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TariffsWhat the Smart Export Guarantee actually is
The Smart Export Guarantee is often described as the scheme that pays you for your solar. That is half right. It obliges suppliers to offer something above zero, and leaves the rate entirely to them.
Updated 4 August 2026 · written by the Clearline guidance team
The scheme in one paragraph
The Smart Export Guarantee launched on 1 January 2020. It requires larger electricity suppliers to offer at least one tariff that pays small-scale generators for the electricity they send back to the grid, and it requires that rate to be above zero. That is the guarantee. There is no minimum price, no government top-up and no fixed term set by the scheme. Everything else is a commercial decision by the supplier.
Above zero is the whole floor
The SEG guarantees that a payment exists, not that it is worth having. In practice suppliers price it anywhere from 3p to 25p per kWh depending on what else they want from you. The scheme creates the market, it does not set the price.
What qualifies
The scheme covers solar PV, wind, hydro, anaerobic digestion and micro combined heat and power. Capacity runs up to 5MW for most technologies and 50kW for micro-CHP, so a domestic solar installation is never anywhere near the ceiling. The installation has to be in Great Britain.
- Solar PV, wind, hydro and anaerobic digestion up to 5MW
- Micro combined heat and power up to 50kW
- Installation located in Great Britain
- Metering capable of recording export on a half-hourly basis
- A rate above zero, by law
The paperwork that actually unlocks payment
The scheme rules are short. The supplier requirements on top of them are where most people get stuck. British Gas, as a worked example, asks for an MCS certificate, a Flexi-Orb certificate or an equivalent accreditation, plus G98 or G99 proof of grid connection from your Distribution Network Operator, plus a smart meter recording export every 30 minutes. It then pays quarterly, within 28 days of the reading.
Get the installation certified
MCS certification, or a recognised equivalent, is the document suppliers ask for first. Installations through an MCS-certified installation team for your area come with it as standard.
Get the grid connection recorded
Your DNO signs off the connection under G98 for smaller installations or G99 for larger ones. Suppliers want the paperwork, not just the assurance.
Get the meter right
You need a smart meter that records export half-hourly. Without it there is nothing to pay you against, regardless of how much you generate.
Apply and wait
Octopus reports that DNO creation of an export MPAN takes one to four weeks, with full onboarding roughly two to five weeks. OVO puts its own signup at around four weeks and asks for battery schematics where a battery is fitted.
None of that is difficult, but all of it takes time, and none of it starts until the installation is finished. Budget four to six weeks between commissioning and your first export payment arriving, and do not treat the delay as a sign something has gone wrong.
The rules that catch people out
The Feed-in Tariff clash
You cannot draw SEG export payments and FiT export payments at the same time. OVO states this plainly in its own SEG terms. Octopus adds a further wrinkle: customers who started receiving FiT payments within the last 12 months cannot switch export arrangements at all, because the FiT rules block it. If you have a legacy installation on FiT, work out what your deemed export is worth before you give it up.
Half-hourly metering is not optional
SEG payments are calculated from export meter readings, and the metering has to be half-hourly capable. A smart meter that has lost communication is a common and quiet cause of missing payments. Check that your export readings are actually reaching your supplier, not just that the meter is fitted.
The supplier chooses everything else
Rate, term, payment frequency, eligibility conditions and whether they will take you at all. Some SEG tariffs are open to anyone. Others require you to buy your electricity from the same supplier, or to have bought the installation from them. We have set the whole verified landscape out in the export rates comparison, and explained the conditions in why the best export rates carry conditions.
Battery-only homes
The SEG covers generation technologies. A battery on its own does not generate anything, so it does not create SEG eligibility by itself. Where a battery sits alongside solar, suppliers usually want to see the schematics, and OVO asks for them specifically. This is one of several reasons a battery decision and a tariff decision belong in the same conversation, which is what our battery storage guide works through.
A free design call covers the certification, the DNO route and the export tariff you will qualify for, before anything is ordered.
