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Solar panel cost in Tonbridge and Malling (ME20)

See realistic solar installation costs, savings and payback for ME20 (Tonbridge and Malling) 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
12.8 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£10,173
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£794
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£9,677
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 23.53p/kWh with a 54.74p/day standing charge. Your postcode’s south-facing sunshine yield is 1030 kWh/kW — 1 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 1030 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 23.5p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
23.5p/kWh
Standing charge
54.7p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
1030 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: £794, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 12.8 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2061 kWh 824 kWh 1236 kWh £194 £124 £318 £4,069 12.8 yrs £2,283
3 kW 3091 kWh 1236 kWh 1855 kWh £291 £185 £476 £6,104 12.8 yrs £3,424
4 kW 4121 kWh 1649 kWh 2473 kWh £388 £247 £635 £8,138 12.8 yrs £4,566
5 kW 5152 kWh 2061 kWh 3091 kWh £485 £309 £794 £10,173 12.8 yrs £5,707
6 kW 6182 kWh 2473 kWh 3709 kWh £582 £371 £953 £12,207 12.8 yrs £6,848
7 kW 7212 kWh 2885 kWh 4327 kWh £679 £433 £1,112 £14,242 12.8 yrs £7,990
8 kW 8243 kWh 3297 kWh 4946 kWh £776 £495 £1,270 £16,276 12.8 yrs £9,131

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: £933, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 13.1 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2061 kWh 1236 kWh 824 kWh £291 £82 £373 £6,169 16.5 yrs £1,298
3 kW 3091 kWh 1855 kWh 1236 kWh £436 £124 £560 £8,204 14.6 yrs £2,997
4 kW 4121 kWh 2473 kWh 1649 kWh £582 £165 £747 £10,238 13.7 yrs £4,696
5 kW 5152 kWh 3091 kWh 2061 kWh £727 £206 £933 £12,273 13.1 yrs £6,395
6 kW 6182 kWh 3709 kWh 2473 kWh £873 £247 £1,120 £14,307 12.8 yrs £8,094
7 kW 7212 kWh 4327 kWh 2885 kWh £1,018 £288 £1,307 £16,342 12.5 yrs £9,793
8 kW 8243 kWh 4946 kWh 3297 kWh £1,164 £330 £1,493 £18,376 12.3 yrs £11,492

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: £1,003, Upfront: £13,673, 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 2061 kWh 1442 kWh 618 kWh £339 £62 £401 £7,569 18.9 yrs £456
3 kW 3091 kWh 2164 kWh 927 kWh £509 £93 £602 £9,604 16.0 yrs £2,433
4 kW 4121 kWh 2885 kWh 1236 kWh £679 £124 £802 £11,638 14.5 yrs £4,411
5 kW 5152 kWh 3606 kWh 1545 kWh £849 £155 £1,003 £13,673 13.6 yrs £6,389
6 kW 6182 kWh 4327 kWh 1855 kWh £1,018 £185 £1,204 £15,707 13.0 yrs £8,367
7 kW 7212 kWh 5049 kWh 2164 kWh £1,188 £216 £1,404 £17,742 12.6 yrs £10,345
8 kW 8243 kWh 5770 kWh 2473 kWh £1,358 £247 £1,605 £19,776 12.3 yrs £12,322

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: £1,024, Upfront: £15,423, Break-even: 15.1 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2061 kWh 1504 kWh 556 kWh £354 £56 £410 £9,319 22.8 yrs £-1,127
3 kW 3091 kWh 2256 kWh 835 kWh £531 £83 £614 £11,354 18.5 yrs £934
4 kW 4121 kWh 3009 kWh 1113 kWh £708 £111 £819 £13,388 16.3 yrs £2,996
5 kW 5152 kWh 3761 kWh 1391 kWh £885 £139 £1,024 £15,423 15.1 yrs £5,057
6 kW 6182 kWh 4513 kWh 1669 kWh £1,062 £167 £1,229 £17,457 14.2 yrs £7,119
7 kW 7212 kWh 5265 kWh 1947 kWh £1,239 £195 £1,434 £19,492 13.6 yrs £9,180
8 kW 8243 kWh 6017 kWh 2226 kWh £1,416 £223 £1,638 £21,526 13.1 yrs £11,242

