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Big Roof Britain Solar Payback Index Standing Charge Drag

Solar Panels in SW11 (Wandsworth)

See if solar pays off for you in Wandsworth — 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
12.6 years
After this, it's pure profit
Upfront Cost
£6,104
What you pay to get started
Annual Benefit
£484
What you save every year
Profit Over 25 Years
£5,986
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 London, the current unit rate is 25.63p/kWh with a 46.06p/day standing charge. Your postcode’s south-facing sunshine yield is 992 kWh/kW — 1 above the regional median (991).

Read the full story

A typical roof here lands around 3.0 kW, with most eligible homes comfortably fitting within 3–6 kW. Each kilowatt of panels produces roughly 992 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
46.1p/day
Sunshine yield (south)
992 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: £806, Upfront: £10,173, Break-even: 12.6 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1984 kWh 794 kWh 1190 kWh £203 £119 £322 £4,069 12.6 yrs £2,379
3 kW 2976 kWh 1190 kWh 1785 kWh £305 £179 £484 £6,104 12.6 yrs £3,568
4 kW 3968 kWh 1587 kWh 2381 kWh £407 £238 £645 £8,138 12.6 yrs £4,758
5 kW 4959 kWh 1984 kWh 2976 kWh £508 £298 £806 £10,173 12.6 yrs £5,947
6 kW 5951 kWh 2381 kWh 3571 kWh £610 £357 £967 £12,207 12.6 yrs £7,137
7 kW 6943 kWh 2777 kWh 4166 kWh £712 £417 £1,128 £14,242 12.6 yrs £8,326
8 kW 7935 kWh 3174 kWh 4761 kWh £814 £476 £1,290 £16,276 12.6 yrs £9,516

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: £961, Upfront: £12,273, Break-even: 12.8 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1984 kWh 1190 kWh 794 kWh £305 £79 £384 £6,169 16.0 yrs £1,519
3 kW 2976 kWh 1785 kWh 1190 kWh £458 £119 £577 £8,204 14.2 yrs £3,329
4 kW 3968 kWh 2381 kWh 1587 kWh £610 £159 £769 £10,238 13.3 yrs £5,138
5 kW 4959 kWh 2976 kWh 1984 kWh £763 £198 £961 £12,273 12.8 yrs £6,948
6 kW 5951 kWh 3571 kWh 2381 kWh £915 £238 £1,153 £14,307 12.4 yrs £8,758
7 kW 6943 kWh 4166 kWh 2777 kWh £1,068 £278 £1,345 £16,342 12.1 yrs £10,567
8 kW 7935 kWh 4761 kWh 3174 kWh £1,220 £317 £1,538 £18,376 12.0 yrs £12,377

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: £1,039, Upfront: £13,673, Break-even: 13.2 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1984 kWh 1389 kWh 595 kWh £356 £60 £415 £7,569 18.2 yrs £739
3 kW 2976 kWh 2083 kWh 893 kWh £534 £89 £623 £9,604 15.4 yrs £2,859
4 kW 3968 kWh 2777 kWh 1190 kWh £712 £119 £831 £11,638 14.0 yrs £4,979
5 kW 4959 kWh 3472 kWh 1488 kWh £890 £149 £1,039 £13,673 13.2 yrs £7,098
6 kW 5951 kWh 4166 kWh 1785 kWh £1,068 £179 £1,246 £15,707 12.6 yrs £9,218
7 kW 6943 kWh 4860 kWh 2083 kWh £1,246 £208 £1,454 £17,742 12.2 yrs £11,338
8 kW 7935 kWh 5555 kWh 2381 kWh £1,424 £238 £1,662 £19,776 11.9 yrs £13,457

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: £1,062, Upfront: £15,423, 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 1984 kWh 1448 kWh 536 kWh £371 £54 £425 £9,319 21.9 yrs £-825
3 kW 2976 kWh 2172 kWh 803 kWh £557 £80 £637 £11,354 17.8 yrs £1,388
4 kW 3968 kWh 2896 kWh 1071 kWh £742 £107 £849 £13,388 15.8 yrs £3,601
5 kW 4959 kWh 3620 kWh 1339 kWh £928 £134 £1,062 £15,423 14.5 yrs £5,814
6 kW 5951 kWh 4344 kWh 1607 kWh £1,113 £161 £1,274 £17,457 13.7 yrs £8,026
7 kW 6943 kWh 5069 kWh 1875 kWh £1,299 £187 £1,487 £19,492 13.1 yrs £10,239
8 kW 7935 kWh 5793 kWh 2142 kWh £1,485 £214 £1,699 £21,526 12.7 yrs £12,452

