SOLAR GUIDE
Solar Panel Grants UK 2026: Every Scheme Available
There's no single "solar panel grant" in the UK, but several government schemes can cut the cost of going solar by thousands of pounds.
There's no single "solar panel grant" in the UK, but several government schemes can cut the cost of going solar by thousands of pounds.
Answer a few quick questions to see which government energy grants you're eligible for. Free, instant results.
Three schemes can cut your solar panel bill in the UK, and one of them might wipe it out entirely. If your household receives benefits like Universal Credit or Pension Credit, ECO4 could fund your entire installation. Everyone else gets 0% VAT (saving £1,000 to £1,500 on a typical system) plus Smart Export Guarantee payments for surplus electricity you send to the grid. Here's what actually applies to you.
Last month, a homeowner in Bristol paid £6,200 for a 4kW solar system. Two streets away, someone paid nothing. Same panels, same installer. The difference was ECO4 eligibility.
You've seen the Facebook ads. "Free solar panels for UK homeowners!" "Government-funded solar, no cost to you!" So let's get this out of the way.
Truly free solar panels exist in 2026. But only for some people.
The route is ECO4, the Energy Company Obligation scheme. You call your energy supplier, they send an assessor, and if you qualify, three months later someone's on your roof fitting panels you haven't paid a penny for. Not sure how the panels actually generate that electricity? Our guide on how solar panels work explains the process in plain language. The catch is the qualifying part. You need to be on certain benefits, and your home needs an EPC rating of D or below. About a third of UK households meet the income criteria, per GOV.UK. Most never bother checking.
If you don't qualify for ECO4, there is no way to get panels for free. Zero. The 0% VAT and SEG payments still knock thousands off the lifetime cost, but you're paying for the installation upfront.
So what about those Facebook ads? Most are lead generation companies advertising ECO4-funded solar. They collect your details, check if you qualify, and pass your information to an installer. If you do qualify, the installation genuinely is free. But the company earns a referral fee, and they overstate who qualifies. Many people who enquire find out they don't meet the criteria.
We'll spare you the full history of the Feed-in Tariff. The short version: "rent-a-roof" schemes largely ended years ago. A company installed panels on your roof for free but kept all the generation income. Those deals are rare now.
Here's what to watch for:
The thing most people don't realise is that the VAT relief isn't something you apply for, your installer just charges you less and that's the end of it.
No forms. No income test. Just a lower invoice.
Since April 2022, residential solar panel installations carry 0% VAT instead of the standard 20%, according to GOV.UK. On a typical 4kW system costing £6,000 to £8,000, that saves roughly £1,000 to £1,500. Your MCS-certified installer applies the zero rate automatically. The relief covers panels, battery storage, inverters and mounting equipment. It's guaranteed until 31 March 2027, per GOV.UK legislation. The Energy Saving Trust confirms this applies to all owner-occupied and rental properties across the UK.
If your installer charges you 20% VAT on a domestic solar installation, challenge it. The law is clear.
ECO4 can fully fund a solar panel installation. You pay nothing. But the scheme has rules, and not every supplier participates equally.
It's delivered through the big energy suppliers, British Gas, EDF, OVO and others, and runs until December 2026, according to GOV.UK. To qualify, you typically need to be receiving Universal Credit, Pension Credit, Child Tax Credit, Working Tax Credit, Income Support, JSA or ESA. Your property also needs an EPC rating of D, E, F or G. The scheme aims to bring homes up to at least band C where practical.
Here's the honest bit. Not every energy supplier includes solar panels in their ECO4 measures. Some focus on insulation and heating upgrades instead. Around 15% of ECO4 installations included solar PV in 2024/25, per Ofgem delivery statistics. It depends on your supplier and your property's specific needs.
The thing about ECO4 is that it sounds almost too good to be true, which is exactly why so many people assume they won't qualify and never check.
To apply, contact your energy supplier directly or use an ECO4 installer who can check your eligibility. And whatever you do, don't pay an upfront fee to anyone claiming they'll "get you on the scheme." Legitimate ECO4 work is funded by the energy companies. If someone's asking for money before they've done anything, walk away.
