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Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in B34 (Birmingham)

See if solar pays off for you in Birmingham — 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
13.3 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£8,138
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£613
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£7,187
After paying itself off, you're this much ahead

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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 Midlands, the current unit rate is 25.64p/kWh with a 53.00p/day standing charge. Your postcode’s south-facing sunshine yield is 943 kWh/kW — 1 above the regional median (942).

Read the full story

A typical roof here lands around 4.0 kW, with most eligible homes comfortably fitting within 3–6 kW. Each kilowatt of panels produces roughly 943 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 25.6p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
25.6p/kWh
Standing charge
53.0p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
943 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: £766, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 13.3 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1886 kWh 754 kWh 1131 kWh £193 £113 £307 £4,069 13.3 yrs £2,061
3 kW 2828 kWh 1131 kWh 1697 kWh £290 £170 £460 £6,104 13.3 yrs £3,092
4 kW 3771 kWh 1508 kWh 2263 kWh £387 £226 £613 £8,138 13.3 yrs £4,122
5 kW 4714 kWh 1886 kWh 2828 kWh £483 £283 £766 £10,173 13.3 yrs £5,153
6 kW 5656 kWh 2263 kWh 3394 kWh £580 £339 £920 £12,207 13.3 yrs £6,183
7 kW 6599 kWh 2640 kWh 3960 kWh £677 £396 £1,073 £14,242 13.3 yrs £7,214
8 kW 7542 kWh 3017 kWh 4525 kWh £774 £453 £1,226 £16,276 13.3 yrs £8,244

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: £914, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 13.4 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1886 kWh 1131 kWh 754 kWh £290 £75 £365 £6,169 16.9 yrs £1,141
3 kW 2828 kWh 1697 kWh 1131 kWh £435 £113 £548 £8,204 15.0 yrs £2,761
4 kW 3771 kWh 2263 kWh 1508 kWh £580 £151 £731 £10,238 14.0 yrs £4,381
5 kW 4714 kWh 2828 kWh 1886 kWh £725 £189 £914 £12,273 13.4 yrs £6,002
6 kW 5656 kWh 3394 kWh 2263 kWh £870 £226 £1,096 £14,307 13.0 yrs £7,622
7 kW 6599 kWh 3960 kWh 2640 kWh £1,015 £264 £1,279 £16,342 12.8 yrs £9,242
8 kW 7542 kWh 4525 kWh 3017 kWh £1,160 £302 £1,462 £18,376 12.6 yrs £10,863

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: £987, Upfront: £13,673, Break-even: 13.8 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1886 kWh 1320 kWh 566 kWh £338 £57 £395 £7,569 19.2 yrs £330
3 kW 2828 kWh 1980 kWh 848 kWh £508 £85 £592 £9,604 16.2 yrs £2,246
4 kW 3771 kWh 2640 kWh 1131 kWh £677 £113 £790 £11,638 14.7 yrs £4,161
5 kW 4714 kWh 3300 kWh 1414 kWh £846 £141 £987 £13,673 13.8 yrs £6,076
6 kW 5656 kWh 3960 kWh 1697 kWh £1,015 £170 £1,185 £15,707 13.3 yrs £7,991
7 kW 6599 kWh 4619 kWh 1980 kWh £1,184 £198 £1,382 £17,742 12.8 yrs £9,907
8 kW 7542 kWh 5279 kWh 2263 kWh £1,354 £226 £1,580 £19,776 12.5 yrs £11,822

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: £1,010, Upfront: £15,423, Break-even: 15.3 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1886 kWh 1376 kWh 509 kWh £353 £51 £404 £9,319 23.1 yrs £-1,243
3 kW 2828 kWh 2065 kWh 764 kWh £529 £76 £606 £11,354 18.7 yrs £761
4 kW 3771 kWh 2753 kWh 1018 kWh £706 £102 £808 £13,388 16.6 yrs £2,765
5 kW 4714 kWh 3441 kWh 1273 kWh £882 £127 £1,010 £15,423 15.3 yrs £4,769
6 kW 5656 kWh 4129 kWh 1527 kWh £1,059 £153 £1,211 £17,457 14.4 yrs £6,772
7 kW 6599 kWh 4817 kWh 1782 kWh £1,235 £178 £1,413 £19,492 13.8 yrs £8,776
8 kW 7542 kWh 5506 kWh 2036 kWh £1,412 £204 £1,615 £21,526 13.3 yrs £10,780