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: £1,077, Upfront: £17,173, Break-even: 15.9 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1984 kWh 1488 kWh 496 kWh £381 £50 £431 £11,069 25.7 yrs £-2,451
3 kW 2976 kWh 2232 kWh 744 kWh £572 £74 £646 £13,104 20.3 yrs £-176
4 kW 3968 kWh 2976 kWh 992 kWh £763 £99 £862 £15,138 17.6 yrs £2,099
5 kW 4959 kWh 3720 kWh 1240 kWh £953 £124 £1,077 £17,173 15.9 yrs £4,374
6 kW 5951 kWh 4463 kWh 1488 kWh £1,144 £149 £1,293 £19,207 14.9 yrs £6,648
7 kW 6943 kWh 5207 kWh 1736 kWh £1,335 £174 £1,508 £21,242 14.1 yrs £8,923
8 kW 7935 kWh 5951 kWh 1984 kWh £1,525 £198 £1,724 £23,276 13.5 yrs £11,198

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: £1,093, Upfront: £19,623, Break-even: 18.0 yrs
System Annual output Self-use Exported Bill saving Export income Annual benefit Upfront cost Break-even 20-year net
2 kW 1984 kWh 1527 kWh 456 kWh £391 £46 £437 £13,519 30.9 yrs £-4,777
3 kW 2976 kWh 2291 kWh 684 kWh £587 £68 £656 £15,554 23.7 yrs £-2,440
4 kW 3968 kWh 3055 kWh 913 kWh £783 £91 £874 £17,588 20.1 yrs £-103
5 kW 4959 kWh 3819 kWh 1141 kWh £979 £114 £1,093 £19,623 18.0 yrs £2,234
6 kW 5951 kWh 4582 kWh 1369 kWh £1,174 £137 £1,311 £21,657 16.5 yrs £4,570
7 kW 6943 kWh 5346 kWh 1597 kWh £1,370 £160 £1,530 £23,692 15.5 yrs £6,907
8 kW 7935 kWh 6110 kWh 1825 kWh £1,566 £183 £1,748 £25,726 14.7 yrs £9,244

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 SW11

Figures below are tailored to SW11 — click through for full league tables.

Big-Roof Britain Rank #2024 of 2182
4.1 kWp (UK avg 5.1 kWp)
~9 panels (≈430 W)
Solar Payback Index Rank #1281 of 2997
11.0 years (UK avg 11.3 years)
~£1,107 /yr • £12,207 upfront
Standing-Charge Drag Rank #333 of 2997
15.2% (UK avg 21.7%) drag on savings
£168 fixed • ~£1,107 /yr value

Your Area at a Glance

Your Electricity Rate
25.63p/kWh
Daily Fixed Charge
46.06p/day
Local Sunshine
992kWh/kW
A 1 kW system generates ~992 kWh per year. A typical home uses ~2,700 kWh per year.
Typical System Size
3.0kW
For eligible homes in this area

⚠️ This area is predominantly flats. Many residents require freeholder approval for solar installations. System size shown reflects houses and bungalows only.

Local Property Data

Property Types

Houses: 14% • Flats: 78% • Bungalows: 0% Based on 33,300 properties

Coverage

Wandsworth (100%)

Areas Covered

Shaftesbury & Queenstown, Battersea Park, Lavender, St Mary's, Falconbrook, Northcote, Nine Elms, Wandsworth Town + 2 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 London

SW4 (Lambeth)
≈1.8 km away
Local sunshine: ~990 kWh/kWp · -0% vs SW11
SW12 (Wandsworth)
≈2.2 km away
Local sunshine: ~993 kWh/kWp · +0% vs SW11
SW18 (Wandsworth)
≈2.6 km away
Local sunshine: ~992 kWh/kWp · -0% vs SW11
SW10 (Kensington and Chelsea)
≈2.6 km away
Local sunshine: ~992 kWh/kWp · +0% vs SW11
SW3 (Kensington and Chelsea)
≈2.6 km away
Local sunshine: ~989 kWh/kWp · -0% vs SW11
SW95 (Wandsworth)
≈2.6 km away
Local sunshine: ~991 kWh/kWp · -0% vs SW11

Similar sunshine across the UK

WD19 (Three Rivers)
~992 kWh/kWp · -0% vs SW11
BS99 (Bristol, City of)
~992 kWh/kWp · -0% vs SW11
MK19 (Milton Keynes)
~992 kWh/kWp · -0% vs SW11