Solar panel cost in Thanet (CT7)

See realistic solar installation costs, savings and payback for CT7 (Thanet) in under a minute using official UK data. Start with the calculator, then get a no-obligation quote from an MCS-certified installer. You can also ask the SolarByPostcode assistant to sanity-check your roof, bills and plans.

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
9.0 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£9,767
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£1,091
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£17,509
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: The official cost per kW is lower above 4 kW, so a 5–6 kW system can pay back a little faster than a 3–4 kW system on otherwise identical assumptions.
  • 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

Panel costs: Uses March 2026 TIC mean installation costs: £1,827/kW up to 4 kW and £1,628/kW above 4 kW.

Other costs: Battery prices are modelled at £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

Read the full story

A typical roof here lands around 6.0 kW, with most eligible homes comfortably fitting within 3–6 kW. Each kilowatt of panels produces roughly 1091 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 26.7p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
26.7p/kWh
Standing charge
54.5p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
1091 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: £909, Upfront: £8,139, Break-even: 9.0 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2182 kWh 873 kWh 1309 kWh £233 £131 £364 £3,256 9.0 yrs £4,018
3 kW 3273 kWh 1309 kWh 1964 kWh £349 £196 £546 £4,883 9.0 yrs £6,027
4 kW 4364 kWh 1746 kWh 2618 kWh £466 £262 £727 £6,511 9.0 yrs £8,036
5 kW 5455 kWh 2182 kWh 3273 kWh £582 £327 £909 £8,139 9.0 yrs £10,045
6 kW 6546 kWh 2618 kWh 3927 kWh £698 £393 £1,091 £9,767 9.0 yrs £12,054
7 kW 7637 kWh 3055 kWh 4582 kWh £815 £458 £1,273 £11,394 9.0 yrs £14,063
8 kW 8728 kWh 3491 kWh 5237 kWh £931 £524 £1,455 £13,022 9.0 yrs £16,072

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 1,628, battery £/kWh = 700.

3 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,091, Upfront: £10,239, Break-even: 9.4 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2182 kWh 1309 kWh 873 kWh £349 £87 £436 £5,356 12.3 yrs £3,373
3 kW 3273 kWh 1964 kWh 1309 kWh £524 £131 £655 £6,983 10.7 yrs £6,109
4 kW 4364 kWh 2618 kWh 1746 kWh £698 £175 £873 £8,611 9.9 yrs £8,846
5 kW 5455 kWh 3273 kWh 2182 kWh £873 £218 £1,091 £10,239 9.4 yrs £11,582
6 kW 6546 kWh 3927 kWh 2618 kWh £1,047 £262 £1,309 £11,867 9.1 yrs £14,319
7 kW 7637 kWh 4582 kWh 3055 kWh £1,222 £305 £1,527 £13,494 8.8 yrs £17,055
8 kW 8728 kWh 5237 kWh 3491 kWh £1,397 £349 £1,746 £15,122 8.7 yrs £19,792

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 1,628, battery £/kWh = 700.

5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,182, Upfront: £11,639, Break-even: 9.8 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2182 kWh 1527 kWh 655 kWh £407 £65 £473 £6,756 14.3 yrs £2,700
3 kW 3273 kWh 2291 kWh 982 kWh £611 £98 £709 £8,383 11.8 yrs £5,801
4 kW 4364 kWh 3055 kWh 1309 kWh £815 £131 £946 £10,011 10.6 yrs £8,901
5 kW 5455 kWh 3818 kWh 1636 kWh £1,018 £164 £1,182 £11,639 9.8 yrs £12,001
6 kW 6546 kWh 4582 kWh 1964 kWh £1,222 £196 £1,418 £13,267 9.4 yrs £15,101
7 kW 7637 kWh 5346 kWh 2291 kWh £1,426 £229 £1,655 £14,894 9.0 yrs £18,201
8 kW 8728 kWh 6109 kWh 2618 kWh £1,629 £262 £1,891 £16,522 8.7 yrs £21,302

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 1,628, battery £/kWh = 700.