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: £1,038, Upfront: £17,173, Break-even: 16.5 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2061 kWh 1545 kWh 515 kWh £364 £52 £415 £11,069 26.7 yrs £-2,766
3 kW 3091 kWh 2318 kWh 773 kWh £545 £77 £623 £13,104 21.0 yrs £-648
4 kW 4121 kWh 3091 kWh 1030 kWh £727 £103 £830 £15,138 18.2 yrs £1,469
5 kW 5152 kWh 3864 kWh 1288 kWh £909 £129 £1,038 £17,173 16.5 yrs £3,586
6 kW 6182 kWh 4636 kWh 1545 kWh £1,091 £155 £1,246 £19,207 15.4 yrs £5,703
7 kW 7212 kWh 5409 kWh 1803 kWh £1,273 £180 £1,453 £21,242 14.6 yrs £7,820
8 kW 8243 kWh 6182 kWh 2061 kWh £1,455 £206 £1,661 £23,276 14.0 yrs £9,938

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: £1,052, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 18.7 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2061 kWh 1587 kWh 474 kWh £373 £47 £421 £13,519 32.1 yrs £-5,104
3 kW 3091 kWh 2380 kWh 711 kWh £560 £71 £631 £15,554 24.6 yrs £-2,931
4 kW 4121 kWh 3173 kWh 948 kWh £747 £95 £841 £17,588 20.9 yrs £-758
5 kW 5152 kWh 3967 kWh 1185 kWh £933 £118 £1,052 £19,623 18.7 yrs £1,415
6 kW 6182 kWh 4760 kWh 1422 kWh £1,120 £142 £1,262 £21,657 17.2 yrs £3,588
7 kW 7212 kWh 5553 kWh 1659 kWh £1,307 £166 £1,473 £23,692 16.1 yrs £5,761
8 kW 8243 kWh 6347 kWh 1896 kWh £1,493 £190 £1,683 £25,726 15.3 yrs £7,934

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 ME20

Figures below are tailored to ME20 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #1363 of 2182
4.8 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~10 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #295 of 2997
11.4 years (UK avg 12.6 years)
~£892 /yr • £10,173 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #879 of 2997
19.9% (UK avg 24.6%) drag on savings
£178 fixed • ~£892 /yr value
Aspect Penalty View ranking →
East −20.6% West −20.6%
Typical output loss versus a south-facing roof (lower is better)

Seasonal solar output in ME20

Monthly generation per kilowatt of solar panels

kWh 39 Jan 52 Feb 86 Mar 116 Apr 123 May 125 Jun 126 Jul 113 Aug 97 Sep 69 Oct 48 Nov 36 Dec
Best month Worst month Winter (Dec–Feb) Other months

Winter output: 49.2% of an average month (Dec–Feb)

Best / worst month: Jul / Dec

These figures show output per kilowatt (kW) of panels installed. In winter, a 1 kW system here produces about 42 kWh per month; the average month produces around 86 kWh. So a typical 4 kW home system would generate roughly 169 kWh in winter, or 343 kWh in an average month.

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
23.53p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
54.74p/day
Local Sunshine
1030kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~1030 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: 21% • Bungalows: 5% Based on 5,192 properties

Coverage

Tonbridge and Malling (97%)|Maidstone (3%)

Areas Covered

Aylesford South & Ditton, Larkfield, Aylesford North & North Downs, Snodland East & Ham Hill, Boxley Downs, East Malling, West Malling & Offham

Data Sources & Assumptions

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

Electricity rates: Ofgem price cap, Q1 2026

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

ME6 (Tonbridge and Malling)
≈2.7 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,023 kWh/kWp · -1% vs ME20
ME19 (Tonbridge and Malling)
≈3.3 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,032 kWh/kWp · +0% vs ME20
ME16 (Maidstone)
≈4.6 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,027 kWh/kWp · -0% vs ME20
ME99 (Maidstone)
≈5.3 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,017 kWh/kWp · -1% vs ME20
ME14 (Maidstone)
≈6.0 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,024 kWh/kWp · -1% vs ME20
ME18 (Maidstone)
≈6.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~1,032 kWh/kWp · +0% vs ME20

Similar sunshine across the UK

IP20 (South Norfolk)
~1,030 kWh/kWp · -0% vs ME20
RM17 (Thurrock)
~1,030 kWh/kWp · -0% vs ME20
SO2 (Southampton)
~1,031 kWh/kWp · +0% vs ME20