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Solar panel cost in Highland (PH31)

See realistic solar installation costs, savings and payback for PH31 (Highland) 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
13.8 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£8,139
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£589
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£6,589
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: The official cost per kW is lower above 4 kW, so a 5–6 kW system can pay back a little faster than a 3–4 kW system on otherwise identical assumptions.
  • 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

Panel costs: Uses March 2026 TIC mean installation costs: £1,827/kW up to 4 kW and £1,628/kW above 4 kW.

Other costs: Battery prices are modelled at £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 Scotland, the current unit rate is 26.42p/kWh with a 57.55p/day standing charge. Your postcode’s south-facing sunshine yield is 711 kWh/kW — 104 below the regional median (815).

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 711 kWh per year on a south-facing roof. We value self-used electricity at 26.4p and exported surplus at a baseline 10p via SEG. Use the calculator above for your exact tariff.

Unit rate
26.4p/kWh
Standing charge
57.5p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
711 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: £589, Upfront: £8,139, 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 1422 kWh 569 kWh 853 kWh £150 £85 £236 £3,256 13.8 yrs £1,457
3 kW 2133 kWh 853 kWh 1280 kWh £225 £128 £353 £4,883 13.8 yrs £2,186
4 kW 2845 kWh 1138 kWh 1707 kWh £301 £171 £471 £6,511 13.8 yrs £2,915
5 kW 3556 kWh 1422 kWh 2133 kWh £376 £213 £589 £8,139 13.8 yrs £3,643
6 kW 4267 kWh 1707 kWh 2560 kWh £451 £256 £707 £9,767 13.8 yrs £4,372
7 kW 4978 kWh 1991 kWh 2987 kWh £526 £299 £825 £11,394 13.8 yrs £5,100
8 kW 5689 kWh 2276 kWh 3413 kWh £601 £341 £943 £13,022 13.8 yrs £5,829

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 1,628, battery £/kWh = 700.

3 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £706, Upfront: £10,239, Break-even: 14.5 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1422 kWh 853 kWh 569 kWh £225 £57 £282 £5,356 19.0 yrs £291
3 kW 2133 kWh 1280 kWh 853 kWh £338 £85 £424 £6,983 16.5 yrs £1,487
4 kW 2845 kWh 1707 kWh 1138 kWh £451 £114 £565 £8,611 15.2 yrs £2,683
5 kW 3556 kWh 2133 kWh 1422 kWh £564 £142 £706 £10,239 14.5 yrs £3,879
6 kW 4267 kWh 2560 kWh 1707 kWh £676 £171 £847 £11,867 14.0 yrs £5,074
7 kW 4978 kWh 2987 kWh 1991 kWh £789 £199 £988 £13,494 13.7 yrs £6,270
8 kW 5689 kWh 3413 kWh 2276 kWh £902 £228 £1,129 £15,122 13.4 yrs £7,466

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 1,628, battery £/kWh = 700.

5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £764, Upfront: £11,639, Break-even: 15.2 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1422 kWh 996 kWh 427 kWh £263 £43 £306 £6,756 22.1 yrs £-642
3 kW 2133 kWh 1493 kWh 640 kWh £395 £64 £459 £8,383 18.3 yrs £788
4 kW 2845 kWh 1991 kWh 853 kWh £526 £85 £611 £10,011 16.4 yrs £2,217
5 kW 3556 kWh 2489 kWh 1067 kWh £658 £107 £764 £11,639 15.2 yrs £3,646
6 kW 4267 kWh 2987 kWh 1280 kWh £789 £128 £917 £13,267 14.5 yrs £5,075
7 kW 4978 kWh 3485 kWh 1493 kWh £921 £149 £1,070 £14,894 13.9 yrs £6,505
8 kW 5689 kWh 3982 kWh 1707 kWh £1,052 £171 £1,223 £16,522 13.5 yrs £7,934

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 1,628, battery £/kWh = 700.

7.5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £782, Upfront: £13,389, 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 1422 kWh 1038 kWh 384 kWh £274 £38 £313 £8,506 27.2 yrs £-2,251
3 kW 2133 kWh 1557 kWh 576 kWh £411 £58 £469 £10,133 21.6 yrs £-752
4 kW 2845 kWh 2076 kWh 768 kWh £549 £77 £625 £11,761 18.8 yrs £747
5 kW 3556 kWh 2596 kWh 960 kWh £686 £96 £782 £13,389 17.1 yrs £2,247
6 kW 4267 kWh 3115 kWh 1152 kWh £823 £115 £938 £15,017 16.0 yrs £3,746
7 kW 4978 kWh 3634 kWh 1344 kWh £960 £134 £1,094 £16,644 15.2 yrs £5,245
8 kW 5689 kWh 4153 kWh 1536 kWh £1,097 £154 £1,251 £18,272 14.6 yrs £6,744

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 1,628, battery £/kWh = 700.

