Kent · costs Updated 2026-10-15
Solar panel cost in Kent and south-east London
Coutts Electrical's published guide prices for solar PV with 10kWh of battery capacity start from £9,500 for a 4kWp system and from £12,500 for 8kWp, including scaffolding, the DNO notification or application and MCS certification, inclusive of VAT currently at 0% (until 31 March 2027); your survey and written quotation confirm the actual price and the VAT that applies. For panels alone, government figures for 2025/26 put the average installed cost at £1,859 per kW in the South East and £2,101 per kW in London for systems up to 4 kW. A 4kWp south-facing array in Kent and south-east London is modelled to generate about 4,100 to 4,250 kWh a year.
Coutts Electrical’s guide prices
Coutts Electrical publishes guide prices for solar PV. Every one includes 10kWh of battery capacity, and every one is a starting point: the actual price is set at survey and confirmed in a written quotation. In Coutts Electrical’s own words:
“Our quotes are provided to suit your individual needs based on usage profile, time of use, and available roof space. The guide costs below are for informative purposes. All our installs include as standard: DNO G98/G99, 6 year financial protection policy, Scaffolding, MCS registration & certificate.”
| System | Guide price |
|---|---|
| 4kWp with 10kWh battery capacity | From £9,500 |
| 5kWp with 10kWh battery capacity | From £10,500 |
| 6kWp with 10kWh battery capacity | From £11,500 |
| 8kWp with 10kWh battery capacity | From £12,500 |
The prices are “Inclusive of VAT currently at 0%. VAT applicability will be confirmed in your written quotation.”
The page for our solar PV installation service also lists bird protection (where applicable) and a Part P certificate as part of a complete installation. Our battery storage page explains how the battery is installed and commissioned alongside the array.
How those prices compare with government figures
The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) publishes what solar installations on the MCS database actually cost, region by region. Its 2025/26 figures, published on 28 May 2026, cover April 2025 to March 2026. The Kent districts we cover sit in its South East region; Bromley, Croydon and Lewisham sit in London.
| DESNZ region | Systems up to 4 kW, mean cost per kW | Systems of 4–10 kW, mean cost per kW |
|---|---|---|
| South East | £1,859 | £1,721 |
| London | £2,101 | £1,759 |
Read those averages with three things in mind. DESNZ leaves battery storage out of the cost. The figures include VAT where it applied. And they mix homes with non-domestic installations, so they are a regional average, not a quote. Nationally, DESNZ’s 2025/26 mean for systems up to 4 kW was £1,955 per kW for homes and £1,650 for non-domestic installations, so the mix tends to pull the small-system averages down.
Multiplying the mean by system size gives a rough panels-only benchmark beside each guide price. The 4kWp row uses the up-to-4 kW rate and the others use the 4–10 kW rate.
| System | Coutts Electrical guide price (includes 10kWh battery) | DESNZ panels-only benchmark, South East | DESNZ panels-only benchmark, London |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4kWp | From £9,500 | £7,436 | £8,404 |
| 5kWp | From £10,500 | £8,605 | £8,795 |
| 6kWp | From £11,500 | £10,326 | £10,554 |
| 8kWp | From £12,500 | £13,768 | £14,072 |
The columns are not like for like. One is a starting price with a battery included; the other is an average for panels alone. A “from” price is the lowest starting point for that size, and your written quotation may be higher once the survey has looked at your roof, the scaffolding and the battery. Treat the comparison as a sense check, not a verdict. For a national reference point, the Energy Saving Trust’s solar panels guide puts a typical home system of around 4.5kWp at about £7,600 and says battery storage tends to cost around £5,000 to £8,000; its battery storage guide, quoted further down, gives a wider range.
What changes the price of your system
- Size and roof space. Coutts Electrical sizes each quote to your usage profile, time of use and available roof space. The Energy Saving Trust adds roof access, panels or solar tiles, integrated panels and any need to renew the roof covering.
- Scaffolding and bird protection. Scaffolding is in every guide price, and Coutts Electrical lists bird protection (where applicable) as part of a complete installation.
- The inverter. It turns the panels’ output into mains electricity and, with a battery, manages charging. The Energy Saving Trust expects an inverter to need replacing after around 12 years, so ask what warranty comes with yours. Our guide to choosing a solar inverter covers the options.
- Battery size. All four guide prices include 10kWh. Bigger is not always better: in the MCS tables used in the example below, going from 10kWh to 15kWh of usable storage only lifts the share of a 4kWp array’s output used at home from 56.0% to 56.8%.
- The grid connection. Every town we cover is on UK Power Networks’ network. Under the industry G98 procedure, a system of up to 16 A per phase (3.68 kW on a single-phase supply) can be installed first, with the installer notifying the network operator within 28 days of commissioning. A larger system needs a G99 application to the network operator before it is installed. The guide prices include the G98 notification or G99 application either way.
