1. Does it work here?
Panels run on daylight, not heat. A University of Edinburgh study measured Edinburgh's average solar output at 10.6 kWh a day against London's 12.2 kWh, a gap of 13%. The east coast is the dry side of Scotland: East Lothian, Fife, Angus and Moray consistently record some of the highest sunshine hours in the UK, and Dundee and Aberdeen regularly top the tables. Long June days, when a south-facing array generates from before 5am to after 9pm, carry the short Decembers. In the summer of 2018, household solar in Aberdeen produced 136% of household demand.
2. What it costs in 2026
The UK average installed cost was £6,665 in March 2026, about £1,668 per kW, and batteries typically add £2,500 to £5,000. Our fixed prices are £5,995 for a 4.3 kW solar-only system, £8,995 for 4.3 kW with a 5.1 kWh battery, and £12,495 for 6 kW with 10.2 kWh. Those include scaffold, all electrical work, commissioning and certification, and they are single figures, not ranges. Every quote we send confirms your exact number before you commit.
3. What it saves
The Ofgem price cap for October to December 2026 puts electricity at 26.32p a unit with a 54.83p daily standing charge. A 4.3 kW system in Fife makes around 3,600 kWh a year. Without a battery you use about 40% of that yourself and export the rest at 15 to 18p. With a battery you use 70 to 80%. On a typical £100 a month bill that is roughly £850 to £900 a year saved, and payback of six to ten years on the system. Your written design shows your own numbers.
4. Grants: what's actually available
The Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan removed solar PV and battery storage on 6 June 2024 and has not brought them back. There is no grant or interest-free loan for panels in 2026. If you install a heat pump at the same time, the heat pump element can attract up to £7,500 in grant plus a £7,500 interest-free loan, with a £1,500 uplift for rural homes, but the solar array gets nothing. ECO4 can cover solar for households on qualifying benefits with electric heating until 31 December 2026. The support that everyone does get is 0% VAT on the whole installation until 31 March 2027, after which it rises to 5%. On a £9,000 system that is £450.
5. Export payments
The Smart Export Guarantee pays you for every unit you send to the grid. In September 2026 the better tariffs pay 15 to 18p a unit, one supplier pays 25p if you take their import tariff too, and Octopus's battery tariff pays up to 29p at peak times. You need a smart meter and an MCS or Flexi-Orb certificate for the installation, which is why certification matters.
6. Planning in Edinburgh and the east
Roof-mounted solar on a house is permitted development across Scotland, provided the panels project no more than one metre and the building isn't listed. Edinburgh is where people get caught. The New Town, Old Town, Marchmont, Morningside, Stockbridge and a dozen other areas are conservation areas, and the centre is a World Heritage Site. Panels visible from the street there usually need consent. Applications with all-black or in-roof panels on rear pitches are approved far more often than front-facing silver-framed arrays. Fife, the Lothians outside Edinburgh, and the new-build estates rarely have a problem. Loch Lomond and the Cairngorms have their own park rules.
7. Tenements and four-in-a-block
A four-in-a-block flat owns its own roof section, so upstairs and downstairs owners can each install without the other's consent. A tenement is a shared roof. You need the agreement of the other owners and the factor, and the panels need to be in the part of the roof your title allows. It is doable, and we can run that process with you, but allow an extra month.
8. Batteries and winter tariffs
A battery is what makes solar pay in Scotland. It moves your midday generation to the evening, and in winter it fills overnight at off-peak rates of around 7p and runs the morning and evening peaks. That means it saves money on days when the panels do almost nothing. 5.1 kWh suits most three-bed homes; 10.2 kWh if you have an EV or a heat pump.
9. What to ask any installer
Ask for a fixed price, not a range. Ask who does the roofing and the electrical work and whether they are employed or subcontracted. Ask what certification you'll get and whether it qualifies you for the Smart Export Guarantee. Ask for the panel layout on your own roof before you pay a deposit. If the answer to any of those is vague, keep looking.
Sources
Ofgem price cap 1 October to 31 December 2026. Sunsave: Home Energy Scotland funding and Smart Export Guarantee rate tables, September 2026. HMRC: VAT on energy-saving materials, zero rate to 31 March 2027. Renewable Energy Hub: Scottish solar costs 2026 and University of Edinburgh output study. Scottish Government permitted development rules for microgeneration.