break-even: 14.3 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1746 kWh 1222 kWh 524 kWh £331 £52 £383 £7,569 19.8 yrs £92
3 kW 2619 kWh 1833 kWh 786 kWh £496 £79 £575 £9,604 16.7 yrs £1,888
4 kW 3491 kWh 2444 kWh 1047 kWh £661 £105 £766 £11,638 15.2 yrs £3,683
5 kW 4364 kWh 3055 kWh 1309 kWh £827 £131 £958 £13,673 14.3 yrs £5,479
6 kW 5237 kWh 3666 kWh 1571 kWh £992 £157 £1,149 £15,707 13.7 yrs £7,275
7 kW 6110 kWh 4277 kWh 1833 kWh £1,157 £183 £1,341 £17,742 13.2 yrs £9,071
8 kW 6983 kWh 4888 kWh 2095 kWh £1,323 £209 £1,532 £19,776 12.9 yrs £10,867

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

7.5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £980, Upfront: £15,423, Break-even: 15.7 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1746 kWh 1274 kWh 471 kWh £345 £47 £392 £9,319 23.8 yrs £-1,480
3 kW 2619 kWh 1912 kWh 707 kWh £517 £71 £588 £11,354 19.3 yrs £406
4 kW 3491 kWh 2549 kWh 943 kWh £690 £94 £784 £13,388 17.1 yrs £2,291
5 kW 4364 kWh 3186 kWh 1178 kWh £862 £118 £980 £15,423 15.7 yrs £4,176
6 kW 5237 kWh 3823 kWh 1414 kWh £1,035 £141 £1,176 £17,457 14.8 yrs £6,061
7 kW 6110 kWh 4460 kWh 1650 kWh £1,207 £165 £1,372 £19,492 14.2 yrs £7,946
8 kW 6983 kWh 5097 kWh 1885 kWh £1,379 £189 £1,568 £21,526 13.7 yrs £9,832

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

10 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £995, Upfront: £17,173, Break-even: 17.3 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1746 kWh 1309 kWh 436 kWh £354 £44 £398 £11,069 27.8 yrs £-3,110
3 kW 2619 kWh 1964 kWh 655 kWh £531 £65 £597 £13,104 22.0 yrs £-1,166
4 kW 3491 kWh 2619 kWh 873 kWh £709 £87 £796 £15,138 19.0 yrs £779
5 kW 4364 kWh 3273 kWh 1091 kWh £886 £109 £995 £17,173 17.3 yrs £2,724
6 kW 5237 kWh 3928 kWh 1309 kWh £1,063 £131 £1,194 £19,207 16.1 yrs £4,669
7 kW 6110 kWh 4582 kWh 1527 kWh £1,240 £153 £1,393 £21,242 15.3 yrs £6,613
8 kW 6983 kWh 5237 kWh 1746 kWh £1,417 £175 £1,592 £23,276 14.6 yrs £8,558

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

13.5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,010, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 19.4 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1746 kWh 1344 kWh 402 kWh £364 £40 £404 £13,519 33.5 yrs £-5,441
3 kW 2619 kWh 2016 kWh 602 kWh £546 £60 £606 £15,554 25.7 yrs £-3,437
4 kW 3491 kWh 2688 kWh 803 kWh £727 £80 £808 £17,588 21.8 yrs £-1,433
5 kW 4364 kWh 3360 kWh 1004 kWh £909 £100 £1,010 £19,623 19.4 yrs £572
6 kW 5237 kWh 4033 kWh 1205 kWh £1,091 £120 £1,212 £21,657 17.9 yrs £2,576
7 kW 6110 kWh 4705 kWh 1405 kWh £1,273 £141 £1,414 £23,692 16.8 yrs £4,580
8 kW 6983 kWh 5377 kWh 1606 kWh £1,455 £161 £1,616 £25,726 15.9 yrs £6,585

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 2,035, battery £/kWh = 700.

Figures are illustrative and use the same method as the calculator above. For exact results, adjust your roof direction, tariff, and usage in the calculator.

Insights for AB4

Figures below are tailored to AB4 — click through for full league tables.

Solar Payback Index Rank #2285 of 2997
12.0 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£677 /yr • £8,138 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #2766 of 2997
32.9% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£223 fixed • ~£677 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
27.06p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
61.00p/day
Local Sunshine
873kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~873 kWh per year. A typical home uses ~2,700 kWh per year.
Typical System Size
5.0kW
For houses & bungalows in this area

Local Property Data

Property Types

No EPC data available for this outcode

Coverage

Aberdeenshire (100%)

Areas Covered

Central Buchan, Peterhead North and Rattray, Banff and District, Ellon and District, Troup, Fraserburgh and District, Peterhead South and Cruden, Mid Formartine + 3 more

Data Sources & Assumptions

Solar yield: PVGIS (EU Joint Research Centre), January 2025 data

Electricity rates: Ofgem price cap, Q4 2025

Installation costs: MCS certified installer data, March 2025

Property data: EPC open data (Open Government Licence), aggregated

All estimates are typical values. Actual results vary based on your specific situation, roof characteristics, and usage patterns.

Compare nearby areas

Nearby in Northern Scotland

AB42 (Aberdeenshire)
≈13.9 km away
Local sunshine: ~894 kWh/kWp · +2% vs AB4
AB41 (Aberdeenshire)
≈17.2 km away
Local sunshine: ~873 kWh/kWp · +0% vs AB4
AB43 (Aberdeenshire)
≈17.7 km away
Local sunshine: ~891 kWh/kWp · +2% vs AB4
AB53 (Aberdeenshire)
≈22.4 km away
Local sunshine: ~862 kWh/kWp · -1% vs AB4
AB44 (Aberdeenshire)
≈30.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~852 kWh/kWp · -2% vs AB4
AB45 (Aberdeenshire)
≈32.2 km away
Local sunshine: ~848 kWh/kWp · -3% vs AB4

Similar sunshine across the UK

LL56 (Gwynedd)
~873 kWh/kWp · +0% vs AB4
BT80 (Mid Ulster)
~873 kWh/kWp · -0% vs AB4
SA9 (Powys)
~873 kWh/kWp · +0% vs AB4