- Planning. The Energy Saving Trust says solar panels on houses don’t usually need planning permission, with exceptions such as listed buildings and conservation areas. Our guide to planning permission for solar panels in Kent explains when consent is needed.
What a 4kWp array generates across the area
Generation decides the savings, so it is the other half of the cost question. PVGIS, the European Commission’s solar model, gives the long-term average output of a 4kWp south-facing array at a 35° tilt, unshaded, with 14% system losses, for a postcode in each town we cover.
| Town | Local authority | DESNZ cost region | UK Power Networks licence area | PVGIS output, 4kWp south-facing (kWh a year) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Westerham | Sevenoaks District | South East | South Eastern (SPN) | 4,164 |
| West Wickham | London Borough of Bromley | London | South Eastern (SPN) | 4,128 |
| Orpington | London Borough of Bromley | London | South Eastern (SPN) | 4,172 |
| Petts Wood | London Borough of Bromley | London | London (LPN) or South Eastern (SPN) | 4,174 |
| Bickley | London Borough of Bromley | London | London (LPN) | 4,156 |
| Bromley | London Borough of Bromley | London | London (LPN) | 4,156 |
| Chislehurst | London Borough of Bromley | London | London (LPN) | 4,178 |
| Beckenham | London Borough of Bromley | London | London (LPN) | 4,125 |
| Croydon | London Borough of Croydon | London | South Eastern (SPN) | 4,104 |
| Sevenoaks | Sevenoaks District | South East | South Eastern (SPN) | 4,192 |
| Sydenham | London Borough of Lewisham | London | London (LPN) | 4,115 |
| Tonbridge | Tonbridge and Malling | South East | South Eastern (SPN) | 4,245 |
| Maidstone | Maidstone Borough | South East | South Eastern (SPN) | 4,227 |
Source: PVGIS 5.3 (EU Joint Research Centre), SARAH3 database, 4 kWp south-facing at 35° with 14% system loss, long-term average for an unshaded roof; read 6 October 2026. Licence areas from the Elexon grid supply point group for a postcode in each town; for the Petts Wood postcode used (BR5 1AA) the lookup returns both groups.
The spread is small. Homes in Tonbridge have the highest modelled output and homes in Sydenham are near the bottom, yet the range only runs from about 1,026 to 1,061 kWh per kWp. Your roof matters far more than your postcode. The Energy Saving Trust says an east- or west-facing system tends to get around 15–20% less energy than a south-facing one, and shading from trees, chimneys or neighbouring buildings cuts it further. Our guide to how much electricity solar panels generate covers what else affects output.
A worked example for a home in Orpington
This is an illustration, not a quote or a prediction for your home. Every input is stated so you can swap in your own. Orpington sits mid-range for output, so the result is a fair guide for most of the area; our page on solar and electrical work in Orpington has the local details.
| Input | Figure used | Source |
|---|---|---|
| System and price | 4kWp with 10kWh battery capacity, from £9,500 | Coutts Electrical guide price |
| Yearly generation | 4,172 kWh | PVGIS, Orpington, south-facing, 35°, unshaded |
| Household electricity use | 2,500 kWh a year | Ofgem's 2026 typical medium consumption |
| Occupancy | Home empty for half the day | MCS MGD 003 "in half the day", which MCS says to use when occupancy is unknown |
| Share of generation used at home | 18% with no battery; 56% with 10kWh of usable storage | MCS MGD 003 look-up tables: home empty half the day, 2,500 to 2,999 kWh use, 3,900 to 4,199 kWh generation, 9.1 to 10.1 kWh usable storage column |
| Electricity unit rate | 26.32p per kWh | Ofgem price cap, average for England, Scotland and Wales, Direct Debit, 1 October to 31 December 2026 |
| Export rate | 12p per kWh | Outgoing Octopus flat rate, read 15 October 2026 |
| Result | Panels only | Panels with 10kWh battery |
|---|---|---|
| Used at home | 751 kWh, worth £197.66 | 2,336 kWh, worth £614.84 |
| Exported | 3,421 kWh, earning £410.52 | 1,836 kWh, earning £220.32 |
| Yearly benefit | £608.18 | £835.16 |
| Simple payback on the guide price | Not calculated (no panels-only guide price) | About 11.4 years (£9,500 ÷ £835.16) |
With the battery, this household uses about three times as much of its own solar electricity, and the yearly benefit rises by about £227. Across the 13 towns in the generation table, the same assumptions give about £822 to £839 a year with the battery, a simple payback of about 11.3 to 11.6 years. Some caveats:
- Usable capacity. Coutts Electrical’s guide prices state 10kWh of battery capacity, and the example assumes all of it is usable. If 10kWh is the battery’s nominal capacity, MGD 003 counts 90% of it, 9kWh, unless the datasheet says otherwise; the share used at home then falls to 55.4% and the yearly benefit to £831.58.
