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Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in BB3 (Blackburn with Darwen)

See if solar pays off for you in Blackburn with Darwen — 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
14.1 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£10,173
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£720
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£7,826
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 North West, the current unit rate is 27.11p/kWh with a 51.16p/day standing charge. Your postcode’s south-facing sunshine yield is 855 kWh/kW — 15 below the regional median (870).

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 855 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
51.2p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
855 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: £720, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 14.1 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1710 kWh 684 kWh 1026 kWh £185 £103 £288 £4,069 14.1 yrs £1,690
3 kW 2564 kWh 1026 kWh 1539 kWh £278 £154 £432 £6,104 14.1 yrs £2,536
4 kW 3419 kWh 1368 kWh 2052 kWh £371 £205 £576 £8,138 14.1 yrs £3,381
5 kW 4274 kWh 1710 kWh 2564 kWh £463 £256 £720 £10,173 14.1 yrs £4,226
6 kW 5129 kWh 2052 kWh 3077 kWh £556 £308 £864 £12,207 14.1 yrs £5,071
7 kW 5984 kWh 2394 kWh 3590 kWh £649 £359 £1,008 £14,242 14.1 yrs £5,917
8 kW 6839 kWh 2735 kWh 4103 kWh £742 £410 £1,152 £16,276 14.1 yrs £6,762

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: £866, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 14.2 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1710 kWh 1026 kWh 684 kWh £278 £68 £346 £6,169 17.8 yrs £761
3 kW 2564 kWh 1539 kWh 1026 kWh £417 £103 £520 £8,204 15.8 yrs £2,191
4 kW 3419 kWh 2052 kWh 1368 kWh £556 £137 £693 £10,238 14.8 yrs £3,621
5 kW 4274 kWh 2564 kWh 1710 kWh £695 £171 £866 £12,273 14.2 yrs £5,051
6 kW 5129 kWh 3077 kWh 2052 kWh £834 £205 £1,039 £14,307 13.8 yrs £6,482
7 kW 5984 kWh 3590 kWh 2394 kWh £973 £239 £1,213 £16,342 13.5 yrs £7,912
8 kW 6839 kWh 4103 kWh 2735 kWh £1,112 £274 £1,386 £18,376 13.3 yrs £9,342

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: £939, Upfront: £13,673, Break-even: 14.6 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1710 kWh 1197 kWh 513 kWh £324 £51 £376 £7,569 20.1 yrs £-54
3 kW 2564 kWh 1795 kWh 769 kWh £487 £77 £564 £9,604 17.0 yrs £1,668
4 kW 3419 kWh 2394 kWh 1026 kWh £649 £103 £751 £11,638 15.5 yrs £3,391
5 kW 4274 kWh 2992 kWh 1282 kWh £811 £128 £939 £13,673 14.6 yrs £5,114
6 kW 5129 kWh 3590 kWh 1539 kWh £973 £154 £1,127 £15,707 13.9 yrs £6,837
7 kW 5984 kWh 4189 kWh 1795 kWh £1,136 £180 £1,315 £17,742 13.5 yrs £8,560
8 kW 6839 kWh 4787 kWh 2052 kWh £1,298 £205 £1,503 £19,776 13.2 yrs £10,282

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: £961, Upfront: £15,423, Break-even: 16.0 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1710 kWh 1248 kWh 462 kWh £338 £46 £385 £9,319 24.2 yrs £-1,629
3 kW 2564 kWh 1872 kWh 692 kWh £508 £69 £577 £11,354 19.7 yrs £182
4 kW 3419 kWh 2496 kWh 923 kWh £677 £92 £769 £13,388 17.4 yrs £1,992
5 kW 4274 kWh 3120 kWh 1154 kWh £846 £115 £961 £15,423 16.0 yrs £3,803
6 kW 5129 kWh 3744 kWh 1385 kWh £1,015 £138 £1,154 £17,457 15.1 yrs £5,613
7 kW 5984 kWh 4368 kWh 1616 kWh £1,184 £162 £1,346 £19,492 14.5 yrs £7,424
8 kW 6839 kWh 4992 kWh 1846 kWh £1,353 £185 £1,538 £21,526 14.0 yrs £9,235

