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Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in NG7 (Nottingham)

See if solar pays off for you in Nottingham — 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
13.3 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£10,173
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£764
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£8,922
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 East Midlands, the current unit rate is 25.55p/kWh with a 49.09p/day standing charge. Your postcode’s south-facing sunshine yield is 942 kWh/kW — 26 below the regional median (968).

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 942 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
49.1p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
942 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: £764, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 13.3 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1884 kWh 753 kWh 1130 kWh £193 £113 £306 £4,069 13.3 yrs £2,041
3 kW 2825 kWh 1130 kWh 1695 kWh £289 £170 £458 £6,104 13.3 yrs £3,062
4 kW 3767 kWh 1507 kWh 2260 kWh £385 £226 £611 £8,138 13.3 yrs £4,083
5 kW 4709 kWh 1884 kWh 2825 kWh £481 £283 £764 £10,173 13.3 yrs £5,103
6 kW 5651 kWh 2260 kWh 3390 kWh £578 £339 £917 £12,207 13.3 yrs £6,124
7 kW 6593 kWh 2637 kWh 3956 kWh £674 £396 £1,069 £14,242 13.3 yrs £7,145
8 kW 7534 kWh 3014 kWh 4521 kWh £770 £452 £1,222 £16,276 13.3 yrs £8,166

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: £910, Upfront: £12,273, 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 1884 kWh 1130 kWh 753 kWh £289 £75 £364 £6,169 16.9 yrs £1,113
3 kW 2825 kWh 1695 kWh 1130 kWh £433 £113 £546 £8,204 15.0 yrs £2,719
4 kW 3767 kWh 2260 kWh 1507 kWh £578 £151 £728 £10,238 14.1 yrs £4,326
5 kW 4709 kWh 2825 kWh 1884 kWh £722 £188 £910 £12,273 13.5 yrs £5,932
6 kW 5651 kWh 3390 kWh 2260 kWh £866 £226 £1,092 £14,307 13.1 yrs £7,539
7 kW 6593 kWh 3956 kWh 2637 kWh £1,011 £264 £1,274 £16,342 12.8 yrs £9,145
8 kW 7534 kWh 4521 kWh 3014 kWh £1,155 £301 £1,456 £18,376 12.6 yrs £10,752

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: £983, Upfront: £13,673, Break-even: 13.9 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1884 kWh 1319 kWh 565 kWh £337 £57 £393 £7,569 19.2 yrs £299
3 kW 2825 kWh 1978 kWh 848 kWh £505 £85 £590 £9,604 16.3 yrs £2,198
4 kW 3767 kWh 2637 kWh 1130 kWh £674 £113 £787 £11,638 14.8 yrs £4,098
5 kW 4709 kWh 3296 kWh 1413 kWh £842 £141 £983 £13,673 13.9 yrs £5,997
6 kW 5651 kWh 3956 kWh 1695 kWh £1,011 £170 £1,180 £15,707 13.3 yrs £7,896
7 kW 6593 kWh 4615 kWh 1978 kWh £1,179 £198 £1,377 £17,742 12.9 yrs £9,796
8 kW 7534 kWh 5274 kWh 2260 kWh £1,348 £226 £1,574 £19,776 12.6 yrs £11,695

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: £1,005, Upfront: £15,423, Break-even: 15.3 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1884 kWh 1375 kWh 509 kWh £351 £51 £402 £9,319 23.2 yrs £-1,275
3 kW 2825 kWh 2063 kWh 763 kWh £527 £76 £603 £11,354 18.8 yrs £712
4 kW 3767 kWh 2750 kWh 1017 kWh £703 £102 £804 £13,388 16.6 yrs £2,699
5 kW 4709 kWh 3438 kWh 1271 kWh £878 £127 £1,005 £15,423 15.3 yrs £4,686
6 kW 5651 kWh 4125 kWh 1526 kWh £1,054 £153 £1,207 £17,457 14.5 yrs £6,674
7 kW 6593 kWh 4813 kWh 1780 kWh £1,230 £178 £1,408 £19,492 13.8 yrs £8,661
8 kW 7534 kWh 5500 kWh 2034 kWh £1,405 £203 £1,609 £21,526 13.4 yrs £10,648

