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Solar panel cost in Highland (PH42)

See realistic solar installation costs, savings and payback for PH42 (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
12.4 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£8,139
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£657
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£8,276
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 793 kWh/kW — 22 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 793 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)
793 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: £657, Upfront: £8,139, Break-even: 12.4 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1585 kWh 634 kWh 951 kWh £168 £95 £263 £3,256 12.4 yrs £1,997
3 kW 2378 kWh 951 kWh 1427 kWh £251 £143 £394 £4,883 12.4 yrs £2,996
4 kW 3170 kWh 1268 kWh 1902 kWh £335 £190 £525 £6,511 12.4 yrs £3,995
5 kW 3963 kWh 1585 kWh 2378 kWh £419 £238 £657 £8,139 12.4 yrs £4,993
6 kW 4756 kWh 1902 kWh 2853 kWh £503 £285 £788 £9,767 12.4 yrs £5,992
7 kW 5548 kWh 2219 kWh 3329 kWh £586 £333 £919 £11,394 12.4 yrs £6,990
8 kW 6341 kWh 2536 kWh 3805 kWh £670 £380 £1,051 £13,022 12.4 yrs £7,989

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: £787, Upfront: £10,239, Break-even: 13.0 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1585 kWh 951 kWh 634 kWh £251 £63 £315 £5,356 17.0 yrs £938
3 kW 2378 kWh 1427 kWh 951 kWh £377 £95 £472 £6,983 14.8 yrs £2,458
4 kW 3170 kWh 1902 kWh 1268 kWh £503 £127 £629 £8,611 13.7 yrs £3,977
5 kW 3963 kWh 2378 kWh 1585 kWh £628 £159 £787 £10,239 13.0 yrs £5,496
6 kW 4756 kWh 2853 kWh 1902 kWh £754 £190 £944 £11,867 12.6 yrs £7,015
7 kW 5548 kWh 3329 kWh 2219 kWh £880 £222 £1,101 £13,494 12.3 yrs £8,535
8 kW 6341 kWh 3805 kWh 2536 kWh £1,005 £254 £1,259 £15,122 12.0 yrs £10,054

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: £852, Upfront: £11,639, 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 1585 kWh 1110 kWh 476 kWh £293 £48 £341 £6,756 19.8 yrs £59
3 kW 2378 kWh 1664 kWh 713 kWh £440 £71 £511 £8,383 16.4 yrs £1,839
4 kW 3170 kWh 2219 kWh 951 kWh £586 £95 £681 £10,011 14.7 yrs £3,618
5 kW 3963 kWh 2774 kWh 1189 kWh £733 £119 £852 £11,639 13.7 yrs £5,398
6 kW 4756 kWh 3329 kWh 1427 kWh £880 £143 £1,022 £13,267 13.0 yrs £7,177
7 kW 5548 kWh 3884 kWh 1664 kWh £1,026 £166 £1,193 £14,894 12.5 yrs £8,957
8 kW 6341 kWh 4439 kWh 1902 kWh £1,173 £190 £1,363 £16,522 12.1 yrs £10,736

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: £871, Upfront: £13,389, Break-even: 15.4 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1585 kWh 1157 kWh 428 kWh £306 £43 £349 £8,506 24.4 yrs £-1,535
3 kW 2378 kWh 1736 kWh 642 kWh £459 £64 £523 £10,133 19.4 yrs £323
4 kW 3170 kWh 2314 kWh 856 kWh £611 £86 £697 £11,761 16.9 yrs £2,180
5 kW 3963 kWh 2893 kWh 1070 kWh £764 £107 £871 £13,389 15.4 yrs £4,038
6 kW 4756 kWh 3472 kWh 1284 kWh £917 £128 £1,046 £15,017 14.4 yrs £5,896
7 kW 5548 kWh 4050 kWh 1498 kWh £1,070 £150 £1,220 £16,644 13.6 yrs £7,753
8 kW 6341 kWh 4629 kWh 1712 kWh £1,223 £171 £1,394 £18,272 13.1 yrs £9,611

