Solar Panels in Cambridge

A south-facing roof in Cambridge generates about 1,037 kWh per kWp a year on the EU's PVGIS model, among the higher yields in Great Britain, and every unit you use saves 26.61p at the Eastern England price cap rate. A typical 4.5kWp system would make about 4,666 kWh a year.

How much electricity solar panels make in Cambridge

A south-facing 1kWp system at 35 degrees in central Cambridge generates about 1,037 kWh a year, according to the EU's PVGIS model. That ranks 6 of the 20 areas we cover, which run from 850 kWh in Glasgow to 1,119 kWh in Dorset. East and west roofs still work, at roughly a fifth less.

PVGIS is a modelled figure for an unshaded roof with 14% system losses, and it runs higher than the MCS method installers must use for your written estimate, which gives roughly 800 to 950 kWh per kWp for a well-oriented UK roof. Use PVGIS to compare places and the installer's MCS estimate to plan your budget. Our guides to which direction panels should face and how much electricity solar panels produce go further.

What that electricity is worth in Cambridge

Every unit you use yourself saves 26.61p, the Ofgem price cap rate for direct debit customers in the Eastern England region from 1 October to 31 December 2026. The Great Britain average is 26.32p. Every unit you export earns whatever your Smart Export Guarantee tariff pays, which the Energy Saving Trust puts at around 12p typically.

Take the Energy Saving Trust's typical 4.5kWp home system. On the PVGIS figure for Cambridge it would generate about 4,666 kWh a year. If you used all of it, that would be worth about £1,242. If you exported all of it, about £560. Real homes sit between the two, and a battery or daytime use pushes you towards the higher figure. The Energy Saving Trust prices that typical system at around £7,600. See our solar panel cost guide and current export rates.

One of the most solar dense corners of the UK

South Cambridgeshire had 13,029 solar installations at the end of 2025, about 194 per 1,000 households by our count, which ranks it fourth of the 362 UK council areas in the government's table and second in England behind South Hams. Only Isle of Anglesey, Stirling and South Hams sit above it. Cambridge City itself had 5,120 installations, about 98 per 1,000 households, 79th of the 362 and well clear of the UK average of about 69. Both areas grew about 10% in 2025.

Two caveats worth knowing. South Cambridgeshire's 304.5 MW of capacity includes solar farms, so the installation count is not all rooftops; the purely domestic figures for August 2026 are 7,123 home installations in the South Cambridgeshire constituency and 3,544 in the Cambridge constituency. And the government warns that its 2025 council figures undercount, because many 2025 installations could not yet be matched to a council area. Across the East of England there were 18,109 installations in 2026 up to July, a 15% rise since July 2025 and third among the English regions.

Two housing stocks, two different solar problems

At the 2021 Census, 30.7% of Cambridge City households lived in purpose-built flats and only 10.9% in detached houses, while South Cambridgeshire was almost the mirror image at 41.2% detached and 6.0% flats. England as a whole is 17.1% flats and 22.9% detached. Add 27.6% terraced in the city against 16.8% in the district, and you have two housing markets a few miles apart with very different roofs.

That shapes what is possible. In the villages, a detached house with its own roof slope is about as straightforward as solar gets. In the city, a flat means the roof is usually not yours to decide about, and you will need the freeholder's agreement before anything else; our guide to solar panels for flats sets out how that works. A city terrace is workable, but the slope often runs east and west rather than south, which costs you about a fifth of the output. See which direction panels should face.

Oil heating in the South Cambridgeshire villages

At the 2021 Census, 14.5% of South Cambridgeshire households heated with oil only, against 3.2% across England, while in Cambridge City the figure was 0.2%. Mains gas only accounted for 63.5% of South Cambridgeshire households and 75.1% in the city. That is an unusually large off-gas-grid population for the south east of England, and it is part of why the district's solar count is as high as it is: homes paying for delivered oil or for electric heating have more to gain from generating their own power than a home on mains gas.

If you are in one of those homes, the thing worth sizing carefully is how much of your own generation you can actually use. A hot water diverter or a battery moves summer surplus into the evening instead of exporting it at a lower rate. Our guides to solar battery storage and solar power diverters cover both, and current export rates show what the exported units earn.

Grants: the Cambridgeshire pot is fully allocated

Warm Homes: Local Grant funding for Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire is delivered by Action on Energy, a partnership of Cambridgeshire councils, and as of 16 October 2026 its page says all available funding for the current financial year has been fully allocated because of exceptionally high demand. Roof top solar panels and battery storage are both on the fundable measures list, along with insulation, heat pumps, ventilation, windows and doors. You can register interest in the next phase through Action on Energy's grant funding request form, with no guarantee of funding.

The eligibility test is a household income of up to £36,000, or a listed means-tested benefit, or an address in an area pre-identified by government, plus an EPC rating of D to G or a park home. Only homes in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough qualify through Action on Energy. If your income is above £36,000 but you are struggling with bills, the partnership says it can ask further questions. All installations are delivered to PAS 2035 by its procured contractors. See our guide to solar panel grants in the UK.

Planning and your network operator

Cambridge City has 18 conservation areas and South Cambridgeshire has 85, and Greater Cambridge Shared Planning, which handles planning for both councils, says roof solar is usually permitted development but recommends applying for a Lawful Development Certificate to confirm it. The exceptions it names are panels on a wall fronting a highway in a conservation area, and anything on a listed building's site. A certificate is not a planning permission; it is a formal confirmation that you did not need one, which is useful evidence when you sell. Our guides to permitted development and conservation areas cover the national rules.

The network operator for Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire is UK Power Networks, in its East of England area. For a home solar or battery install, your installer notifies UK Power Networks through its Smart Connect portal within 28 days, and if the maximum export after any export limitation is under 5kW the application is approved automatically. Read our G98 and G99 guide, and compare Cambridge with solar panels in Norfolk and Norwich or solar panels in Essex, which share the same network operator.

Getting solar quotes in Cambridge

Get at least three written quotes from MCS-certified installers, each with a performance estimate for your roof and a full breakdown of what is supplied. That is the Renewable Energy Consumer Code's advice. Never pay more than 25% up front, and walk away from anyone offering a discount to sign on the day. Our guide to choosing a solar installer covers what to check.

Sources for this page

Local sources checked on 16 October 2026. Solar yields: PVGIS 5.2, EU Joint Research Centre, modelled 10 October 2026. Electricity prices: Ofgem price cap by region. System cost and export rate: Energy Saving Trust. Local sources:

• Action on Energy Cambridgeshire: Warm Homes Local Grant
• Greater Cambridge Shared Planning: solar panels
• Greater Cambridge Shared Planning: conservation area appraisals
• DESNZ: Renewable electricity by local authority, 2014 to 2025
• DESNZ: Solar photovoltaics deployment (September 2026)
• DESNZ: first regional solar breakdown (August 2026)
• Nomis: Census 2021 accommodation type (TS044)
• Nomis: Census 2021 central heating (TS046)
• UK Power Networks: solar and storage, cost, time and what's involved