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: £1,020, Upfront: £17,173, Break-even: 16.8 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1884 kWh 1413 kWh 471 kWh £361 £47 £408 £11,069 27.1 yrs £-2,908
3 kW 2825 kWh 2119 kWh 706 kWh £541 £71 £612 £13,104 21.4 yrs £-862
4 kW 3767 kWh 2825 kWh 942 kWh £722 £94 £816 £15,138 18.5 yrs £1,183
5 kW 4709 kWh 3532 kWh 1177 kWh £902 £118 £1,020 £17,173 16.8 yrs £3,229
6 kW 5651 kWh 4238 kWh 1413 kWh £1,083 £141 £1,224 £19,207 15.7 yrs £5,275
7 kW 6593 kWh 4944 kWh 1648 kWh £1,263 £165 £1,428 £21,242 14.9 yrs £7,321
8 kW 7534 kWh 5651 kWh 1884 kWh £1,444 £188 £1,632 £23,276 14.3 yrs £9,367

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: £1,035, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 19.0 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1884 kWh 1450 kWh 433 kWh £371 £43 £414 £13,519 32.7 yrs £-5,241
3 kW 2825 kWh 2176 kWh 650 kWh £556 £65 £621 £15,554 25.1 yrs £-3,137
4 kW 3767 kWh 2901 kWh 866 kWh £741 £87 £828 £17,588 21.2 yrs £-1,032
5 kW 4709 kWh 3626 kWh 1083 kWh £926 £108 £1,035 £19,623 19.0 yrs £1,072
6 kW 5651 kWh 4351 kWh 1300 kWh £1,112 £130 £1,242 £21,657 17.4 yrs £3,177
7 kW 6593 kWh 5076 kWh 1516 kWh £1,297 £152 £1,449 £23,692 16.4 yrs £5,281
8 kW 7534 kWh 5801 kWh 1733 kWh £1,482 £173 £1,656 £25,726 15.5 yrs £7,385

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 NG7

Figures below are tailored to NG7 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #1934 of 2182
4.2 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~9 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #1883 of 2997
11.6 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£874 /yr • £10,173 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #1508 of 2997
20.5% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£179 fixed • ~£874 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
25.55p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
49.09p/day
Local Sunshine
942kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~942 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: 55% • Flats: 40% • Bungalows: 1% Based on 21,961 properties

Coverage

Nottingham (100%)

Areas Covered

Hyson Green & Arboretum, Radford, Lenton & Wollaton East, Berridge, Bilborough, Castle, Wollaton West, Leen Valley

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 East Midlands

NG1 (Nottingham)
≈1.8 km away
Local sunshine: ~949 kWh/kWp · +1% vs NG7
NG3 (Nottingham)
≈2.8 km away
Local sunshine: ~949 kWh/kWp · +1% vs NG7
NG8 (Nottingham)
≈3.3 km away
Local sunshine: ~942 kWh/kWp · +0% vs NG7
NG2 (Nottingham)
≈3.3 km away
Local sunshine: ~953 kWh/kWp · +1% vs NG7
NG80 (Broxtowe)
≈3.7 km away
Local sunshine: ~953 kWh/kWp · +1% vs NG7
NG90 (Broxtowe)
≈4.0 km away
Local sunshine: ~953 kWh/kWp · +1% vs NG7

Similar sunshine across the UK

B35 (Birmingham)
~942 kWh/kWp · +0% vs NG7
CH4 (Cheshire West and Chester)
~942 kWh/kWp · +0% vs NG7
B24 (Birmingham)
~942 kWh/kWp · +0% vs NG7