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Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in NE13 (Newcastle upon Tyne)

See if solar pays off for you in Newcastle upon Tyne — 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
13.5 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£10,173
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£752
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£8,620
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 Northern, the current unit rate is 25.43p/kWh with a 59.86p/day standing charge. Your postcode’s south-facing sunshine yield is 930 kWh/kW — 4 above the regional median (926).

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 930 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 25.4p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
25.4p/kWh
Standing charge
59.9p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
930 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: £752, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 13.5 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1859 kWh 744 kWh 1116 kWh £189 £112 £301 £4,069 13.5 yrs £1,945
3 kW 2789 kWh 1116 kWh 1673 kWh £284 £167 £451 £6,104 13.5 yrs £2,917
4 kW 3719 kWh 1487 kWh 2231 kWh £378 £223 £601 £8,138 13.5 yrs £3,889
5 kW 4648 kWh 1859 kWh 2789 kWh £473 £279 £752 £10,173 13.5 yrs £4,862
6 kW 5578 kWh 2231 kWh 3347 kWh £567 £335 £902 £12,207 13.5 yrs £5,834
7 kW 6508 kWh 2603 kWh 3905 kWh £662 £390 £1,052 £14,242 13.5 yrs £6,806
8 kW 7437 kWh 2975 kWh 4462 kWh £757 £446 £1,203 £16,276 13.5 yrs £7,779

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: £895, 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 1859 kWh 1116 kWh 744 kWh £284 £74 £358 £6,169 17.2 yrs £992
3 kW 2789 kWh 1673 kWh 1116 kWh £426 £112 £537 £8,204 15.3 yrs £2,538
4 kW 3719 kWh 2231 kWh 1487 kWh £567 £149 £716 £10,238 14.3 yrs £4,085
5 kW 4648 kWh 2789 kWh 1859 kWh £709 £186 £895 £12,273 13.7 yrs £5,631
6 kW 5578 kWh 3347 kWh 2231 kWh £851 £223 £1,074 £14,307 13.3 yrs £7,177
7 kW 6508 kWh 3905 kWh 2603 kWh £993 £260 £1,253 £16,342 13.0 yrs £8,723
8 kW 7437 kWh 4462 kWh 2975 kWh £1,135 £297 £1,432 £18,376 12.8 yrs £10,269

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: £967, 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 1859 kWh 1302 kWh 558 kWh £331 £56 £387 £7,569 19.6 yrs £166
3 kW 2789 kWh 1952 kWh 837 kWh £496 £84 £580 £9,604 16.6 yrs £1,999
4 kW 3719 kWh 2603 kWh 1116 kWh £662 £112 £774 £11,638 15.0 yrs £3,832
5 kW 4648 kWh 3254 kWh 1394 kWh £827 £139 £967 £13,673 14.1 yrs £5,665
6 kW 5578 kWh 3905 kWh 1673 kWh £993 £167 £1,160 £15,707 13.5 yrs £7,498
7 kW 6508 kWh 4555 kWh 1952 kWh £1,158 £195 £1,354 £17,742 13.1 yrs £9,331
8 kW 7437 kWh 5206 kWh 2231 kWh £1,324 £223 £1,547 £19,776 12.8 yrs £11,164

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 1859 kWh 1357 kWh 502 kWh £345 £50 £395 £9,319 23.6 yrs £-1,412
3 kW 2789 kWh 2036 kWh 753 kWh £518 £75 £593 £11,354 19.1 yrs £507
4 kW 3719 kWh 2715 kWh 1004 kWh £690 £100 £791 £13,388 16.9 yrs £2,426
5 kW 4648 kWh 3393 kWh 1255 kWh £863 £126 £988 £15,423 15.6 yrs £4,345
6 kW 5578 kWh 4072 kWh 1506 kWh £1,035 £151 £1,186 £17,457 14.7 yrs £6,265
7 kW 6508 kWh 4751 kWh 1757 kWh £1,208 £176 £1,384 £19,492 14.1 yrs £8,184
8 kW 7437 kWh 5429 kWh 2008 kWh £1,381 £201 £1,581 £21,526 13.6 yrs £10,103

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: £1,003, 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 1859 kWh 1394 kWh 465 kWh £355 £46 £401 £11,069 27.6 yrs £-3,047
3 kW 2789 kWh 2092 kWh 697 kWh £532 £70 £602 £13,104 21.8 yrs £-1,071
4 kW 3719 kWh 2789 kWh 930 kWh £709 £93 £802 £15,138 18.9 yrs £906
5 kW 4648 kWh 3486 kWh 1162 kWh £887 £116 £1,003 £17,173 17.1 yrs £2,882
6 kW 5578 kWh 4183 kWh 1394 kWh £1,064 £139 £1,203 £19,207 16.0 yrs £4,859
7 kW 6508 kWh 4881 kWh 1627 kWh £1,241 £163 £1,404 £21,242 15.1 yrs £6,835
8 kW 7437 kWh 5578 kWh 1859 kWh £1,418 £186 £1,604 £23,276 14.5 yrs £8,812

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 1859 kWh 1432 kWh 428 kWh £364 £43 £407 £13,519 33.2 yrs £-5,382
3 kW 2789 kWh 2147 kWh 641 kWh £546 £64 £610 £15,554 25.5 yrs £-3,348
4 kW 3719 kWh 2863 kWh 855 kWh £728 £86 £814 £17,588 21.6 yrs £-1,315
5 kW 4648 kWh 3579 kWh 1069 kWh £910 £107 £1,017 £19,623 19.3 yrs £719
6 kW 5578 kWh 4295 kWh 1283 kWh £1,092 £128 £1,221 £21,657 17.7 yrs £2,753
7 kW 6508 kWh 5011 kWh 1497 kWh £1,274 £150 £1,424 £23,692 16.6 yrs £4,787
8 kW 7437 kWh 5727 kWh 1711 kWh £1,456 £171 £1,627 £25,726 15.8 yrs £6,821

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 NE13

Figures below are tailored to NE13 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #602 of 2182
5.5 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~12 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #2126 of 2997
11.8 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£859 /yr • £10,173 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #2284 of 2997
25.4% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£218 fixed • ~£859 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
25.43p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
59.86p/day
Local Sunshine
930kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~930 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: 79% • Flats: 10% • Bungalows: 11% Based on 7,093 properties

Coverage

Newcastle upon Tyne (64%)|North Tyneside (33%)|Northumberland (2%)

Areas Covered

Castle, Weetslade, Callerton & Throckley, Fawdon & West Gosforth, Ponteland East & Stannington, Parklands

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 Northern

NE3 (Newcastle upon Tyne)
≈4.0 km away
Local sunshine: ~929 kWh/kWp · -0% vs NE13
NE12 (North Tyneside)
≈5.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~943 kWh/kWp · +1% vs NE13
NE5 (Newcastle upon Tyne)
≈6.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~923 kWh/kWp · -1% vs NE13
NE23 (Northumberland)
≈6.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~950 kWh/kWp · +2% vs NE13
NE7 (Newcastle upon Tyne)
≈6.4 km away
Local sunshine: ~932 kWh/kWp · +0% vs NE13
NE2 (Newcastle upon Tyne)
≈6.9 km away
Local sunshine: ~932 kWh/kWp · +0% vs NE13

Similar sunshine across the UK

S5 (Sheffield)
~930 kWh/kWp · +0% vs NE13
B64 (Sandwell)
~930 kWh/kWp · +0% vs NE13
WS6 (South Staffordshire)
~930 kWh/kWp · -0% vs NE13