Solar panels in Wales: grants, loans, planning and output

Wales's main route to funded solar panels is Nest, the Welsh Government scheme that provides free home energy improvements, which can include solar panels, for owner-occupiers and private tenants on a means-tested benefit or a low income, living in a home rated E or below. For homeowners who don't qualify, Green Homes Wales is an interest-free loan scheme, with grant funding for some measures only alongside a loan. Everyone gets 0% VAT on installed panels until 31 March 2027, and under the Smart Export Guarantee larger suppliers must offer you a tariff for the electricity you export. South Wales gets plenty of sun for solar: each kWp of panels on a south-facing roof in Cardiff produces about 1,042 kWh a year, 2% more than in London.

Solar panels in Wales at a glance

Nest: free solar panels for eligible households

Nest is the Welsh Government's home energy scheme. It gives free advice to anyone and, to eligible households, a package of free improvements such as a heat pump, insulation or solar panels. If you are eligible, an assessor visits your home and draws up a package for it, so qualifying does not guarantee solar panels.

You must meet three conditions.

1. Your home. You own it or rent it from a private landlord. Council and housing association homes are not eligible, and private tenants need their landlord's permission, which Nest requests.

2. Your income. You receive a means-tested benefit, such as Universal Credit, Pension Credit or Council Tax Reduction related to income, or your household has a low income. The income limit is worked out after mortgage or rent payments, and disability-related benefits are not counted. Some examples:

3. Your home's energy rating. Its Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) score must be 54 (band E) or lower. If someone in your household has an eligible health condition, such as a respiratory or circulatory disease, a mental health condition or dementia, the limit rises to 68 (band D). If your home scores between 55 and 68 and no one has an eligible condition, you go on a reserve list.

Call Nest free on 0808 808 2244 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 6pm). Calls and emails in Welsh are welcome. You'll need evidence such as a mortgage statement or buildings insurance for ownership, and a benefit award letter or Council Tax statement for benefits. If you don't qualify, Nest can still advise on other grants, energy tariffs and benefit entitlement.

Green Homes Wales: interest-free loans for other homeowners

Green Homes Wales is a Welsh Government scheme for homeowners who want to improve their homes whatever their income. It is a loan scheme: grants are available for some measures, but only alongside a loan, and the loan must be repaid.

• What it offers: a fully funded home assessment by a retrofit coordinator, and interest-free loans from £1,000 to £25,000.
• Solar measures it covers: solar PV, solar PV with a diverter or PV-T panels, and solar PV with battery storage.
• Who is eligible: owner-occupiers, for their main home in Wales. It is not means-tested, but credit and affordability checks apply. Landlords, listed homes and new builds under six months old that have never been lived in are excluded.
• Installers: for solar panels, the installer must be registered with TrustMark and certified by MCS, the Microgeneration Certification Scheme.
• Availability: first come, first served, while funding lasts.

The scheme asks you to call Nest first for free advice on 0808 808 2244, so that any grant you qualify for is found before you borrow.

Other help in Wales

• The Warm Homes Loan Scheme, a UK-wide scheme, sets caps of £15,000 for solar panels and £15,000 for a battery on loans from approved private lenders, with a consumer launch planned from September 2026. When we looked on 24 September 2026, the government had named no approved lender; its lender page was last updated on 17 September.
• ECO4, the supplier-funded scheme for Great Britain, stops on 31 December 2026; our grants guide sets out which homes it can fund solar for.
• 0% VAT applies when an installer supplies and fits your panels or battery, until 31 March 2027. Kits you buy without installation carry 20%.

How much electricity solar panels produce in Wales

A system's size is its peak power in kilowatts (kWp); what lowers your bills is the energy it produces over a year, in kWh. We ran the European Commission's PVGIS model for Welsh towns, for a south-facing roof at 35° with 14% system losses, using satellite data for 2005 to 2023:

The south coast does best; Bangor, in the north-west, produces about a fifth less than Cardiff. Output is seasonal everywhere: a kWp in Cardiff makes about 32 kWh in December, against 131 kWh in June. These are long-term averages, and shade or a roof facing east or west lowers them, so ask each installer for a written estimate for your roof.

Is it worth it? A worked example in Cardiff

This is an illustrative estimate from our calculator, not a quote. The household uses 2,500 kWh of electricity a year, the typical level Ofgem uses for a home with a single-rate meter, and is out for half the day, the pattern MCS uses when a routine is unknown. The system is 4 kWp on a south-facing roof at 35° in Cardiff, with no shade.

First-year value is the bill saving plus export income: £185.82 + £415.20 = £601 at 12p with Octopus as your supplier, or £185.82 + £207.60 = £393 at 6p. Payback adds up each year's value, with output falling 0.4% a year, until it covers the price.

