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Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in DY6 (Dudley)

See if solar pays off for you in Dudley — 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
13.6 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£10,173
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£750
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£8,576
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 923 kWh/kW — 19 below the regional median (942).

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 923 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)
923 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: £750, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 13.6 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1845 kWh 738 kWh 1107 kWh £189 £111 £300 £4,069 13.6 yrs £1,930
3 kW 2768 kWh 1107 kWh 1661 kWh £284 £166 £450 £6,104 13.6 yrs £2,896
4 kW 3691 kWh 1476 kWh 2214 kWh £379 £221 £600 £8,138 13.6 yrs £3,861
5 kW 4613 kWh 1845 kWh 2768 kWh £473 £277 £750 £10,173 13.6 yrs £4,826
6 kW 5536 kWh 2214 kWh 3322 kWh £568 £332 £900 £12,207 13.6 yrs £5,791
7 kW 6459 kWh 2583 kWh 3875 kWh £662 £388 £1,050 £14,242 13.6 yrs £6,757
8 kW 7381 kWh 2953 kWh 4429 kWh £757 £443 £1,200 £16,276 13.6 yrs £7,722

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: £894, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 13.7 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1845 kWh 1107 kWh 738 kWh £284 £74 £358 £6,169 17.2 yrs £985
3 kW 2768 kWh 1661 kWh 1107 kWh £426 £111 £537 £8,204 15.3 yrs £2,527
4 kW 3691 kWh 2214 kWh 1476 kWh £568 £148 £715 £10,238 14.3 yrs £4,070
5 kW 4613 kWh 2768 kWh 1845 kWh £710 £185 £894 £12,273 13.7 yrs £5,612
6 kW 5536 kWh 3322 kWh 2214 kWh £852 £221 £1,073 £14,307 13.3 yrs £7,155
7 kW 6459 kWh 3875 kWh 2583 kWh £994 £258 £1,252 £16,342 13.1 yrs £8,697
8 kW 7381 kWh 4429 kWh 2953 kWh £1,136 £295 £1,431 £18,376 12.8 yrs £10,240

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: £966, Upfront: £13,673, 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 1845 kWh 1292 kWh 554 kWh £331 £55 £387 £7,569 19.6 yrs £162
3 kW 2768 kWh 1938 kWh 830 kWh £497 £83 £580 £9,604 16.6 yrs £1,993
4 kW 3691 kWh 2583 kWh 1107 kWh £662 £111 £773 £11,638 15.1 yrs £3,824
5 kW 4613 kWh 3229 kWh 1384 kWh £828 £138 £966 £13,673 14.1 yrs £5,655
6 kW 5536 kWh 3875 kWh 1661 kWh £994 £166 £1,160 £15,707 13.5 yrs £7,486
7 kW 6459 kWh 4521 kWh 1938 kWh £1,159 £194 £1,353 £17,742 13.1 yrs £9,317
8 kW 7381 kWh 5167 kWh 2214 kWh £1,325 £221 £1,546 £19,776 12.8 yrs £11,149

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: £988, Upfront: £15,423, 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 1845 kWh 1347 kWh 498 kWh £345 £50 £395 £9,319 23.6 yrs £-1,415
3 kW 2768 kWh 2021 kWh 747 kWh £518 £75 £593 £11,354 19.2 yrs £503
4 kW 3691 kWh 2694 kWh 996 kWh £691 £100 £790 £13,388 16.9 yrs £2,421
5 kW 4613 kWh 3368 kWh 1246 kWh £863 £125 £988 £15,423 15.6 yrs £4,338
6 kW 5536 kWh 4041 kWh 1495 kWh £1,036 £149 £1,186 £17,457 14.7 yrs £6,256
7 kW 6459 kWh 4715 kWh 1744 kWh £1,209 £174 £1,383 £19,492 14.1 yrs £8,174
8 kW 7381 kWh 5388 kWh 1993 kWh £1,382 £199 £1,581 £21,526 13.6 yrs £10,091

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: £1,002, Upfront: £17,173, Break-even: 17.1 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1845 kWh 1384 kWh 461 kWh £355 £46 £401 £11,069 27.6 yrs £-3,049
3 kW 2768 kWh 2076 kWh 692 kWh £532 £69 £601 £13,104 21.8 yrs £-1,074
4 kW 3691 kWh 2768 kWh 923 kWh £710 £92 £802 £15,138 18.9 yrs £901
5 kW 4613 kWh 3460 kWh 1153 kWh £887 £115 £1,002 £17,173 17.1 yrs £2,877
6 kW 5536 kWh 4152 kWh 1384 kWh £1,065 £138 £1,203 £19,207 16.0 yrs £4,852
7 kW 6459 kWh 4844 kWh 1615 kWh £1,242 £161 £1,403 £21,242 15.1 yrs £6,828
8 kW 7381 kWh 5536 kWh 1845 kWh £1,419 £185 £1,604 £23,276 14.5 yrs £8,803

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: £1,017, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 19.3 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1845 kWh 1421 kWh 424 kWh £364 £42 £407 £13,519 33.2 yrs £-5,384
3 kW 2768 kWh 2131 kWh 637 kWh £546 £64 £610 £15,554 25.5 yrs £-3,351
4 kW 3691 kWh 2842 kWh 849 kWh £729 £85 £814 £17,588 21.6 yrs £-1,318
5 kW 4613 kWh 3552 kWh 1061 kWh £911 £106 £1,017 £19,623 19.3 yrs £715
6 kW 5536 kWh 4263 kWh 1273 kWh £1,093 £127 £1,220 £21,657 17.7 yrs £2,749
7 kW 6459 kWh 4973 kWh 1485 kWh £1,275 £149 £1,424 £23,692 16.6 yrs £4,782
8 kW 7381 kWh 5684 kWh 1698 kWh £1,457 £170 £1,627 £25,726 15.8 yrs £6,815

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 DY6

Figures below are tailored to DY6 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #1121 of 2182
5.0 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~10 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #2204 of 2997
11.9 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£858 /yr • £10,173 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #2008 of 2997
22.5% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£193 fixed • ~£858 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
25.64p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
53.00p/day
Local Sunshine
923kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~923 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: 73% • Flats: 10% • Bungalows: 16% Based on 6,085 properties

Coverage

Dudley (98%)|South Staffordshire (2%)

Areas Covered

Kingswinford North & Wall Heath, Kingswinford South, Brockmoor & Pensnett, Wordsley North, Kinver & Enville, Himley & Swindon

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

DY5 (Dudley)
≈3.5 km away
Local sunshine: ~924 kWh/kWp · +0% vs DY6
WV5 (South Staffordshire)
≈4.3 km away
Local sunshine: ~923 kWh/kWp · +0% vs DY6
DY3 (Dudley)
≈4.3 km away
Local sunshine: ~925 kWh/kWp · +0% vs DY6
DY8 (Dudley)
≈4.8 km away
Local sunshine: ~924 kWh/kWp · +0% vs DY6
DY1 (Dudley)
≈5.4 km away
Local sunshine: ~929 kWh/kWp · +1% vs DY6
DY2 (Dudley)
≈5.7 km away
Local sunshine: ~930 kWh/kWp · +1% vs DY6

Similar sunshine across the UK

DL5 (County Durham)
~923 kWh/kWp · +0% vs DY6
LS27 (Leeds)
~923 kWh/kWp · -0% vs DY6
NE1 (Newcastle upon Tyne)
~923 kWh/kWp · -0% vs DY6