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: £976, Upfront: £17,173, Break-even: 17.6 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1710 kWh 1282 kWh 427 kWh £348 £43 £390 £11,069 28.4 yrs £-3,262
3 kW 2564 kWh 1923 kWh 641 kWh £521 £64 £586 £13,104 22.4 yrs £-1,393
4 kW 3419 kWh 2564 kWh 855 kWh £695 £85 £781 £15,138 19.4 yrs £476
5 kW 4274 kWh 3206 kWh 1069 kWh £869 £107 £976 £17,173 17.6 yrs £2,345
6 kW 5129 kWh 3847 kWh 1282 kWh £1,043 £128 £1,171 £19,207 16.4 yrs £4,214
7 kW 5984 kWh 4488 kWh 1496 kWh £1,217 £150 £1,366 £21,242 15.5 yrs £6,083
8 kW 6839 kWh 5129 kWh 1710 kWh £1,390 £171 £1,561 £23,276 14.9 yrs £7,953

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: £991, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 19.8 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1710 kWh 1316 kWh 393 kWh £357 £39 £396 £13,519 34.1 yrs £-5,595
3 kW 2564 kWh 1975 kWh 590 kWh £535 £59 £594 £15,554 26.2 yrs £-3,667
4 kW 3419 kWh 2633 kWh 786 kWh £714 £79 £792 £17,588 22.2 yrs £-1,740
5 kW 4274 kWh 3291 kWh 983 kWh £892 £98 £991 £19,623 19.8 yrs £188
6 kW 5129 kWh 3949 kWh 1180 kWh £1,071 £118 £1,189 £21,657 18.2 yrs £2,115
7 kW 5984 kWh 4608 kWh 1376 kWh £1,249 £138 £1,387 £23,692 17.1 yrs £4,043
8 kW 6839 kWh 5266 kWh 1573 kWh £1,428 £157 £1,585 £25,726 16.2 yrs £5,971

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 BB3

Figures below are tailored to BB3 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #1244 of 2182
4.9 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~10 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #2540 of 2997
12.3 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£830 /yr • £10,173 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #2011 of 2997
22.5% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£187 fixed • ~£830 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
27.11p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
51.16p/day
Local Sunshine
855kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~855 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

Houses: 77% • Flats: 15% • Bungalows: 7% Based on 10,049 properties

Coverage

Blackburn with Darwen (100%)

Areas Covered

Darwen West, Darwen East, Darwen South, West Pennine, Blackburn South & Lower Darwen, Livesey with Pleasington, Blackburn South East, Ewood

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 North West

BB2 (Blackburn with Darwen)
≈5.5 km away
Local sunshine: ~857 kWh/kWp · +0% vs BB3
BB1 (Blackburn with Darwen)
≈6.4 km away
Local sunshine: ~857 kWh/kWp · +0% vs BB3
BB0 (Blackburn with Darwen)
≈6.4 km away
Local sunshine: ~864 kWh/kWp · +1% vs BB3
BL7 (Bolton)
≈8.2 km away
Local sunshine: ~881 kWh/kWp · +3% vs BB3
BB5 (Hyndburn)
≈9.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~855 kWh/kWp · +0% vs BB3
PR6 (Chorley)
≈11.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~862 kWh/kWp · +1% vs BB3

Similar sunshine across the UK

FK5 (Falkirk)
~855 kWh/kWp · -0% vs BB3
BT77 (Mid Ulster)
~855 kWh/kWp · +0% vs BB3
BT55 (Causeway Coast and Glens)
~854 kWh/kWp · -0% vs BB3