So after the VAT relief, after SEG, after whatever else you qualify for, what does a solar system actually cost? Here's a realistic breakdown based on current pricing from MCS installer data and the Energy Saving Trust.
| System Size | Typical Cost (0% VAT) | ECO4 Eligible | Annual SEG Income | Payback Period |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 kW | £4,500 to £6,500 | Potentially £0 | £100 to £200 | 7 to 10 years |
| 4 kW | £5,500 to £8,000 | Potentially £0 | £150 to £300 | 6 to 9 years |
| 5 kW | £7,000 to £9,500 | Potentially £0 | £200 to £350 | 7 to 10 years |
Those prices already reflect the 0% VAT saving. Without the relief, a £7,000 system would have cost around £8,400 at the standard rate.
£500 to £700 a year. That's what the average UK household with a 4kW system saves on electricity bills, according to the Energy Saving Trust. Add SEG payments of £150 to £300, and total annual benefit sits between £650 and £1,000. At the midpoint, a £6,500 system pays for itself in about 8 years, with 17 or more years of pure gain after that. Panels typically last 25 to 30 years. For a full breakdown of the numbers by household type, our guide on are solar panels worth it runs through the scenarios in detail.
If you qualify for ECO4, the maths changes completely. Your cost is £0, and every penny of savings and SEG income is yours from day one.
For a fuller breakdown by system size and region, see our guide to solar panel costs in the UK.
Part of the government's £5 billion Warm Homes Plan, delivered through local authorities. Some councils include solar panels in their funded measures. Cornwall's council funds solar heavily. Sunderland's doesn't touch it.
The general eligibility criteria, according to GOV.UK: household income under £36,000 and a property with an EPC rating of D or below. But individual councils set their own priorities, so there's no way to know without checking. Search for "energy efficiency grants" plus your council name. The scheme runs from 2025 to 2028.
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme doesn't cover solar panels. You can't use the £7,500 voucher to buy panels on their own. But if you're getting a heat pump under BUS, adding solar makes the combined economics much stronger because the panels generate electricity to run the heat pump. According to the Energy Saving Trust, a household with both can cut energy bills by 60% to 80% compared to a gas boiler with grid electricity. You can compare the two in our guide to solar panels vs heat pumps.
The SEG isn't a grant. It's the scheme that pays you for electricity you don't use. Under Ofgem rules, all suppliers with 150,000 or more customers must offer you a tariff for surplus electricity you export to the grid.
Octopus pays 15p. British Gas pays 12p. Some smaller suppliers offer as little as 3p. For a typical 4kW system exporting around 50% of its generation, that works out to roughly £150 to £300 per year. It won't cover your installation cost on its own, but it chips away at the payback period year after year. You register for SEG after your system is installed and MCS-certified.
Beyond the Warm Homes grant, some councils run their own solar programmes. Group-buying schemes where a council negotiates bulk pricing with an installer, typically saving 10% to 15%. Community solar programmes. Council-specific grants for pensioners or households in fuel poverty. Patchy and time-limited, but worth checking your council's website every few months.
Check your eligibility. Use our free eligibility checker to see which schemes apply to your household. Two minutes. Covers ECO4, BUS, Warm Homes and local schemes.
Get three quotes from MCS-certified installers. MCS certification is non-negotiable. It's required for SEG registration, and any grant-funded work must use an MCS installer. Per MCS data, there are over 4,000 certified solar installers across the UK.
Confirm 0% VAT on every quote. If it doesn't show the zero rate, ask why. For standard residential installations, 0% VAT should be automatic.
Ask your energy supplier about ECO4. If you're on qualifying benefits, contact your supplier and ask whether they're delivering solar PV under ECO4 in your area. Not all suppliers offer it.
Register for the Smart Export Guarantee. Once your system is installed and MCS-certified, sign up for a SEG tariff. Compare rates across suppliers. You're not locked into your current electricity provider for SEG.
Open the eligibility checker now. Two minutes. You'll know exactly where you stand.
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