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: £884, Upfront: £15,139, 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 1585 kWh 1189 kWh 396 kWh £314 £40 £354 £10,256 29.0 yrs £-3,181
3 kW 2378 kWh 1783 kWh 594 kWh £471 £59 £531 £11,883 22.4 yrs £-1,271
4 kW 3170 kWh 2378 kWh 793 kWh £628 £79 £707 £13,511 19.1 yrs £639
5 kW 3963 kWh 2972 kWh 991 kWh £785 £99 £884 £15,139 17.1 yrs £2,548
6 kW 4756 kWh 3567 kWh 1189 kWh £942 £119 £1,061 £16,767 15.8 yrs £4,458
7 kW 5548 kWh 4161 kWh 1387 kWh £1,099 £139 £1,238 £18,394 14.9 yrs £6,368
8 kW 6341 kWh 4756 kWh 1585 kWh £1,256 £159 £1,415 £20,022 14.2 yrs £8,277

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: £897, Upfront: £17,589, Break-even: 19.6 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1585 kWh 1221 kWh 365 kWh £322 £36 £359 £12,706 35.4 yrs £-5,527
3 kW 2378 kWh 1831 kWh 547 kWh £484 £55 £538 £14,333 26.6 yrs £-3,565
4 kW 3170 kWh 2441 kWh 729 kWh £645 £73 £718 £15,961 22.2 yrs £-1,603
5 kW 3963 kWh 3052 kWh 912 kWh £806 £91 £897 £17,589 19.6 yrs £359
6 kW 4756 kWh 3662 kWh 1094 kWh £967 £109 £1,077 £19,217 17.8 yrs £2,320
7 kW 5548 kWh 4272 kWh 1276 kWh £1,129 £128 £1,256 £20,844 16.6 yrs £4,282
8 kW 6341 kWh 4882 kWh 1458 kWh £1,290 £146 £1,436 £22,472 15.7 yrs £6,244

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 PH42

Figures below are tailored to PH42 — click through for full league tables.

Solar Payback Index Rank #2904 of 2996
13.9 years (UK avg 10.8 years)
~£526 /yr • £7,307 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #2848 of 2996
39.9% (UK avg 26.6%) drag on savings
£210 fixed • ~£526 /yr value
Aspect Penalty View ranking →
East −19.9% West −21.2%
Typical output loss versus a south-facing roof (lower is better)

Seasonal solar output in PH42

Monthly generation per kilowatt of solar panels

kWh 16 Jan 33 Feb 67 Mar 104 Apr 119 May 113 Jun 107 Jul 93 Aug 64 Sep 42 Oct 22 Nov 12 Dec
Best month Worst month Winter (Dec–Feb) Other months

Winter output: 31.1% 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 21 kWh per month; the average month produces around 66 kWh. So a typical 4 kW home system would generate roughly 82 kWh in winter, or 264 kWh in an average month.

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
26.42p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
57.55p/day
Local Sunshine
793kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~793 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

PH43 (Highland)
≈17.1 km away
Local sunshine: ~789 kWh/kWp · -0% vs PH42
PH39 (Highland)
≈21.7 km away
Local sunshine: ~735 kWh/kWp · -7% vs PH42
PH40 (Highland)
≈24.9 km away
Local sunshine: ~732 kWh/kWp · -8% vs PH42
PH41 (Highland)
≈26.8 km away
Local sunshine: ~799 kWh/kWp · +1% vs PH42
IV45 (Highland)
≈27.2 km away
Local sunshine: ~749 kWh/kWp · -5% vs PH42
PH36 (Highland)
≈27.9 km away
Local sunshine: ~746 kWh/kWp · -6% vs PH42

Similar sunshine across the UK

CA17 (Westmorland and Furness)
~792 kWh/kWp · -0% vs PH42
LL57 (Gwynedd)
~792 kWh/kWp · -0% vs PH42
DG10 (Dumfries and Galloway)
~794 kWh/kWp · +0% vs PH42