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How much money can you save with solar?

3min read

Can solar really save you money? Yes, absolutely – but it will take time for the investment to pay off.

Luckily the solar panels you get with Hive are guaranteed for minimum 25 years³, which should give you plenty of time to make enough savings to more than cover the cost.

Your solar savings come from four areas:

  • Generating free energy to use at home
  • Making smart use of battery storage
  • Selling spare electricity (with the Export and Earn Plus tariff from British Gas¹)
  • Saving up to 25% on electricity you buy with the Hive Solar Saver offer²

Lower your bills by making your own energy

The simplest way that solar saves you money is by reducing the amount of energy you need to buy from the grid. Instead of paying for all your home’s electricity, now your panels will generate some of it for free.

Increase your savings with a home battery

With your solar panels generating free electricity during the day, you’ll need to buy less from the grid. But what happens at night, when there’s no sunshine for your solar panels to get energy from?

That’s where a home battery makes a big difference. With a battery installed, you can store energy made during the daytime to use later – or even save it to sell back to the grid when prices are high.

A battery does add to the cost of your installation, of course. Prices start from £8,105 for 8 solar panels & battery⁴ – but the extra savings you’ll gain over time will make it a good investment.

Shrink your bills even more with a SEG tariff

If you have solar panels installed at home, it pays to sign up to Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) tariff like the Export and Earn Plus tariff from British Gas.

This lets you earn money by selling any spare energy back to the grid for 15.1p per kWh. The more you sell, the more money you make – and the bigger the reduction you’ll see in your energy bills.

And enjoy an exclusive electricity discount with Hive

Go solar with us and you’ll enjoy even more savings. Available exclusively to Hive solar customers on a British Gas tariff, the Hive Solar Saver gives you up to 25% off electricity use.

Book a free survey to start saving

Ready to go solar? It’s easy with Hive. Expert installers will visit your home and recommend the right solar set-up for you. They’ll give you a free fixed-price quote that includes everything you need to start generating and storing your own energy. They’ll also give you a clear idea of how much electricity your panels will generate.

Get started on your solar journey today


1.  Based on a medium demand (2,700 kWh) property in London, with south-facing 10 panel 4kW arrays and a battery providing 35% of the home’s electricity needs. Excess energy is sold back to the grid at 15.1p per kWh using the British Gas ‘Export & Earn Plus’ SEG tariff. Saving includes ‘Hive Solar Saver’ discount of 25% on electricity unit rate in first year and savings will vary after that. Typical bill calculated using national average October - December 25 price cap rates. Actual savings will depend on location, installation, aspect and electricity use. 

2. Hive Solar Saver offer is available to customers who accept a quote for a Hive solar and/or battery installation from the 22nd May 2024. The offer is subject to availability and can be removed at any time. We will give at least one months’ advance notice of the offer ending on our website. To be eligible for the offer, installation must be completed within three months of the customer’s acceptance of the quote and customers must sign-up for Hive Solar Saver withing two weeks of receiving their invitation email. 25% discount applies for 12 months. Discount excludes standing charge. For time of use tariffs, discount applies to peak rate consumption only.  For full details please see the Hive Solar Saver Terms & Conditions on the British Gas website.

3. The solar panels installed by Effective Home and Forster come with a minimum 25-year performance lifetime guarantee for the manufacture of the modules and the performance of the solar cells.

4. For both solar & battery, the price is £8,105 with Effective Home. This price is based on purchasing a 8 panel system, 400W premium panels and a 5.32kWh solar battery. Price includes full system and install.

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