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Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in CT16 (Dover)

See if solar pays off for you in Dover — 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
£913
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£12,660
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 South East, the current unit rate is 26.92p/kWh with a 47.60p/day standing charge. Your postcode’s south-facing sunshine yield is 1089 kWh/kW — 60 above the regional median (1029).

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 1089 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 26.9p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
26.9p/kWh
Standing charge
47.6p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
1089 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: £913, 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 2179 kWh 871 kWh 1307 kWh £235 £131 £365 £4,069 11.1 yrs £3,237
3 kW 3268 kWh 1307 kWh 1961 kWh £352 £196 £548 £6,104 11.1 yrs £4,856
4 kW 4357 kWh 1743 kWh 2614 kWh £469 £261 £731 £8,138 11.1 yrs £6,475
5 kW 5447 kWh 2179 kWh 3268 kWh £587 £327 £913 £10,173 11.1 yrs £8,094
6 kW 6536 kWh 2614 kWh 3922 kWh £704 £392 £1,096 £12,207 11.1 yrs £9,712
7 kW 7625 kWh 3050 kWh 4575 kWh £821 £458 £1,279 £14,242 11.1 yrs £11,331
8 kW 8715 kWh 3486 kWh 5229 kWh £938 £523 £1,461 £16,276 11.1 yrs £12,950

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: £1,098, 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 2179 kWh 1307 kWh 871 kWh £352 £87 £439 £6,169 14.1 yrs £2,612
3 kW 3268 kWh 1961 kWh 1307 kWh £528 £131 £659 £8,204 12.5 yrs £4,968
4 kW 4357 kWh 2614 kWh 1743 kWh £704 £174 £878 £10,238 11.7 yrs £7,324
5 kW 5447 kWh 3268 kWh 2179 kWh £880 £218 £1,098 £12,273 11.2 yrs £9,680
6 kW 6536 kWh 3922 kWh 2614 kWh £1,056 £261 £1,317 £14,307 10.9 yrs £12,036
7 kW 7625 kWh 4575 kWh 3050 kWh £1,232 £305 £1,537 £16,342 10.6 yrs £14,392
8 kW 8715 kWh 5229 kWh 3486 kWh £1,408 £349 £1,756 £18,376 10.5 yrs £16,748

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: £1,190, 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 2179 kWh 1525 kWh 654 kWh £411 £65 £476 £7,569 15.9 yrs £1,949
3 kW 3268 kWh 2288 kWh 980 kWh £616 £98 £714 £9,604 13.5 yrs £4,674
4 kW 4357 kWh 3050 kWh 1307 kWh £821 £131 £952 £11,638 12.2 yrs £7,398
5 kW 5447 kWh 3813 kWh 1634 kWh £1,026 £163 £1,190 £13,673 11.5 yrs £10,123
6 kW 6536 kWh 4575 kWh 1961 kWh £1,232 £196 £1,428 £15,707 11.0 yrs £12,848
7 kW 7625 kWh 5338 kWh 2288 kWh £1,437 £229 £1,666 £17,742 10.7 yrs £15,572
8 kW 8715 kWh 6100 kWh 2614 kWh £1,642 £261 £1,904 £19,776 10.4 yrs £18,297

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: £1,217, 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 2179 kWh 1590 kWh 588 kWh £428 £59 £487 £9,319 19.1 yrs £420
3 kW 3268 kWh 2386 kWh 882 kWh £642 £88 £730 £11,354 15.5 yrs £3,256
4 kW 4357 kWh 3181 kWh 1176 kWh £856 £118 £974 £13,388 13.7 yrs £6,091
5 kW 5447 kWh 3976 kWh 1471 kWh £1,070 £147 £1,217 £15,423 12.7 yrs £8,926
6 kW 6536 kWh 4771 kWh 1765 kWh £1,284 £176 £1,461 £17,457 11.9 yrs £11,761
7 kW 7625 kWh 5567 kWh 2059 kWh £1,499 £206 £1,704 £19,492 11.4 yrs £14,596
8 kW 8715 kWh 6362 kWh 2353 kWh £1,713 £235 £1,948 £21,526 11.1 yrs £17,432

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 2179 kWh 1634 kWh 545 kWh £440 £54 £494 £11,069 22.4 yrs £-1,182
3 kW 3268 kWh 2451 kWh 817 kWh £660 £82 £742 £13,104 17.7 yrs £1,727
4 kW 4357 kWh 3268 kWh 1089 kWh £880 £109 £989 £15,138 15.3 yrs £4,636
5 kW 5447 kWh 4085 kWh 1362 kWh £1,100 £136 £1,236 £17,173 13.9 yrs £7,545
6 kW 6536 kWh 4902 kWh 1634 kWh £1,320 £163 £1,483 £19,207 13.0 yrs £10,453
7 kW 7625 kWh 5719 kWh 1906 kWh £1,540 £191 £1,730 £21,242 12.3 yrs £13,362
8 kW 8715 kWh 6536 kWh 2179 kWh £1,760 £218 £1,977 £23,276 11.8 yrs £16,271

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: £1,254, 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 2179 kWh 1678 kWh 501 kWh £452 £50 £502 £13,519 26.9 yrs £-3,485
3 kW 3268 kWh 2516 kWh 752 kWh £677 £75 £753 £15,554 20.7 yrs £-502
4 kW 4357 kWh 3355 kWh 1002 kWh £903 £100 £1,003 £17,588 17.5 yrs £2,481
5 kW 5447 kWh 4194 kWh 1253 kWh £1,129 £125 £1,254 £19,623 15.6 yrs £5,463
6 kW 6536 kWh 5033 kWh 1503 kWh £1,355 £150 £1,505 £21,657 14.4 yrs £8,446
7 kW 7625 kWh 5872 kWh 1754 kWh £1,581 £175 £1,756 £23,692 13.5 yrs £11,428
8 kW 8715 kWh 6710 kWh 2004 kWh £1,806 £200 £2,007 £25,726 12.8 yrs £14,411

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 CT16

Figures below are tailored to CT16 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #1643 of 2182
4.6 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~10 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #88 of 2997
9.7 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£1,052 /yr • £10,173 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #640 of 2997
16.5% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£174 fixed • ~£1,052 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
26.92p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
47.60p/day
Local Sunshine
1089kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~1089 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: 53% • Flats: 36% • Bungalows: 7% Based on 7,527 properties

Coverage

Dover (100%)

Areas Covered

St Radigunds, Town & Castle, Whitfield, Buckland, Dover Downs & River, Tower Hamlets, Guston, Kingsdown & St Margaret's-at-Cliffe + 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 South East

CT17 (Dover)
≈0.8 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,089 kWh/kWp · -0% vs CT16
CT15 (Dover)
≈4.4 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,110 kWh/kWp · +2% vs CT16
CT19 (Folkestone and Hythe)
≈10.3 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,111 kWh/kWp · +2% vs CT16
CT18 (Folkestone and Hythe)
≈10.5 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,088 kWh/kWp · -0% vs CT16
CT20 (Folkestone and Hythe)
≈11.0 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,111 kWh/kWp · +2% vs CT16
CT14 (Dover)
≈11.6 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,086 kWh/kWp · -0% vs CT16

Similar sunshine across the UK

BH5 (Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole)
~1,090 kWh/kWp · +0% vs CT16
DT1 (Dorset)
~1,090 kWh/kWp · +0% vs CT16
BH7 (Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole)
~1,090 kWh/kWp · +0% vs CT16