- Simple payback is rough. The Energy Saving Trust cautions that it ignores future energy prices, inflation and the life of the equipment.
- Prices move. Ofgem resets the cap every three months, and rates vary by region and tariff. The 26.32p rate carries no VAT, because the government has removed VAT from electricity bills from 1 October 2026 to 31 March 2027.
- Export is slightly generous. Everything not used at home is counted as exported. In practice a battery loses some energy charging and discharging, as the Energy Saving Trust notes.
- The tariff has conditions. Outgoing Octopus is a variable tariff, and Octopus says you need to be its customer with a suitable smart meter.
- Usage matters most. A household that uses more electricity, or is home in the day, uses more of its own generation and sees a bigger benefit. One that uses less sees a smaller one.
For a cross-check, the Energy Saving Trust’s own modelling gives a payback of 9 years for a typical panels-only system in London, at July 2026 fuel prices. For more on what moves the figure, read our guide on whether solar is worth it in Kent.
What a battery adds to the cost and the savings
Every Coutts Electrical guide price includes 10kWh of battery capacity, so there is no published panels-only price to subtract. Ask for the battery to be itemised on your quotation. If you already have panels, a battery can be retrofitted to the existing array; Coutts Electrical surveys the installation first.
The Energy Saving Trust gives these reference points:
- a typical home battery is around 10kWh
- prices range from £1,500 to £10,000, with a 5kWh system costing around £4,600
- fitting a battery at the same time as the panels should save money, because the installers are already on site
- a battery typically lasts 10 to 12 years, so it will need replacing before the panels
In the Orpington example the battery is worth about £227 a year at today’s prices. Over a 10 to 12 year life, that is roughly £2,300 to £2,700 at constant prices. A battery can also work with a time-of-use tariff, storing solar electricity to avoid the most expensive periods; the Energy Saving Trust notes that some tariffs also let you sell stored electricity at peak times. Our battery storage page covers how the battery is designed in.
VAT on solar and battery installations
HMRC’s VAT Notice 708/6 applies a zero rate to installing qualifying energy-saving materials in homes from 1 May 2023 to 31 March 2027. That covers solar panels and, since 1 February 2024, a battery installed in a home, including one retrofitted to existing panels. From 1 April 2027 the rate reverts to 5%. Coutts Electrical’s guide prices are “Inclusive of VAT currently at 0%”, and your written quotation confirms the VAT that applies.
Grants, VAT relief and other schemes are set out in our guide to solar panel grants and VAT relief in Kent. If you are weighing a group-buying scheme against a direct quote, our guide to Solar Together in Kent explains how that scheme works.
Getting a price for your home
Coutts Electrical is MCS certified for solar PV: its TrustMark register entry (licence 2677315) lists Solar Panel Installers (PV) [MCS] among its licensed trades, with NICEIC as scheme provider. It is a member of the Renewable Energy Consumer Code (member 00072268) and a Which? Trusted Trader. To be paid for exports under the Smart Export Guarantee, Ofgem’s guidance says a solar installation of up to 50kW must show that the installation and installer are suitably certified, usually with an MCS certificate or an equivalent, so check that any installer you compare can provide one.
The Energy Saving Trust recommends quotes from at least three MCS-certified installers. To compare them like for like, check each one for:
- system size in kWp, and the modelled generation for your roof
- battery capacity, and how much of it is usable
- inverter and battery warranties
- scaffolding, bird protection and the network operator notification or application
- the MCS certificate, and the VAT rate shown on the quotation
To get a figure for your own roof, book a free survey or call 0800 112 5050.
