Solar explained to clever people by people who are not trying to be clever

Solar Panels in NR22 (North Norfolk)

See if solar pays off for you in North Norfolk — 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
12.1 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£10,173
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£843
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£10,907
After paying itself off, you're this much ahead

Ready to Get Started?

Get your free quote from Blue Ape Renewables. They'll connect you with MCS-certified installers in your area and handle all the paperwork.

Get Solar Quote →
4.8★ Trustpilot • Octopus Energy trusted partner • MCS certified • No obligation
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

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 1015 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 26.5p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
26.5p/kWh
Standing charge
48.2p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
1015 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: £843, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 12.1 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2030 kWh 812 kWh 1218 kWh £215 £122 £337 £4,069 12.1 yrs £2,677
3 kW 3045 kWh 1218 kWh 1827 kWh £323 £183 £506 £6,104 12.1 yrs £4,015
4 kW 4061 kWh 1624 kWh 2436 kWh £431 £244 £675 £8,138 12.1 yrs £5,353
5 kW 5076 kWh 2030 kWh 3045 kWh £539 £305 £843 £10,173 12.1 yrs £6,691
6 kW 6091 kWh 2436 kWh 3655 kWh £646 £365 £1,012 £12,207 12.1 yrs £8,030
7 kW 7106 kWh 2842 kWh 4264 kWh £754 £426 £1,180 £14,242 12.1 yrs £9,368
8 kW 8121 kWh 3249 kWh 4873 kWh £862 £487 £1,349 £16,276 12.1 yrs £10,706

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: £1,011, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 12.1 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2030 kWh 1218 kWh 812 kWh £323 £81 £404 £6,169 15.3 yrs £1,919
3 kW 3045 kWh 1827 kWh 1218 kWh £485 £122 £607 £8,204 13.5 yrs £3,928
4 kW 4061 kWh 2436 kWh 1624 kWh £646 £162 £809 £10,238 12.7 yrs £5,938
5 kW 5076 kWh 3045 kWh 2030 kWh £808 £203 £1,011 £12,273 12.1 yrs £7,947
6 kW 6091 kWh 3655 kWh 2436 kWh £970 £244 £1,213 £14,307 11.8 yrs £9,957
7 kW 7106 kWh 4264 kWh 2842 kWh £1,131 £284 £1,415 £16,342 11.5 yrs £11,966
8 kW 8121 kWh 4873 kWh 3249 kWh £1,293 £325 £1,618 £18,376 11.4 yrs £13,976

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: £1,095, Upfront: £13,673, Break-even: 12.5 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2030 kWh 1421 kWh 609 kWh £377 £61 £438 £7,569 17.3 yrs £1,190
3 kW 3045 kWh 2132 kWh 914 kWh £566 £91 £657 £9,604 14.6 yrs £3,535
4 kW 4061 kWh 2842 kWh 1218 kWh £754 £122 £876 £11,638 13.3 yrs £5,880
5 kW 5076 kWh 3553 kWh 1523 kWh £943 £152 £1,095 £13,673 12.5 yrs £8,225
6 kW 6091 kWh 4264 kWh 1827 kWh £1,131 £183 £1,314 £15,707 12.0 yrs £10,571
7 kW 7106 kWh 4974 kWh 2132 kWh £1,320 £213 £1,533 £17,742 11.6 yrs £12,916
8 kW 8121 kWh 5685 kWh 2436 kWh £1,508 £244 £1,752 £19,776 11.3 yrs £15,261

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: £1,120, Upfront: £15,423, Break-even: 13.8 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2030 kWh 1482 kWh 548 kWh £393 £55 £448 £9,319 20.8 yrs £-358
3 kW 3045 kWh 2223 kWh 822 kWh £590 £82 £672 £11,354 16.9 yrs £2,087
4 kW 4061 kWh 2964 kWh 1096 kWh £786 £110 £896 £13,388 14.9 yrs £4,533
5 kW 5076 kWh 3705 kWh 1370 kWh £983 £137 £1,120 £15,423 13.8 yrs £6,979
6 kW 6091 kWh 4446 kWh 1645 kWh £1,180 £164 £1,344 £17,457 13.0 yrs £9,425
7 kW 7106 kWh 5187 kWh 1919 kWh £1,376 £192 £1,568 £19,492 12.4 yrs £11,870
8 kW 8121 kWh 5929 kWh 2193 kWh £1,573 £219 £1,792 £21,526 12.0 yrs £14,316

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: £1,137, Upfront: £17,173, 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 2030 kWh 1523 kWh 508 kWh £404 £51 £455 £11,069 24.3 yrs £-1,974
3 kW 3045 kWh 2284 kWh 761 kWh £606 £76 £682 £13,104 19.2 yrs £539
4 kW 4061 kWh 3045 kWh 1015 kWh £808 £102 £909 £15,138 16.6 yrs £3,052
5 kW 5076 kWh 3807 kWh 1269 kWh £1,010 £127 £1,137 £17,173 15.1 yrs £5,564
6 kW 6091 kWh 4568 kWh 1523 kWh £1,212 £152 £1,364 £19,207 14.1 yrs £8,077
7 kW 7106 kWh 5330 kWh 1777 kWh £1,414 £178 £1,592 £21,242 13.3 yrs £10,590
8 kW 8121 kWh 6091 kWh 2030 kWh £1,616 £203 £1,819 £23,276 12.8 yrs £13,103

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: £1,154, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 17.0 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 2030 kWh 1563 kWh 467 kWh £415 £47 £461 £13,519 29.3 yrs £-4,290
3 kW 3045 kWh 2345 kWh 700 kWh £622 £70 £692 £15,554 22.5 yrs £-1,710
4 kW 4061 kWh 3127 kWh 934 kWh £830 £93 £923 £17,588 19.1 yrs £870
5 kW 5076 kWh 3908 kWh 1167 kWh £1,037 £117 £1,154 £19,623 17.0 yrs £3,450
6 kW 6091 kWh 4690 kWh 1401 kWh £1,244 £140 £1,384 £21,657 15.6 yrs £6,030
7 kW 7106 kWh 5472 kWh 1634 kWh £1,452 £163 £1,615 £23,692 14.7 yrs £8,610
8 kW 8121 kWh 6253 kWh 1868 kWh £1,659 £187 £1,846 £25,726 13.9 yrs £11,190

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.

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
26.53p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
48.25p/day
Local Sunshine
1015kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~1015 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: 81% • Flats: 3% • Bungalows: 15% Based on 367 properties

Coverage

North Norfolk (96%)|King's Lynn and West Norfolk (4%)

Areas Covered

Walsingham, Bircham with Rudhams, Lancaster South

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.