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Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in M18 (Manchester)

See if solar pays off for you in Manchester — 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
£8,138
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£577
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£6,275
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 856 kWh/kW — 14 below the regional median (870).

Read the full story

A typical roof here lands around 4.0 kW, with most eligible homes comfortably fitting within 3–6 kW. Each kilowatt of panels produces roughly 856 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)
856 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: £721, 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 1711 kWh 685 kWh 1027 kWh £186 £103 £288 £4,069 14.1 yrs £1,696
3 kW 2567 kWh 1027 kWh 1540 kWh £278 £154 £432 £6,104 14.1 yrs £2,545
4 kW 3423 kWh 1369 kWh 2054 kWh £371 £205 £577 £8,138 14.1 yrs £3,393
5 kW 4278 kWh 1711 kWh 2567 kWh £464 £257 £721 £10,173 14.1 yrs £4,241
6 kW 5134 kWh 2054 kWh 3081 kWh £557 £308 £865 £12,207 14.1 yrs £5,089
7 kW 5990 kWh 2396 kWh 3594 kWh £650 £359 £1,009 £14,242 14.1 yrs £5,937
8 kW 6846 kWh 2738 kWh 4107 kWh £742 £411 £1,153 £16,276 14.1 yrs £6,785

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: £867, 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 1711 kWh 1027 kWh 685 kWh £278 £68 £347 £6,169 17.8 yrs £768
3 kW 2567 kWh 1540 kWh 1027 kWh £418 £103 £520 £8,204 15.8 yrs £2,201
4 kW 3423 kWh 2054 kWh 1369 kWh £557 £137 £694 £10,238 14.8 yrs £3,635
5 kW 4278 kWh 2567 kWh 1711 kWh £696 £171 £867 £12,273 14.2 yrs £5,069
6 kW 5134 kWh 3081 kWh 2054 kWh £835 £205 £1,040 £14,307 13.8 yrs £6,503
7 kW 5990 kWh 3594 kWh 2396 kWh £974 £240 £1,214 £16,342 13.5 yrs £7,937
8 kW 6846 kWh 4107 kWh 2738 kWh £1,114 £274 £1,387 £18,376 13.2 yrs £9,371

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: £940, Upfront: £13,673, Break-even: 14.5 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1711 kWh 1198 kWh 513 kWh £325 £51 £376 £7,569 20.1 yrs £-47
3 kW 2567 kWh 1797 kWh 770 kWh £487 £77 £564 £9,604 17.0 yrs £1,680
4 kW 3423 kWh 2396 kWh 1027 kWh £650 £103 £752 £11,638 15.5 yrs £3,407
5 kW 4278 kWh 2995 kWh 1284 kWh £812 £128 £940 £13,673 14.5 yrs £5,133
6 kW 5134 kWh 3594 kWh 1540 kWh £974 £154 £1,128 £15,707 13.9 yrs £6,860
7 kW 5990 kWh 4193 kWh 1797 kWh £1,137 £180 £1,316 £17,742 13.5 yrs £8,586
8 kW 6846 kWh 4792 kWh 2054 kWh £1,299 £205 £1,504 £19,776 13.1 yrs £10,313

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: £962, 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 1711 kWh 1249 kWh 462 kWh £339 £46 £385 £9,319 24.2 yrs £-1,621
3 kW 2567 kWh 1874 kWh 693 kWh £508 £69 £577 £11,354 19.7 yrs £193
4 kW 3423 kWh 2499 kWh 924 kWh £677 £92 £770 £13,388 17.4 yrs £2,008
5 kW 4278 kWh 3123 kWh 1155 kWh £847 £116 £962 £15,423 16.0 yrs £3,822
6 kW 5134 kWh 3748 kWh 1386 kWh £1,016 £139 £1,155 £17,457 15.1 yrs £5,637
7 kW 5990 kWh 4373 kWh 1617 kWh £1,185 £162 £1,347 £19,492 14.5 yrs £7,451
8 kW 6846 kWh 4997 kWh 1848 kWh £1,355 £185 £1,540 £21,526 14.0 yrs £9,266

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: £977, 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 1711 kWh 1284 kWh 428 kWh £348 £43 £391 £11,069 28.3 yrs £-3,254
3 kW 2567 kWh 1925 kWh 642 kWh £522 £64 £586 £13,104 22.4 yrs £-1,381
4 kW 3423 kWh 2567 kWh 856 kWh £696 £86 £782 £15,138 19.4 yrs £492
5 kW 4278 kWh 3209 kWh 1070 kWh £870 £107 £977 £17,173 17.6 yrs £2,365
6 kW 5134 kWh 3851 kWh 1284 kWh £1,044 £128 £1,172 £19,207 16.4 yrs £4,238
7 kW 5990 kWh 4492 kWh 1497 kWh £1,218 £150 £1,368 £21,242 15.5 yrs £6,111
8 kW 6846 kWh 5134 kWh 1711 kWh £1,392 £171 £1,563 £23,276 14.9 yrs £7,984

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: £992, 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 1711 kWh 1318 kWh 394 kWh £357 £39 £397 £13,519 34.1 yrs £-5,587
3 kW 2567 kWh 1977 kWh 590 kWh £536 £59 £595 £15,554 26.1 yrs £-3,655
4 kW 3423 kWh 2636 kWh 787 kWh £714 £79 £793 £17,588 22.2 yrs £-1,724
5 kW 4278 kWh 3294 kWh 984 kWh £893 £98 £992 £19,623 19.8 yrs £208
6 kW 5134 kWh 3953 kWh 1181 kWh £1,072 £118 £1,190 £21,657 18.2 yrs £2,140
7 kW 5990 kWh 4612 kWh 1378 kWh £1,250 £138 £1,388 £23,692 17.1 yrs £4,071
8 kW 6846 kWh 5271 kWh 1574 kWh £1,429 £157 £1,586 £25,726 16.2 yrs £6,003

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 M18

Figures below are tailored to M18 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #1940 of 2182
4.2 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~9 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #2505 of 2997
12.2 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£664 /yr • £8,138 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #2571 of 2997
28.1% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£187 fixed • ~£664 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
27.11p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
51.16p/day
Local Sunshine
856kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~856 kWh per year. A typical home uses ~2,700 kWh per year.
Typical System Size
4.0kW
For houses & bungalows in this area

Local Property Data

Property Types

Houses: 78% • Flats: 20% • Bungalows: 1% Based on 8,165 properties

Coverage

Manchester (100%)

Areas Covered

Gorton & Abbey Hey, Longsight, Ardwick, Levenshulme

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

M11 (Manchester)
≈1.8 km away
Local sunshine: ~856 kWh/kWp · +0% vs M18
M12 (Manchester)
≈2.4 km away
Local sunshine: ~861 kWh/kWp · +1% vs M18
M43 (Tameside)
≈2.7 km away
Local sunshine: ~845 kWh/kWp · -1% vs M18
M19 (Manchester)
≈2.9 km away
Local sunshine: ~861 kWh/kWp · +1% vs M18
M13 (Manchester)
≈3.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~861 kWh/kWp · +1% vs M18
SK5 (Stockport)
≈3.4 km away
Local sunshine: ~861 kWh/kWp · +1% vs M18

Similar sunshine across the UK

PH7 (Perth and Kinross)
~856 kWh/kWp · -0% vs M18
KA25 (North Ayrshire)
~856 kWh/kWp · +0% vs M18
PA45 (Argyll and Bute)
~855 kWh/kWp · -0% vs M18