Savings & payback
What happens to your electricity bill with solar panels?
People searching for the "average electricity bill with solar panels" usually want one number — and any site that gives one is guessing. Bills after solar vary enormously with system size, household usage, timing and tariff.What we can do honestly is show you exactly what changes on the bill, what doesn't, and how to estimate your own number. It builds on is plug-in solar worth it?.
Written and edited by Christopher Panteli
Christopher is the founder and editor of MyPlugInSolar. He oversees the site’s research standards, data tools and editorial process. He is not an electrician or solar installer, and specialist technical claims are sourced from official documentation or reviewed by appropriately qualified professionals.
What falls, what stays
The bill only falls by the units you no longer import. Solar you generate but don't use at the time is exported — and for a self-installed plug-in system that export may currently earn nothing, which is why self-consumption matters more than headline generation.
| Bill component | With solar | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Unit charges (kWh you import) | Falls | Solar you use directly replaces imported units |
| Standing charge | Unchanged | Charged per day, whatever you use |
| Export credit (if eligible) | May appear | Paid for exported units under schemes like the SEG |
| Seasonal shape | Amplified | Summer bills fall a lot; winter bills fall a little |
Why the 'average' is meaningless
Any honest figure has to be *yours*: estimated from your location, panel setup and usage. That's exactly what the calculator does for plug-in-sized systems, separating generation from the part that actually cuts the bill.
- System size: a plug-in system offsets background use; a full rooftop array can offset far more — see plug-in vs rooftop.
- Your usage pattern: a home busy at midday uses far more of its solar than one empty until 7pm.
- Season and weather: winter output is a fraction of summer's.
- Tariff: your unit rate sets what each avoided kWh is worth; time-of-use tariffs complicate it further.
- Export terms: whether surplus earns anything, and how much.
A realistic way to think about it
Start from your annual usage and unit rate. Estimate what a system would generate at your postcode, then — the honest step most marketing skips — estimate what share you'd genuinely use as it's generated. That share, times your unit rate, is the annual bill reduction; the standing charge continues untouched. For plug-in solar there's a prior question too: it is not yet legal to sell, supply or use in the UK, so today these are planning numbers, not purchase decisions.
No guaranteed savings
Frequently asked questions
- What is the average electricity bill with solar panels in the UK?
- There is no meaningful average — the after-solar bill depends on system size, your usage pattern, season, tariff and export terms. Only the units you avoid importing come off the bill, and the standing charge remains. Estimate your own from your usage and a location-specific generation estimate.
- Will solar panels eliminate my electricity bill?
- No. The standing charge remains whatever you generate, winter output is low exactly when usage is high, and evenings usually rely on the grid unless you add storage. Solar reduces bills; it doesn't remove them.
Sources
- 1. PVGIS (Photovoltaic Geographical Information System) — European Commission, Joint Research Centre
- 2. Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) — Ofgem
Estimate your solar potential
See how much electricity a small system could generate at your postcode, and the indicative bill saving.