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Solar panels in Canberra

Canberra is cold, high and clear, and that combination is better for solar than it sounds. Panels are more efficient cold than hot, the inland air is dry, and the summer days are long and bright; the cost is the short, frosty winter days when a heat pump is running hardest and the array is producing least. The Clean Energy Regulator's postcode data on this page covers the ACT from Gungahlin to Tuggeranong, Belconnen to Queanbeyan, and the new suburbs in Molonglo.

Clean Energy Regulator small-scale installation data across 27 postcodes in Canberra and Queanbeyan, to October 2026. Averages include some business systems.

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Where the installs are going

The growth suburbs are Molonglo Valley, the newer parts of Gungahlin and the Ginninderry estates in the west, where homes go up with Colorbond roofs, three-phase supply and, increasingly, no gas connection at all. The older suburbs of the inner north and south install steadily on big blocks with mature trees, which brings shade into the conversation.

Roofs and homes in Canberra

Canberra roofs are mostly tile through the older suburbs and Colorbond in the new ones, and both take panels well. Hail is the weather to design for; the city has had serious hailstorms and panel impact ratings are worth reading. Frost and the occasional snow are a minor mounting consideration. The bigger local factor is the ACT's move away from gas, which means heating, hot water and cooking are all becoming electric loads, and a system sized for last year's bill may be too small for next year's.

Brick house with solar panels on its roof, on a suburban street

The network: Evoenergy

Evoenergy runs the network across the ACT and ActewAGL is the main retailer, though the market is open. Single-phase homes have a standard export limit and larger systems go through a connection application. Canberra's usage is unusual for Australia: a winter evening peak from heating rather than a summer afternoon one, which means a battery here earns its keep in June rather than January, and the winter surplus to fill it is small. That is the argument for sizing the array generously and the battery modestly.

Suburban street with power poles and overhead lines at sunset

What a system generates in Canberra

Canberra averages 4.5 peak sun hours a day and sits in STC Zone 3. A peak sun hour is an hour of sunlight at full strength, so the figure is what a panel collects once the weaker morning and evening light is added up. On that average, this is what the two most common system sizes produce on a north-facing roof with no shade.

Average daily and yearly solar generation in Canberra
SystemAverage dayYear
6.6 kW25.2 kWh9,214 kWh
10 kW38.3 kWh13,961 kWh

Worked as system size times 4.5 peak sun hours times 85%, the allowance our suburb pages make for inverter, heat and wiring losses, over 365 average days. Summer days produce well above the average and winter days well below it, and an east or west-facing array produces less than a north-facing one.

Across the eight capitals, the same 6.6 kW system makes from about 7,576 kWh a year in Hobart to about 11,262 kWh in Darwin. More sun means more output from the same panels, but it does not change the STC rebate within a zone: that is set by the zone, the system size and the year you install.

Rebates and feed-in tariffs in Canberra

Federal
Up to $8,000+ in solar and battery rebates in STC Zone 3. See how we calculate this.
Australian Capital Territory
up to $5,000 through HESP for concession card holders, plus Sustainable Household Scheme loans.
Feed-in tariff
The best single-rate plan we can find for 2600 pays 12.0c per kWh (Origin Energy). Compare ACT feed-in tariffs.

How much solar panels cost in Canberra

These are the installed prices our solar panel cost guide works on, with the federal STC rebate for Canberra taken off. The rebate comes off the quote at the point of sale, so the last column is what you actually pay. In STC Zone 3 it is worth $1,710 on a 6.6 kW system and $2,622 on a 10 kW one.

  • 5 kW

    Installed price
    $4,500 to $6,500
    STC rebate, Zone 3
    $1,292
    You pay after the STC
    $3,208 to $5,208

  • 6.6 kW

    Installed price
    $5,500 to $8,000
    STC rebate, Zone 3
    $1,710
    You pay after the STC
    $3,790 to $6,290

  • 10 kW

    Installed price
    $8,000 to $12,000
    STC rebate, Zone 3
    $2,622
    You pay after the STC
    $5,378 to $9,378

  • 13 kW

    Installed price
    $10,000 to $15,000
    STC rebate, Zone 3
    $3,382
    You pay after the STC
    $6,618 to $11,618

Prices are the national ranges from our solar panel cost guide. Installed prices are before any rebate. The STC rebate is the certificates each system creates in Zone 3 over the 2026 deeming period of 5 years, at $38 a certificate. The deeming period shortens by a year every 1 January, so the same system earns less rebate each year you wait.

The average system installed across Canberra in the 12 months to October 2026 was 12.1 kW, between the 10 kW and 13 kW rows, although that average includes some business systems. Size yours on your own bills and roof, but it is a fair check on what your neighbours are putting up.

What moves a quote up or down: the panel and inverter brands, a second storey or a steep or tiled roof, and switchboard or meter work. The full breakdown is in our solar panel cost guide.

Payback in Canberra

Payback is the after-rebate price divided by what the system saves each year. The saving comes from two places: the power you use yourself, which you no longer buy at around 25.0c per kWh, and the power you export, which earns the feed-in tariff.

  • 6.6 kW

    Yearly generation
    9,214 kWh
    Yearly saving
    $1,465
    You pay after the STC
    $3,790 to $6,290
    Simple payback
    2.6 to 4.3 years

  • 10 kW

    Yearly generation
    13,961 kWh
    Yearly saving
    $2,220
    You pay after the STC
    $5,378 to $9,378
    Simple payback
    2.4 to 4.2 years

Assumes 30% of the solar is used in the home at 25.0c per kWh, the average residential usage rate we hold for the Australian Capital Territory, and the other 70% is exported at 12.0c per kWh, the best single-rate feed-in tariff we can find for postcode 2600 (Origin Energy). That 30% is the share our suburb pages and calculators assume for a household out at work during the day. No battery, no price rises and no panel ageing are counted.

