Plug-In Solar Panels UK

Yes, plug-in solar panels are legal in Great Britain. Since 27 August 2026 you can buy one compliant kit with an output of up to 800W, plug it into an ordinary socket and use the power in your home, as long as you register it. Northern Ireland is the exception: the Energy Saving Trust says plug-in solar is not currently permitted there.

The change came through SI 2026 No. 848, which amended the 1994 plugs and sockets safety rules and the 2002 electricity safety rules. The government announced it on 26 August, saying households "could save up to £110 a year, with panels providing up to 20% of average home electricity use". Every rule and figure on this page comes from that statutory instrument, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), the Energy Saving Trust, Ofgem and HMRC. We last checked them on 10 October 2026.

How do plug-in solar panels work?

The panel makes direct current, a small microinverter turns it into mains electricity, and the plug feeds that into your home's wiring through a normal socket. Anything switched on in the house uses the solar power first and tops up from the grid for the rest.

So a fridge, a router and a TV on standby can run largely on the panel while the sun is out, and a 3kW kettle takes 800W from the panel and the rest from the grid. The microinverter watches the grid connection the whole time. If there is a power cut, or you pull the plug out, it shuts down within milliseconds so it never pushes power into dead wiring. That safety behaviour is part of what a kit has to prove to be sold here.

Power you are not using at that moment flows out to the grid, and for a plug-in kit you are not paid for it (more on that below). This is why plug-in solar suits homes with something running during the day.

What the rules allow

One solar-only device with a maximum AC output of 800W, connected directly to a suitable socket and built to the government's Plug-in Solar Device Interim Product Specification. Each part of that sentence is a condition.

The regulations define a plug-in microgenerator as a device that generates electricity from sunlight, with a "maximum rated alternating current output not exceeding 800 watts", designed for connection by standard plug and socket, and not storing energy except for control or auxiliary functions. The specification applies to single-phase devices for domestic use at up to 253V AC and 50Hz.

Why it is one device per home for now

Government policy is one device per power circuit, but the current grid connection rules restrict you to one device per household, and that is the rule that applies today.

The specification says only one product "shall be used per household final ring circuit". DESNZ rejected a flat 800VA cap per home because "most UK dwellings have a minimum of two power circuits". The catch is the note that follows: Engineering Recommendation G98 currently restricts this "to one device per household, which applies unless and until that is amended". The Energy Saving Trust's checklist says the same, one device per property, and that this may change once the regulations are updated. Do not link two kits together either. The trust specifically warns against "daisy-chaining".

Registering your plug-in solar

You must register a plug-in device when you install it, through the UK Plug-In Solar Registration website at myplugin.solar. The Energy Saving Trust calls this "a legal requirement" (check the registration site for any deadline), and it tells your local network operator the extra generation is there.

You need your name, your postcode and the make and model of the device. You get an on-screen confirmation and no email, so screenshot it. The BBC's guide gives a 28 day window from plugging in, which matches the fit-and-notify window for other small generators. With a rooftop system the installer does this paperwork. With a plug-in kit there is no installer, so it is your job. Our guide to G98 and G99 explains the network rules behind it.

Plug-in solar kit prices

Compliant kits now start from around £450, according to the Energy Saving Trust, and two-panel kits at launch cost around £1,000 or more. Treat any figure here as a dated snapshot. This market is weeks old and prices are moving.

• At launch (27 August 2026) the BBC reported UKSOL kits at £699 for one panel and £1,089 for two.
• The government's expectation, as reported by the BBC, is £400 to £600 once competition builds.
• VAT is included and is 20%. A kit bought from a shop is standard-rated, unlike an installed rooftop system (see the VAT section below).

Budget for more than the box. If you have no suitable socket where the panel will go, an outdoor socket has to be weatherproof (the Energy Saving Trust suggests at least IP65) and fitted by a qualified electrician. If your fuse box still has old rewireable fuses, the trust's advice is not to install plug-in solar at all until it is upgraded. Either job can cost more than the saving from the kit's first year.

Where to buy, and is Lidl selling plug-in solar?

Plug-in kits are sold through mainstream retailers. Argos said it was stocking them from launch, and Amazon, Currys and Wickes have committed to stocking them. Lidl was named as a partner by the government in June 2026, but when we checked lidl.co.uk on 10 October 2026 it did not list a plug-in solar kit.

Lidl draws a lot of interest because it already sells balcony solar kits in Germany. In the UK, Lidl GB's corporate affairs director said the company was supporting the change. That is a statement of support, not a product on sale. If a Lidl kit does appear, the same checks apply to it as to anything else: is the exact model on the compliance register, and does it come with registration instructions?

Wherever you buy, the Electrical Safety First charity advises sticking to established retailers and their own websites rather than third-party sellers on online marketplaces, because some platforms are not legally responsible for the safety of goods sold through them.

