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Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in OL12 (Rochdale)

See if solar pays off for you in Rochdale — 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
14.3 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£8,138
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£568
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£6,055
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 843 kWh/kW — 27 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 843 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)
843 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: £710, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 14.3 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1685 kWh 674 kWh 1011 kWh £183 £101 £284 £4,069 14.3 yrs £1,608
3 kW 2528 kWh 1011 kWh 1517 kWh £274 £152 £426 £6,104 14.3 yrs £2,412
4 kW 3370 kWh 1348 kWh 2022 kWh £365 £202 £568 £8,138 14.3 yrs £3,216
5 kW 4213 kWh 1685 kWh 2528 kWh £457 £253 £710 £10,173 14.3 yrs £4,020
6 kW 5056 kWh 2022 kWh 3033 kWh £548 £303 £852 £12,207 14.3 yrs £4,824
7 kW 5898 kWh 2359 kWh 3539 kWh £640 £354 £993 £14,242 14.3 yrs £5,628
8 kW 6741 kWh 2696 kWh 4044 kWh £731 £404 £1,135 £16,276 14.3 yrs £6,432

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: £854, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 14.4 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1685 kWh 1011 kWh 674 kWh £274 £67 £342 £6,169 18.1 yrs £661
3 kW 2528 kWh 1517 kWh 1011 kWh £411 £101 £512 £8,204 16.0 yrs £2,042
4 kW 3370 kWh 2022 kWh 1348 kWh £548 £135 £683 £10,238 15.0 yrs £3,423
5 kW 4213 kWh 2528 kWh 1685 kWh £685 £169 £854 £12,273 14.4 yrs £4,803
6 kW 5056 kWh 3033 kWh 2022 kWh £822 £202 £1,025 £14,307 14.0 yrs £6,184
7 kW 5898 kWh 3539 kWh 2359 kWh £959 £236 £1,195 £16,342 13.7 yrs £7,565
8 kW 6741 kWh 4044 kWh 2696 kWh £1,096 £270 £1,366 £18,376 13.5 yrs £8,945

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: £926, Upfront: £13,673, Break-even: 14.8 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1685 kWh 1180 kWh 506 kWh £320 £51 £370 £7,569 20.4 yrs £-162
3 kW 2528 kWh 1769 kWh 758 kWh £480 £76 £556 £9,604 17.3 yrs £1,507
4 kW 3370 kWh 2359 kWh 1011 kWh £640 £101 £741 £11,638 15.7 yrs £3,176
5 kW 4213 kWh 2949 kWh 1264 kWh £799 £126 £926 £13,673 14.8 yrs £4,845
6 kW 5056 kWh 3539 kWh 1517 kWh £959 £152 £1,111 £15,707 14.1 yrs £6,514
7 kW 5898 kWh 4129 kWh 1769 kWh £1,119 £177 £1,296 £17,742 13.7 yrs £8,183
8 kW 6741 kWh 4719 kWh 2022 kWh £1,279 £202 £1,481 £19,776 13.3 yrs £9,852

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: £948, Upfront: £15,423, Break-even: 16.3 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1685 kWh 1230 kWh 455 kWh £334 £45 £379 £9,319 24.6 yrs £-1,739
3 kW 2528 kWh 1845 kWh 682 kWh £500 £68 £569 £11,354 20.0 yrs £17
4 kW 3370 kWh 2460 kWh 910 kWh £667 £91 £758 £13,388 17.7 yrs £1,772
5 kW 4213 kWh 3075 kWh 1137 kWh £834 £114 £948 £15,423 16.3 yrs £3,528
6 kW 5056 kWh 3691 kWh 1365 kWh £1,001 £136 £1,137 £17,457 15.4 yrs £5,283
7 kW 5898 kWh 4306 kWh 1592 kWh £1,167 £159 £1,327 £19,492 14.7 yrs £7,039
8 kW 6741 kWh 4921 kWh 1820 kWh £1,334 £182 £1,516 £21,526 14.2 yrs £8,794

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: £962, Upfront: £17,173, Break-even: 17.9 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1685 kWh 1264 kWh 421 kWh £343 £42 £385 £11,069 28.8 yrs £-3,374
3 kW 2528 kWh 1896 kWh 632 kWh £514 £63 £577 £13,104 22.7 yrs £-1,560
4 kW 3370 kWh 2528 kWh 843 kWh £685 £84 £770 £15,138 19.7 yrs £253
5 kW 4213 kWh 3160 kWh 1053 kWh £857 £105 £962 £17,173 17.9 yrs £2,066
6 kW 5056 kWh 3792 kWh 1264 kWh £1,028 £126 £1,154 £19,207 16.6 yrs £3,879
7 kW 5898 kWh 4424 kWh 1475 kWh £1,199 £147 £1,347 £21,242 15.8 yrs £5,692
8 kW 6741 kWh 5056 kWh 1685 kWh £1,371 £169 £1,539 £23,276 15.1 yrs £7,505

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: £976, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 20.1 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1685 kWh 1298 kWh 388 kWh £352 £39 £391 £13,519 34.6 yrs £-5,708
3 kW 2528 kWh 1946 kWh 581 kWh £528 £58 £586 £15,554 26.6 yrs £-3,837
4 kW 3370 kWh 2595 kWh 775 kWh £704 £78 £781 £17,588 22.5 yrs £-1,967
5 kW 4213 kWh 3244 kWh 969 kWh £879 £97 £976 £19,623 20.1 yrs £-96
6 kW 5056 kWh 3893 kWh 1163 kWh £1,055 £116 £1,172 £21,657 18.5 yrs £1,775
7 kW 5898 kWh 4542 kWh 1357 kWh £1,231 £136 £1,367 £23,692 17.3 yrs £3,646
8 kW 6741 kWh 5190 kWh 1550 kWh £1,407 £155 £1,562 £25,726 16.5 yrs £5,517

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 OL12

Figures below are tailored to OL12 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #1823 of 2182
4.4 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~9 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #2621 of 2997
12.4 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£654 /yr • £8,138 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #2609 of 2997
28.6% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£187 fixed • ~£654 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
27.11p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
51.16p/day
Local Sunshine
843kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~843 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: 70% • Flats: 20% • Bungalows: 9% Based on 12,183 properties

Coverage

Rochdale (82%)|Rossendale (18%)

Areas Covered

Healey, Central Rochdale, Whitworth, Spotland & Falinge, Norden, Smallbridge & Firgrove, Wardle, Shore & West Littleborough + 3 more

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

OL16 (Rochdale)
≈2.3 km away
Local sunshine: ~833 kWh/kWp · -1% vs OL12
OL11 (Rochdale)
≈2.6 km away
Local sunshine: ~833 kWh/kWp · -1% vs OL12
OL15 (Rochdale)
≈4.5 km away
Local sunshine: ~834 kWh/kWp · -1% vs OL12
OL10 (Rochdale)
≈5.6 km away
Local sunshine: ~851 kWh/kWp · +1% vs OL12
OL2 (Oldham)
≈7.4 km away
Local sunshine: ~832 kWh/kWp · -1% vs OL12
OL13 (Rossendale)
≈8.3 km away
Local sunshine: ~838 kWh/kWp · -0% vs OL12

Similar sunshine across the UK

BT53 (Causeway Coast and Glens)
~842 kWh/kWp · -0% vs OL12
PA13 (Inverclyde)
~842 kWh/kWp · -0% vs OL12
PA98 (Renfrewshire)
~843 kWh/kWp · +0% vs OL12