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: £1,024, Upfront: £17,173, Break-even: 16.8 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1886 kWh 1414 kWh 471 kWh £363 £47 £410 £11,069 27.0 yrs £-2,875
3 kW 2828 kWh 2121 kWh 707 kWh £544 £71 £615 £13,104 21.3 yrs £-812
4 kW 3771 kWh 2828 kWh 943 kWh £725 £94 £819 £15,138 18.5 yrs £1,251
5 kW 4714 kWh 3535 kWh 1178 kWh £906 £118 £1,024 £17,173 16.8 yrs £3,313
6 kW 5656 kWh 4242 kWh 1414 kWh £1,088 £141 £1,229 £19,207 15.6 yrs £5,376
7 kW 6599 kWh 4949 kWh 1650 kWh £1,269 £165 £1,434 £21,242 14.8 yrs £7,439
8 kW 7542 kWh 5656 kWh 1886 kWh £1,450 £189 £1,639 £23,276 14.2 yrs £9,501

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: £1,039, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 18.9 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1886 kWh 1452 kWh 434 kWh £372 £43 £416 £13,519 32.5 yrs £-5,207
3 kW 2828 kWh 2178 kWh 650 kWh £558 £65 £623 £15,554 24.9 yrs £-3,085
4 kW 3771 kWh 2904 kWh 867 kWh £745 £87 £831 £17,588 21.2 yrs £-963
5 kW 4714 kWh 3630 kWh 1084 kWh £931 £108 £1,039 £19,623 18.9 yrs £1,158
6 kW 5656 kWh 4356 kWh 1301 kWh £1,117 £130 £1,247 £21,657 17.4 yrs £3,280
7 kW 6599 kWh 5081 kWh 1518 kWh £1,303 £152 £1,455 £23,692 16.3 yrs £5,402
8 kW 7542 kWh 5807 kWh 1735 kWh £1,489 £173 £1,662 £25,726 15.5 yrs £7,523

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 B34

Figures below are tailored to B34 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #1557 of 2182
4.6 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~10 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #1826 of 2997
11.6 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£701 /yr • £8,138 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #2478 of 2997
27.6% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£193 fixed • ~£701 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
25.64p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
53.00p/day
Local Sunshine
943kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~943 kWh per year. A typical home uses ~2,700 kWh per year.
Typical System Size
4.0kW
For houses & bungalows in this area

Local Property Data

Property Types

Houses: 62% • Flats: 22% • Bungalows: 12% Based on 5,803 properties

Coverage

Birmingham (100%)

Areas Covered

Shard End, Bromford & Hodge Hill, Glebe Farm & Tile Cross

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 Midlands

B36 (Solihull)
≈1.0 km away
Local sunshine: ~946 kWh/kWp · +0% vs B34
B33 (Birmingham)
≈1.7 km away
Local sunshine: ~949 kWh/kWp · +1% vs B34
B35 (Birmingham)
≈2.5 km away
Local sunshine: ~942 kWh/kWp · -0% vs B34
B37 (Solihull)
≈3.3 km away
Local sunshine: ~949 kWh/kWp · +1% vs B34
B26 (Birmingham)
≈4.0 km away
Local sunshine: ~942 kWh/kWp · -0% vs B34
B24 (Birmingham)
≈4.4 km away
Local sunshine: ~942 kWh/kWp · -0% vs B34

Similar sunshine across the UK

DE13 (East Staffordshire)
~943 kWh/kWp · -0% vs B34
S20 (Sheffield)
~942 kWh/kWp · -0% vs B34
NG6 (Nottingham)
~942 kWh/kWp · -0% vs B34