How to choose the best plug-in solar panel kit

The best kit for you is one that is on the official compliance register, fits a sunny spot within cable reach of a suitable socket, and is rated close to the 800W ceiling. We do not rank individual products because we have not tested them, but these checks separate a good buy from a bad one:

1. Is the exact model on the register? Search the ENA Connect Direct device register. If it is not listed, it is not a compliant UK product.
2. Does it state compliance with the specification? Products must say they meet the Plug-in Solar Device Interim Product Specification and declare an inverter output of 800VA or less.
3. Panel wattage versus 800W. Two panels totalling 800W to 900W keep the inverter near its limit for more of the day. Above 960W of panels the Energy Saving Trust says to speak to an electrician first.
4. Cable length. You cannot use an extension lead, so the cable has to reach the socket directly from where the panel will sit.
5. Mounting for your spot. Ground frame, wall bracket or balcony rail. Manufacturers must state the maximum installation height and wind loading, so check it matches where you live.
6. Warranty and repairs. You must never repair the panel or inverter yourself, so the manufacturer's warranty and fault process matter more than usual.

Can you get plug-in solar with a battery?

No. A plug-in solar kit with a built-in battery, or a separate plug-in battery, is outside the rules. The regulations exclude devices that store energy, except for control or auxiliary functions, and the specification explicitly excludes plug-in battery systems. Many consultation responses asked for batteries to be included and the government kept the exclusion.

What you can do is add a plug-in kit to a home that already has rooftop solar or an installed battery. The Energy Saving Trust says this "is usually possible", but you should check with the original installer or an electrician that it will not overload your system, and you may need to tell your network operator if it pushes your export above a certain level. If you want stored solar power for the evening, that means a properly installed system. Our guide to solar battery storage covers how that works.

Where you can and cannot put one

Not on aluminium composite, metal composite, high pressure laminate or timber cladding, and not on timber balconies. The specification requires a prominent warning to that effect. An unshaded south-facing spot works best. East or west still works but generates less, and the Energy Saving Trust does not recommend north-facing or shaded spots.

• Permissions come first. If you rent, are a leaseholder or live in a managed building, get permission from the landlord, freeholder or building manager before you buy. The trust warns that installing without permission can mean removing the panels and paying for any damage.
• Planning differs by nation. In England, the Energy Saving Trust says the government has introduced a permitted development right that makes it easier to install plug-in solar on houses. In Scotland and Wales, check the rules that apply in your area. Listed buildings and conservation areas need a check with your council anywhere. Our guide to permitted development for solar panels sets out each nation separately.
• Fix it securely. Use a proper frame or anchors so it cannot blow over. The trust advises against wooden fences without professional advice, and against garage roofs unless the roof can take the weight.
• Tell your insurer. Check how plug-in panels affect your buildings and contents cover, especially for outdoor items.

What a plug-in kit saves, and why export normally earns nothing

The government's estimate is up to £110 a year, and research reported by the BBC puts the range at £70 to £110. Plan on saving only on the electricity you use as it is generated, because a self-installed kit will not normally earn export payments.

The Smart Export Guarantee pays for exported units, but the Energy Saving Trust says "Most energy suppliers say your solar panels must have a valid MCS certificate", and a kit you plug in yourself will not have one (plug-in kits do not need MCS certification). You will not normally get Smart Export Guarantee payments, though some suppliers may offer an export tariff without an MCS certificate, so ask yours. Otherwise assume exported power earns nothing.

Here is the ceiling. A kit at the legal limit with about 0.8kWp of panels, at the 800 to 900kWh per kWp a year that the MCS method gives a well-oriented roof array, would make about 640 to 720kWh a year. Under the Ofgem price cap for 1 October to 31 December 2026, a typical direct debit customer pays 26.32p per kWh. If you used every unit, that would be about £170 to £190 a year.

You will not reach that, for two reasons. The yield figure describes a south-facing pitched roof, not a panel standing in a garden or hanging vertically off a balcony. And nobody uses all of their midday output. That is why the government's range of £70 to £110 is the more honest number to plan around, and why a home with a fridge, freezer and computer running through the day will sit at the upper end of it.

The VAT trap: 20% on a kit, 0% on an installed system

A plug-in kit bought off the shelf carries the standard 20% rate of VAT, while a rooftop system installed by a professional carries 0% until 31 March 2027. The zero rate applies to installation, not to hardware.

HMRC's notice on energy-saving materials is explicit: "if you supply energy-saving materials without installing them your supply will be standard-rated. For example, the sale of energy-saving materials by a retailer is always standard-rated." On a £600 kit, £100 of the price is VAT. An installed system quoted at around £7,600 already has zero VAT built in. Our guide to VAT on solar panels covers the relief, the 31 March 2027 end date and the 5% rate that applies afterwards.

Plug-in solar or a rooftop system?

They solve different problems. A plug-in kit is a low-commitment way for renters, leaseholders and flat dwellers to take a little off a bill. A rooftop system is the one that changes the numbers.

The Energy Saving Trust puts a typical home system at around 4.5kWp costing around £7,600, more than five times the output a plug-in kit is allowed. The government's own figure for rooftop solar is savings of up to £480 a year, against up to £110 for plug-in. A rooftop system also earns export payments, carries 0% VAT and comes with an MCS certified installation. Our solar panel costs guide breaks the price down and cost by system size covers 3kW to 6kW.

Where plug-in wins is on what a rooftop system cannot do. It needs no roof, no scaffold and no contract, and you can take it with you when you move. If you own your roof, plug-in is probably the smaller answer to your question. Start with whether solar panels are worth it in the UK and how to choose an MCS-certified installer.

The rules are described as interim. DESNZ says work "will begin on the development of longer-term standards to succeed the IPS", so expect the one-device limit and other details to change. We will update this page when they do.