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Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in BN18 (Arun)

See if solar pays off for you in Arun — 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
11.1 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£10,173
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£917
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£12,765
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 Southern, the current unit rate is 26.48p/kWh with a 44.62p/day standing charge. Your postcode’s south-facing sunshine yield is 1106 kWh/kW — 105 above the regional median (1001).

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 1106 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 26.5p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
26.5p/kWh
Standing charge
44.6p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
1106 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: £917, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 11.1 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2212 kWh 885 kWh 1327 kWh £234 £133 £367 £4,069 11.1 yrs £3,271
3 kW 3318 kWh 1327 kWh 1991 kWh £351 £199 £550 £6,104 11.1 yrs £4,906
4 kW 4424 kWh 1770 kWh 2654 kWh £469 £265 £734 £8,138 11.1 yrs £6,542
5 kW 5530 kWh 2212 kWh 3318 kWh £586 £332 £917 £10,173 11.1 yrs £8,177
6 kW 6636 kWh 2654 kWh 3981 kWh £703 £398 £1,101 £12,207 11.1 yrs £9,813
7 kW 7742 kWh 3097 kWh 4645 kWh £820 £464 £1,284 £14,242 11.1 yrs £11,448
8 kW 8848 kWh 3539 kWh 5309 kWh £937 £531 £1,468 £16,276 11.1 yrs £13,084

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: £1,100, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 11.2 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2212 kWh 1327 kWh 885 kWh £351 £88 £440 £6,169 14.0 yrs £2,629
3 kW 3318 kWh 1991 kWh 1327 kWh £527 £133 £660 £8,204 12.4 yrs £4,994
4 kW 4424 kWh 2654 kWh 1770 kWh £703 £177 £880 £10,238 11.6 yrs £7,358
5 kW 5530 kWh 3318 kWh 2212 kWh £879 £221 £1,100 £12,273 11.2 yrs £9,723
6 kW 6636 kWh 3981 kWh 2654 kWh £1,054 £265 £1,320 £14,307 10.8 yrs £12,087
7 kW 7742 kWh 4645 kWh 3097 kWh £1,230 £310 £1,540 £16,342 10.6 yrs £14,452
8 kW 8848 kWh 5309 kWh 3539 kWh £1,406 £354 £1,760 £18,376 10.4 yrs £16,816

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: £1,191, Upfront: £13,673, Break-even: 11.5 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2212 kWh 1548 kWh 664 kWh £410 £66 £476 £7,569 15.9 yrs £1,958
3 kW 3318 kWh 2322 kWh 995 kWh £615 £100 £715 £9,604 13.4 yrs £4,687
4 kW 4424 kWh 3097 kWh 1327 kWh £820 £133 £953 £11,638 12.2 yrs £7,416
5 kW 5530 kWh 3871 kWh 1659 kWh £1,025 £166 £1,191 £13,673 11.5 yrs £10,145
6 kW 6636 kWh 4645 kWh 1991 kWh £1,230 £199 £1,429 £15,707 11.0 yrs £12,874
7 kW 7742 kWh 5419 kWh 2322 kWh £1,435 £232 £1,667 £17,742 10.6 yrs £15,603
8 kW 8848 kWh 6193 kWh 2654 kWh £1,640 £265 £1,905 £19,776 10.4 yrs £18,332

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: £1,218, Upfront: £15,423, Break-even: 12.7 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2212 kWh 1615 kWh 597 kWh £428 £60 £487 £9,319 19.1 yrs £427
3 kW 3318 kWh 2422 kWh 896 kWh £641 £90 £731 £11,354 15.5 yrs £3,265
4 kW 4424 kWh 3229 kWh 1194 kWh £855 £119 £975 £13,388 13.7 yrs £6,104
5 kW 5530 kWh 4037 kWh 1493 kWh £1,069 £149 £1,218 £15,423 12.7 yrs £8,942
6 kW 6636 kWh 4844 kWh 1792 kWh £1,283 £179 £1,462 £17,457 11.9 yrs £11,780
7 kW 7742 kWh 5651 kWh 2090 kWh £1,496 £209 £1,706 £19,492 11.4 yrs £14,619
8 kW 8848 kWh 6459 kWh 2389 kWh £1,710 £239 £1,949 £21,526 11.0 yrs £17,457

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: £1,236, Upfront: £17,173, 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 2212 kWh 1659 kWh 553 kWh £439 £55 £495 £11,069 22.4 yrs £-1,177
3 kW 3318 kWh 2488 kWh 829 kWh £659 £83 £742 £13,104 17.7 yrs £1,734
4 kW 4424 kWh 3318 kWh 1106 kWh £879 £111 £989 £15,138 15.3 yrs £4,645
5 kW 5530 kWh 4147 kWh 1382 kWh £1,098 £138 £1,236 £17,173 13.9 yrs £7,556
6 kW 6636 kWh 4977 kWh 1659 kWh £1,318 £166 £1,484 £19,207 12.9 yrs £10,468
7 kW 7742 kWh 5806 kWh 1935 kWh £1,537 £194 £1,731 £21,242 12.3 yrs £13,379
8 kW 8848 kWh 6636 kWh 2212 kWh £1,757 £221 £1,978 £23,276 11.8 yrs £16,290

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: £1,255, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 15.6 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2212 kWh 1703 kWh 509 kWh £451 £51 £502 £13,519 26.9 yrs £-3,482
3 kW 3318 kWh 2555 kWh 763 kWh £676 £76 £753 £15,554 20.7 yrs £-497
4 kW 4424 kWh 3406 kWh 1017 kWh £902 £102 £1,004 £17,588 17.5 yrs £2,487
5 kW 5530 kWh 4258 kWh 1272 kWh £1,127 £127 £1,255 £19,623 15.6 yrs £5,471
6 kW 6636 kWh 5109 kWh 1526 kWh £1,353 £153 £1,506 £21,657 14.4 yrs £8,455
7 kW 7742 kWh 5961 kWh 1781 kWh £1,578 £178 £1,757 £23,692 13.5 yrs £11,439
8 kW 8848 kWh 6813 kWh 2035 kWh £1,804 £203 £2,007 £25,726 12.8 yrs £14,424

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 BN18

Figures below are tailored to BN18 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #801 of 2182
5.3 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~11 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #56 of 2997
9.6 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£1,054 /yr • £10,173 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #475 of 2997
15.5% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£163 fixed • ~£1,054 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
26.48p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
44.62p/day
Local Sunshine
1106kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~1106 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: 75% • Flats: 13% • Bungalows: 9% Based on 5,382 properties

Coverage

Arun (96%)|Horsham (4%)

Areas Covered

Arundel & Walberton, Yapton, Pulborough, Coldwaltham & Amberley, Angmering & Findon, Middleton-on-Sea, River, Goodwood

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 Southern

PO22 (Arun)
≈8.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,128 kWh/kWp · +2% vs BN18
PO21 (Arun)
≈10.9 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,111 kWh/kWp · +0% vs BN18
PO19 (Chichester)
≈14.4 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,138 kWh/kWp · +3% vs BN18
GU28 (Chichester)
≈15.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,051 kWh/kWp · -5% vs BN18
PO20 (Chichester)
≈15.2 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,122 kWh/kWp · +1% vs BN18
PO18 (Chichester)
≈17.3 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,108 kWh/kWp · +0% vs BN18

Similar sunshine across the UK

CT3 (Dover)
~1,106 kWh/kWp · +0% vs BN18
TN31 (Rother)
~1,104 kWh/kWp · -0% vs BN18
TN36 (Rother)
~1,103 kWh/kWp · -0% vs BN18