Solar panels can cut your electricity bills, your carbon footprint, and your reliance on the grid – but before you commit, you’ll want to know you’re making the best choice for your home.

This naturally includes checking whether solar panels have a positive impact on your property’s price.

In this article, we’ll run through the latest in-depth research on the subject, and explain how much you can therefore expect solar panels to add to your home’s value.

If you’re wondering how much a solar & battery system could save you, answer a few quick questions, and we’ll provide you with an estimate.

Is there more demand for solar homes?

The demand for solar homes is increasing – and it’s already high.

69% of people are either ‘likely’ or ‘very likely’ to buy or rent a property with solar panels, according to a 2023 Eco Experts survey of more than 2,000 UK homeowners.

Just 8% of people said they’d be ‘unlikely’ or ‘very unlikely’ to do so.

And 66% of people in the UK said they’d feel proud to have an environmentally friendly property, according to a 2021 survey by Halifax of more than 4,300 adults.

Electricity prices are set to keep rising in the coming years, with demand for electricity increasing as heat pumps and electric vehicles become increasingly mainstream.

It’s therefore extremely likely that the popularity of solar panels – which can generate free electricity for their owners – will continue to grow.

Do solar panels increase your property’s EPC rating?

Solar panels typically increase a property’s Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating, which is a ranking system that indicates how energy-efficient a home is on an A-G scale.

An EPC report is necessary if you’re selling, building, or renting out a property – and it’s a great way for owners to find out how to cut their energy bills.

Here’s the scoring system:

Does EPC rating affect property value?

Your EPC rating does affect your property’s value, according to multiple studies.

So increasing your home’s value by raising its EPC rating is a good idea – and proven to work – though different studies disagree about how much you can gain.

This is understandable, since the sheer number of variables – including the property’s location, size, and condition, as well as the state of the housing market – make it near-impossible to get the same result each time.

The best studies will give you a good idea of what to expect though – so let’s run through them.

The Sustainable Homes and Buildings Coalition

Rightmove

Why do solar panels directly increase property value?

Solar panels increase the average property’s value for multiple reasons, including electricity bill savings, less reliance on the national grid, and a growing need from homebuyers for eco-friendly measures.

Due to their ability to save you money – not least by selling excess electricity to the grid through the Smart Export Guarantee or another export tariff – and reduce carbon emissions, solar installations are growing at record rates, and will soon be the norm across the UK. 

This means homebuyers may be put off if your property doesn’t come with solar panels – as they often are now when a home doesn’t have double glazing.

• Solar cuts your electricity bills. A solar & battery system will reduce a household’s electricity bills by 103%, on average*
• You’ll be less dependent on the grid. What’s more, certain storage batteries will keep your electricity running in the event of a power cut
• Solar panels protect you against energy crises. The price of energy can spike because of unforeseen geopolitical events – but with your own supply of solar electricity, sudden price hikes will have a limited effect on you
• They future-proof your property. Homebuyers will soon expect solar panels, meaning your home could be less attractive without them
• Buyers want a green home. With solar panels, you can cut your carbon footprint by 964 kg of CO2 per year on average – the same as 46 fully grown trees

*This might sound too good to be true, but it’s all because of the high performance of modern solar panels and storage batteries, as well as export income.

The panels will dramatically reduce the amount of electricity you buy from the grid, and you’ll also earn money by selling your unused electricity to the grid. Octopus Energy's export tariffs have transformed the financial benefit of solar panels, and it's easy to sign up for one.

This 103% figure is based on a household experiencing average UK irradiance with a 4.4 kilowatt-peak (kWp) solar panel system and a 5.2 kilowatt-hour (kWh) battery, using 3,500kWh of electricity each year and signed up to the Intelligent Octopus Flux export tariff.

What do other studies say?

Additional studies also show that solar panels have a direct positive impact on your property price.

This means solar installations don’t just raise your home’s value by adding points to its EPC score, but also because of the savings they can earn you on your energy bills.

Solar Energy UK

This broad study, produced by the biggest solar trade association and Cambridge University, shows that even without considering your EPC, solar panels will typically increase your home’s value.

Your property’s price will go up by between 0.9% and 2% on average, according to this 2021 report, which analysed five million home sales.

With the average house price standing at £281,913 as of January 2024, that means the typical homeowner could increase their home’s value by anywhere from £2,540 to £5,640.

It also means if, for instance, you own a £500,000 property, solar panels will increase its value by between £4,500 and £10,000.

Effective Home

Getting solar panels installed on your roof will raise your property’s price by 14%, according to sustainable energy company Effective Home.

A typical homeowner would therefore see their house’s value soar by £40,300.

This research from 2020 reportedly used government data – which is usually a reliable source – but still produced overly optimistic results compared to most reliable studies.

US studies

Academics and companies in the US have also put together research on whether solar panels increase the value of your home, though since the US has a different cultural and financial approach to solar panels, their studies should be taken with a large pinch of salt. 

Zillow found there was an average 4.1% boost in the sale value of homes with solar panels, with owners in New York receiving the highest increase in the country, at 5.4%.

The 2019 study saw the real estate company look at the sales of homes with and without solar installations across the US, making sure they were comparing properties with a similar age, location, square footage, and number of bedrooms and bathrooms.

A Californian academic study published in 2012 showed solar panels increase the price of a home by 3.5%, on average – with an even bigger boost observed in liberal communities.

And a 2015 investigation led by a US Department of Energy researcher across six states concluded that solar panels significantly raise the price of a property, though it stated the specific amount depended in each case on the nature of the installation and market.

Summary

The research is clear: solar panels increase the value of your home, typically by 3%.

That’s a large amount to add to your property’s price tag in one go, especially when a solar installation will also start making you money on day one, by cutting your electricity bills.

Going solar is also the best way to protect your household against future energy crises and a national grid that’s struggling to meet the country’s rising needs.

If you’re interested in how much you could save with a solar & battery system, enter a few quick details below and we’ll generate a quick estimate.

Solar panels and property value: FAQs