10 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £793, Upfront: £15,139, Break-even: 19.1 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1422 kWh 1067 kWh 356 kWh £282 £36 £317 £10,256 32.3 yrs £-3,908
3 kW 2133 kWh 1600 kWh 533 kWh £423 £53 £476 £11,883 25.0 yrs £-2,362
4 kW 2845 kWh 2133 kWh 711 kWh £564 £71 £635 £13,511 21.3 yrs £-816
5 kW 3556 kWh 2667 kWh 889 kWh £705 £89 £793 £15,139 19.1 yrs £730
6 kW 4267 kWh 3200 kWh 1067 kWh £845 £107 £952 £16,767 17.6 yrs £2,276
7 kW 4978 kWh 3733 kWh 1244 kWh £986 £124 £1,111 £18,394 16.6 yrs £3,822
8 kW 5689 kWh 4267 kWh 1422 kWh £1,127 £142 £1,270 £20,022 15.8 yrs £5,368

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 1,628, battery £/kWh = 700.

13.5 kWh battery 5 kW example → Annual benefit: £805, Upfront: £17,589, Break-even: 21.8 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1422 kWh 1095 kWh 327 kWh £289 £33 £322 £12,706 39.5 yrs £-6,265
3 kW 2133 kWh 1643 kWh 491 kWh £434 £49 £483 £14,333 29.7 yrs £-4,672
4 kW 2845 kWh 2190 kWh 654 kWh £579 £65 £644 £15,961 24.8 yrs £-3,079
5 kW 3556 kWh 2738 kWh 818 kWh £723 £82 £805 £17,589 21.8 yrs £-1,486
6 kW 4267 kWh 3285 kWh 981 kWh £868 £98 £966 £19,217 19.9 yrs £106
7 kW 4978 kWh 3833 kWh 1145 kWh £1,013 £114 £1,127 £20,844 18.5 yrs £1,699
8 kW 5689 kWh 4381 kWh 1308 kWh £1,157 £131 £1,288 £22,472 17.4 yrs £3,292

Assumptions: south-facing, sensible tilt; self-use shares from site rules; export at 10p baseline. Costs: panels £/kW = 1,628, 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.

Before you request quotes in Highland

Use the numbers above to sanity-check installer quotes. The main things to compare are system size, battery assumptions, payback claims, MCS certification, DNO paperwork and export assumptions.

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Understand DNO, G98 and G99 export limits

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Insights for PH31

Figures below are tailored to PH31 — click through for full league tables.

Solar Payback Index Rank #2978 of 2996
15.5 years (UK avg 10.8 years)
~£471 /yr • £7,307 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #2975 of 2996
44.6% (UK avg 26.6%) drag on savings
£210 fixed • ~£471 /yr value
Aspect Penalty View ranking →
East −16.6% West −17.0%
Typical output loss versus a south-facing roof (lower is better)

Seasonal solar output in PH31

Monthly generation per kilowatt of solar panels

kWh 11 Jan 30 Feb 64 Mar 92 Apr 105 May 98 Jun 100 Jul 85 Aug 59 Sep 40 Oct 18 Nov 10 Dec
Best month Worst month Winter (Dec–Feb) Other months

Winter output: 28.6% of an average month (Dec–Feb)

Best / worst month: May / Dec

These figures show output per kilowatt (kW) of panels installed. In winter, a 1 kW system here produces about 17 kWh per month; the average month produces around 59 kWh. So a typical 4 kW home system would generate roughly 68 kWh in winter, or 237 kWh in an average month.

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
26.42p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
57.55p/day
Local Sunshine
711kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~711 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

No EPC data available for this outcode

Coverage

Highland (100%)

Areas Covered

Caol and Mallaig

Data Sources & Assumptions

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

Electricity rates: Ofgem price cap, Q3 2026

Installation costs: DESNZ/MCS data, March 2026 (TIC)

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 Scotland

PH34 (Highland)
≈5.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~701 kWh/kWp · -1% vs PH31
PH30 (Highland)
≈18.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~740 kWh/kWp · +4% vs PH31
PH33 (Highland)
≈18.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~668 kWh/kWp · -6% vs PH31
PH35 (Highland)
≈19.9 km away
Local sunshine: ~687 kWh/kWp · -3% vs PH31
PH50 (Highland)
≈21.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~653 kWh/kWp · -8% vs PH31
PA40 (Highland)
≈21.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~633 kWh/kWp · -11% vs PH31

Similar sunshine across the UK

PA19 (Inverclyde)
~756 kWh/kWp · +6% vs PH31
IV26 (Highland)
~711 kWh/kWp · -0% vs PH31
IV41 (Highland)
~712 kWh/kWp · +0% vs PH31