Using more of it yourself improves the numbers quickly, because a kWh used at home is worth 25.0c and an exported one 12.0c. At 50% self-consumption, which a household home through the day or one that runs the pool pump, dishwasher and hot water on a timer can reach, the 6.6 kW system saves about $1,705 a year in Canberra and pays back in 2.2 to 3.7 years.

Your rebate in Canberra

Up to $8,000+ in solar and battery rebates. One Why Solar Approved installer, one free written quote, and fifteen minutes with a solar expert before you sign.

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Batteries in Canberra

The federal Cheaper Home Batteries rebate applies in Canberra as it does everywhere. It is paid on usable capacity, at $258/kWh for the first 14 kWh and at lower rates above that, and like the STC rebate it comes off the price at the point of sale. It steps down on 1 January 2027, when the full rate falls to $217/kWh.

Battery rebates in Canberra
Battery (usable)Federal rebate
10 kWh$2,584
14 kWh$3,610

The table is the federal rebate only: there is no ACT battery rebate that a typical household can count on.

Australian Capital Territory: up to $5,000 through HESP for concession card holders, plus Sustainable Household Scheme loans.

Whether a battery pays in Canberra comes down to the gap between what you pay for power and what you are paid for exporting it. Each kWh a battery moves from export into your evening is worth about 13.0c (25.0c less 12.0c). A 10 kWh battery that filled and emptied every day would be worth up to $475 a year on that gap alone; most do less in winter, when there is less surplus to store.

Battery prices by size, before and after the federal rebate, are in our battery cost guide, and the ACT battery rebate page has the state detail.

Installers in Canberra

We have not published an installer guide for Canberra yet. Our national installer directory lists SAA-accredited installers with customer reviews.

When you check your rebate with us, you are matched with one Why Solar Approved installer in Canberra. An installer has passed all six of our checks: credentials, staying power, proof of work, who actually turns up to do the job, what goes in, and how they handle trouble. They earn it before they see a single homeowner, and they lose it if they let one down. The installer never cold-calls you; the one call is from a solar expert, fifteen minutes before you sign.

Installer in hi-vis and a safety harness fitting solar panels to a tin roof

What's actually happening on roofs near you

Canberra is 27 postcodes. Check yours, or any other.

What Canberra homeowners ask us

Canberra homeowners ask about the Territory's Sustainable Household Scheme, which offers interest-free loans for solar, batteries and electric appliances, and about how the gas phase-out changes what to buy. They ask whether solar is worth it in a cold climate, and it is, because cold panels work well and the winter loss is a matter of sizing. And they ask who to trust in a market where a number of interstate installers come and go with each incentive round. Ask for local references and check the ABN's trading history. Ask for the export limit on your street in writing, and check the accreditation is current with Solar Accreditation Australia.

Questions people ask

How many homes in Canberra installed solar in the last 12 months?
4,446 small-scale solar systems were installed across Canberra's 27 postcodes in the 12 months to October 2026, averaging 12.1 kW. The figures are the Clean Energy Regulator's postcode data, not estimates.
What solar rebates apply in Canberra?
Up to $8,000+ in solar and battery rebates apply in Canberra, calculated from STC Zone 3 and the federal battery rebate. Australian Capital Territory: up to $5,000 through HESP for concession card holders, plus Sustainable Household Scheme loans.
What is the best feed-in tariff in Canberra?
The best single-rate feed-in tariff we can find for 2600 is 12.0c per kWh with Origin Energy. Rates change often; compare plans once your system is in.
How much does it cost to install solar panels in Canberra?
A 6.6 kW system in Canberra costs about $5,500 to $8,000 installed. The federal STC rebate in Zone 3 takes $1,710 off, so you pay about $3,790 to $6,290. A 10 kW system is $8,000 to $12,000 before the rebate and $5,378 to $9,378 after it. Prices move with the panels, the inverter, the roof and any switchboard work.
Is it worth getting solar in Canberra?
For most owner-occupiers with a roof that gets sun, yes. A 6.6 kW system in Canberra makes about 9,214 kWh a year from 4.5 peak sun hours a day. Using 30% of that at home and exporting the rest saves about $1,465 a year at today's rates, which pays back the after-rebate price in 2.6 to 4.3 years. It pays back faster if you use more of the power during the day, and more slowly on a shaded roof or a small bill.
Who is the best solar installer in Canberra?
There is no single best installer for every home. Look for SAA accreditation, a written workmanship warranty and a company that has traded under the same ABN for years; our national installer directory lists accredited installers with reviews. If you check your rebate with us, you are matched with one Why Solar Approved installer in Canberra who has passed all six of our checks.
What is the 20% rule for solar?
It is the rule of thumb that the panels should be rated 20 to 33 per cent above the inverter, such as 6.6 kW of panels on a 5 kW inverter. Panels rarely produce their full rating, so a slightly larger array keeps the inverter working near its capacity for more of the day. The Clean Energy Council's design guidelines, which the STC rules follow, allow panels up to a third larger than the inverter. That is why 6.6 kW is the standard size on a 5 kW inverter, and why 13.3 kW is the largest array on a 10 kW single-phase inverter.

Suburbs in the Canberra figures

All of the Australian Capital TerritorySearch every suburbInstallers: work with Why Solar in Canberra

Your rebate, one Why Solar Approved installer in Canberra, and a solar expert on the phone before you sign.

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Up to $8,000+ in solar and battery rebates · Federal rebates step down in 80 daysSee how we calculate this