Electricity prices differ across Wales. Ofgem's cap for October to December 2026 splits Wales between two regions. South Wales is close to the GB average at 26.55p per kWh, with a standing charge of 55.41p a day. North Wales shares a region with Merseyside, which has the highest cap in Great Britain: 27.86p per kWh and 67.66p a day. Each kWh your panels save is therefore worth a little more in the north: for this household, 706 kWh × 1.54p = about £11 a year more than in our example. The standing charge, about £247 a year in North Wales (67.66p × 365), stays the same with solar panels.

What solar panels cost in Wales

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) publishes average costs of MCS-certified installations, including VAT and excluding batteries. Its regional figures combine homes and non-domestic buildings. For 2025/26 the mean in Wales, per kW of panel capacity across all installations, was:

• £1,838 per kW for systems up to 4 kW, from 12,399 installations;
• £1,424 per kW for systems of 4 to 10 kW, from 9,144 installations, the lowest of any region in Great Britain.

At £1,838 per kW, a 4 kWp system comes to £7,352 (4 × £1,838). For homes alone, DESNZ's GB mean for retrofits up to 4 kW is £2,109 per kW, or £8,435 for 4 kWp, so the £7,100 in our example sits within a wide range of real prices. These are averages, not quotes: scaffolding, roof work and a battery add to the price. Our solar panel cost guide explains what an itemised quote should include.

Planning permission for solar panels in Wales

Wales sets its own permitted development rules: on a house, panels need no planning permission if they stick out no more than 20 cm from a wall or pitched roof and stay below the highest part of the roof, and in a conservation area or World Heritage Site they must not go on a front or side wall, or an outbuilding wall, that fronts a highway. Since 1 June 2026 these rights no longer cover flats, and the Welsh Government's guidance says a listed building needs planning permission and probably listed building consent; building regulations normally apply to the roof's load and the electrical work. Our planning permission guide covers flat roofs, garden arrays (which, in a conservation area, must not stand between the house and a road bordering the garden) and how the Welsh rules compare with the rest of the UK.

Getting paid for the electricity you export

Under the Smart Export Guarantee, licensed suppliers pay through their own export tariffs, and yours need not come from your electricity supplier. Each sets its own rate and conditions: on 24 September 2026, Outgoing Octopus paid 12p per kWh to Octopus electricity customers on compatible import tariffs, and E.ON Next Flex Export paid 6p whoever supplies your electricity. In Great Britain, SEG tariffs need an MCS certificate or equivalent and a smart meter that records exports. Our Smart Export Guarantee guide explains how to apply.

Before you choose an installer

Your Welsh solar checklist

• Check your EPC score. At 54 or below, or 68 or below with an eligible health condition, call Nest on 0808 808 2244 before paying for anything.
• If you own your home and don't qualify for Nest, ask Nest whether Green Homes Wales suits you, and compare the total you would repay with paying from savings.
• Check planning if you live in a flat, a listed building or a conservation area.
• Green Homes Wales requires a TrustMark-registered, MCS-certified installer, and SEG tariffs need MCS or an equivalent. MCS alone no longer means consumer code membership, so check RECC or HIES membership too.
• Compare each installer's written generation figure for your roof, and make sure the price breakdown charges 0% VAT on supply and fitting.
• Read an export tariff's conditions: the best rates often require you to buy your electricity from the same supplier.

For a Welsh address, our calculator estimates what panels could generate and save on your roof.

Frequently asked questions

Can I get free solar panels in Wales?

Mainly through Nest, if you qualify. You must own or privately rent your home, get a means-tested benefit or have a low income after housing costs, and live in a home with an EPC score of 54 or below (68 or below with an eligible health condition). Solar panels are one possible measure; an assessor decides. ECO4 can also fund panels for some eligible households until 31 December 2026.

Is there a solar panel grant in Wales if I'm not on benefits?

Possibly. Nest also accepts households with a low income after housing costs, even without benefits, if the home's EPC score is 54 or below (68 with an eligible health condition). If you don't qualify, Green Homes Wales offers interest-free loans to homeowners whatever their income, with grant funding for some measures only alongside a loan. Everyone gets 0% VAT on installed panels until 31 March 2027.

Do I need planning permission for solar panels in Wales?

Usually not on a house, if the panels stick out no more than 20 cm and stay below the highest part of the roof. Flats, listed buildings and walls facing a road in a conservation area need checking with your council.

Are solar panels worth it in Wales?

In our Cardiff example, for a home using 2,500 kWh a year, a 4 kWp system costing £7,100 pays back in about 12.1 years with a 12p export tariff that needs Octopus as your supplier, or 18.7 years at 6p with your current supplier. North Wales's higher electricity prices make each kWh you use slightly more valuable. See whether solar panels are worth it for more cases.

Can landlords get help with solar panels in Wales?

Not from Green Homes Wales, which excludes landlords. Private tenants can apply to Nest with their landlord's permission. The Warm Homes Loan Scheme is open to private landlords once approved lenders offer it.