7.5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,209, Upfront: £13,389, 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 2182 kWh 1593 kWh 589 kWh £425 £59 £484 £8,506 17.6 yrs £1,169
3 kW 3273 kWh 2389 kWh 884 kWh £637 £88 £726 £10,133 14.0 yrs £4,378
4 kW 4364 kWh 3186 kWh 1178 kWh £850 £118 £967 £11,761 12.2 yrs £7,587
5 kW 5455 kWh 3982 kWh 1473 kWh £1,062 £147 £1,209 £13,389 11.1 yrs £10,797
6 kW 6546 kWh 4778 kWh 1767 kWh £1,274 £177 £1,451 £15,017 10.3 yrs £14,006
7 kW 7637 kWh 5575 kWh 2062 kWh £1,487 £206 £1,693 £16,644 9.8 yrs £17,215
8 kW 8728 kWh 6371 kWh 2356 kWh £1,699 £236 £1,935 £18,272 9.4 yrs £20,425

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 1,628, battery £/kWh = 700.

10 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,227, Upfront: £15,139, Break-even: 12.3 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2182 kWh 1636 kWh 545 kWh £436 £55 £491 £10,256 20.9 yrs £-436
3 kW 3273 kWh 2455 kWh 818 kWh £655 £82 £736 £11,883 16.1 yrs £2,846
4 kW 4364 kWh 3273 kWh 1091 kWh £873 £109 £982 £13,511 13.8 yrs £6,128
5 kW 5455 kWh 4091 kWh 1364 kWh £1,091 £136 £1,227 £15,139 12.3 yrs £9,410
6 kW 6546 kWh 4909 kWh 1636 kWh £1,309 £164 £1,473 £16,767 11.4 yrs £12,692
7 kW 7637 kWh 5727 kWh 1909 kWh £1,528 £191 £1,718 £18,394 10.7 yrs £15,974
8 kW 8728 kWh 6546 kWh 2182 kWh £1,746 £218 £1,964 £20,022 10.2 yrs £19,256

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 1,628, battery £/kWh = 700.

13.5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £1,246, Upfront: £17,589, 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 2182 kWh 1680 kWh 502 kWh £448 £50 £498 £12,706 25.5 yrs £-2,740
3 kW 3273 kWh 2520 kWh 753 kWh £672 £75 £747 £14,333 19.2 yrs £614
4 kW 4364 kWh 3360 kWh 1004 kWh £896 £100 £997 £15,961 16.0 yrs £3,969
5 kW 5455 kWh 4200 kWh 1255 kWh £1,120 £125 £1,246 £17,589 14.1 yrs £7,324
6 kW 6546 kWh 5040 kWh 1506 kWh £1,344 £151 £1,495 £19,217 12.9 yrs £10,679
7 kW 7637 kWh 5880 kWh 1756 kWh £1,568 £176 £1,744 £20,844 12.0 yrs £14,034
8 kW 8728 kWh 6720 kWh 2007 kWh £1,792 £201 £1,993 £22,472 11.3 yrs £17,388

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 1,628, 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.

Before you request quotes in Thanet

Use the numbers above to sanity-check installer quotes. The main things to compare are system size, battery assumptions, payback claims, MCS certification, DNO paperwork and export assumptions.

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Seasonal solar output in CT7

Monthly generation per kilowatt of solar panels

kWh 41 Jan 56 Feb 93 Mar 126 Apr 132 May 132 Jun 131 Jul 120 Aug 103 Sep 72 Oct 47 Nov 37 Dec
Best month Worst month Winter (Dec–Feb) Other months

Winter output: 49.0% of an average month (Dec–Feb)

Best / worst month: Jun / Dec

These figures show output per kilowatt (kW) of panels installed. In winter, a 1 kW system here produces about 45 kWh per month; the average month produces around 91 kWh. So a typical 4 kW home system would generate roughly 178 kWh in winter, or 364 kWh in an average month.

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
26.67p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
54.45p/day
Local Sunshine
1091kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~1091 kWh per year. A typical home uses ~2,700 kWh per year.
Typical System Size
6.0kW
For houses & bungalows in this area

Local Property Data

Property Types

Houses: 47% • Flats: 24% • Bungalows: 27% Based on 3,682 properties

Coverage

Thanet (100%)

Areas Covered

Birchington South, Birchington North, Thanet Villages, Cliftonville West, Cliftonville East, Westbrook, Westgate-on-Sea, Reculver

Data Sources & Assumptions

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

Electricity rates: Ofgem price cap, Q3 2026

Installation costs: DESNZ/MCS data, March 2026 (TIC)

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.