Sources
- Coutts Electrical, solar PV guide prices and standard inclusions, couttselectrical.co.uk/solar-pv, harvested 19 August 2026
- DESNZ, “Solar PV cost data”, Total Installed Capacity 2025/26, “Regional costs (TIC)” and “Domestic costs (TIC)” sheets, published 28 May 2026 (official statistics in development; excludes battery storage): gov.uk
- PVGIS 5.3, EU Joint Research Centre, SARAH3 database, read 6 October 2026: re.jrc.ec.europa.eu
- Elexon grid supply point groups by postcode, via the Octopus Energy industry lookup, read 6 October 2026; Petts Wood (BR5 1AA) re-checked 15 October 2026: api.octopus.energy
- Ofgem, “Changes to energy price cap between 1 October and 31 December 2026”, 26 August 2026: ofgem.gov.uk
- Ofgem, “Energy price cap (default tariff) update from 1 October 2026”, letter of 26 August 2026 (2026 typical consumption of 2,500 kWh; VAT on electricity): ofgem.gov.uk
- MCS, MGD 003 Issue 2.0, “Solar PV Self-Consumption”, 1 April 2022 (section 4.5 on usable capacity): mcscertified.com, with its look-up tables spreadsheet, read 15 October 2026: mcscertified.com
- Octopus Energy, Outgoing Octopus, read 15 October 2026: octopus.energy
- Energy Saving Trust, “Solar panels”, last updated 1 October 2026: energysavingtrust.org.uk
- Energy Saving Trust, “Battery storage”, last updated 6 October 2026: energysavingtrust.org.uk
- Energy Saving Trust, “Our data”, last updated 22 September 2026: energysavingtrust.org.uk
- HMRC, VAT Notice 708/6, “Energy-saving materials and heating equipment”, last updated 31 January 2024, accessed 15 October 2026: gov.uk
- Energy Networks Association, “Distributed Generation Connection Guide: G98 & G99”, version 1.0, March 2024, accessed 15 October 2026: energynetworks.org
- Ofgem, “Smart Export Guarantee: Guidance for generators”, 12 December 2019, accessed 15 October 2026: ofgem.gov.uk
- TrustMark, register entry for Coutts Electrical Contractors Ltd, licence 2677315: trustmark.org.uk
- Renewable Energy Consumer Code, member 00072268: recc.org.uk
- Which? Trusted Traders, Coutts Electrical Contractors Ltd, accessed 15 October 2026: trustedtraders.which.co.uk
02 Questions
Asked about Kent,
answered with sources.
How much do solar panels cost in Kent?
Coutts Electrical's guide prices for solar PV with 10kWh of battery capacity start from £9,500 for 4kWp, £10,500 for 5kWp, £11,500 for 6kWp and £12,500 for 8kWp. Scaffolding, the DNO notification or application and MCS certification are included, and the prices are inclusive of VAT currently at 0% (until 31 March 2027). They are guide prices: your survey and written quotation set the actual figure and confirm the VAT. For panels alone, DESNZ puts the 2025/26 South East average at £1,859 per kW for systems up to 4 kW.
Do solar panels cost more in south-east London than in Kent?
On government figures, yes for smaller systems. DESNZ's 2025/26 data puts the average installed cost of panels at £2,101 per kW in London against £1,859 in the South East for systems up to 4 kW, about 13% more. For systems of 4 to 10 kW the gap is about 2%: £1,759 against £1,721. Bromley, Croydon and Lewisham fall in its London region. These averages leave out batteries and mix homes with business premises.
How much electricity does a 4kWp system generate in Kent?
PVGIS, the European Commission's solar model, gives between 4,104 kWh a year in Croydon and 4,245 kWh in Tonbridge for a 4kWp south-facing array at a 35 degree tilt with no shading. That is a long-term average. The Energy Saving Trust says an east- or west-facing roof tends to produce around 15 to 20% less, and shading reduces output further.
How much could solar panels and a battery save me in a year?
In our illustrative Orpington example, a 4kWp system with a 10kWh battery is worth £835.16 a year: £614.84 of electricity used at home at the 26.32p price cap rate and £220.32 of export at 12p, assuming all 10kWh of the battery is usable. On the £9,500 guide price, inclusive of VAT currently at 0%, that is a simple payback of about 11.4 years in Orpington, and about 11.3 to 11.6 years across the towns we cover on the same assumptions. Your own figure depends on how much electricity you use, your roof and your tariffs, and your survey confirms the price.
Do I pay VAT on a home solar and battery installation?
Not until 31 March 2027. HMRC's VAT Notice 708/6 zero-rates solar panels installed in homes from 1 May 2023 to 31 March 2027, and batteries installed in homes, including one added to existing panels, from 1 February 2024 to the same date. From 1 April 2027 the rate reverts to 5%. Coutts Electrical's guide prices are inclusive of VAT currently at 0%, and your written quotation confirms the VAT that applies to your job.
What is included in Coutts Electrical's guide prices?
Every guide-priced system includes 10kWh of battery capacity, the DNO G98 notification or G99 application, a 6 year financial protection policy, scaffolding, and MCS registration and certificate. Coutts Electrical's complete installations also list bird protection where applicable and a Part P certificate. Each quote is then tailored to your usage profile, time of use and available roof space, so the written quotation is the figure to rely on.
How long does a home battery last?
The Energy Saving Trust gives a typical lifespan of about 10 to 12 years, shorter than the panels, which it expects to last 25 years or more. That matters for cost. In our Orpington example the battery adds about £227 a year, which is roughly £2,300 to £2,700 over that lifespan at today's prices. Ask any installer you compare about the battery's warranty.
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