Get your free quote →What the scheme is worth in practice
Export income is real but rarely transformational on its own. At the average capped import rate of 26.11p per kWh for the July to September 2026 quarter, a unit you keep and use is worth more than double a unit you export at 12p. That single comparison drives most sensible system design: self-consumption first, export second.
| What you do with a kWh | What it is worth | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Use it as it is generated | 26.11p | It replaces a unit you would have bought at the capped average rate |
| Store it and use it later | 26.11p, less round-trip losses | Same saving, shifted in time by the battery |
| Export it on a 12p tariff | 12p | You are selling it at the supplier's price |
| Export it on a 3p tariff | 3p | The scheme floor, in practice |
Import comparison uses the Ofgem average capped electricity unit rate of 26.11p per kWh for 1 July to 30 September 2026.
The exception is the time of use export structures, where a peak export window can be worth more than the day rate you avoid. That is the argument for a battery that can discharge to the grid at the right hour, and it is covered in detail in choosing a tariff with solar, battery and an EV.
County pages across our coverage area carry calculators that model export income against self-consumption for a specific postcode, which is a more useful answer than any national average.
Scheme rules from Ofgem, supplier requirements from supplier pages, all checked on 3 August 2026.
SEG questions, answered
Who qualifies for the Smart Export Guarantee?
Anyone in Great Britain with an eligible generating technology up to 5MW, which for homes means solar PV in almost every case. You need certified installation paperwork, DNO sign-off under G98 or G99, and a smart meter that records export half-hourly. The supplier you apply to sets any additional conditions.
Do I need a smart meter for SEG?
Yes. Payments are calculated from half-hourly export readings, so metering capable of producing them is a hard requirement of the scheme rather than a supplier preference. If your smart meter has lost its connection, export readings stop reaching the supplier and payments stall.
Do I need an MCS certificate?
Suppliers ask for MCS certification or a recognised equivalent such as Flexi-Orb. British Gas states this explicitly alongside its G98 or G99 requirement, and OVO asks for MCS or equivalent too. Installations carried out by an MCS-certified installation team for your area come with the certificate as part of the job.
How often are SEG payments made?
It depends on the supplier, because the scheme does not set it. British Gas pays quarterly, within 28 days of the reading. Others pay monthly. Check the payment frequency alongside the rate, because a high rate paid annually is worth slightly less than the same rate paid monthly.
Can I get SEG if I am still on the Feed-in Tariff?
Not for the same exported electricity. SEG and FiT export payments cannot be combined, and Octopus notes that anyone who began receiving FiT payments within the last 12 months is blocked from switching export arrangements by the FiT rules. Compare the value of your deemed FiT export against the SEG rate you could get before making a move.
Can I get SEG with a battery and no solar?
The scheme lists generating technologies, and a battery does not generate. Where a battery sits alongside solar, suppliers will usually want the battery schematics as part of the application, and OVO asks for them by name. The battery changes how much you export rather than whether you qualify.
How long does it take to start getting paid?
Octopus reports one to four weeks for the DNO to create the export MPAN and roughly two to five weeks for full onboarding. OVO puts its own signup at around four weeks. Four to six weeks from commissioning to first payment is a realistic expectation.
See the numbers next: Duracell Dura16, installed, or export rates compared.
Figures and specifications in this guide are sourced below and were checked on the date shown. Rates and product specifications change; we confirm the current picture on your free design call.
Sources
- Ofgem, Smart Export Guarantee scheme rules, eligible technologies and capacity limits, accessed 3 August 2026 ofgem.gov.uk
- Ofgem, price cap unit rates for 1 July to 30 September 2026, accessed 3 August 2026 ofgem.gov.uk
- British Gas, SEG certification, G98 and G99 evidence and quarterly payment terms, accessed 3 August 2026 britishgas.co.uk
- Octopus Energy, export MPAN creation and onboarding timescales, and the Feed-in Tariff 12-month rule, accessed 3 August 2026 octopus.energy
- OVO Energy, SEG signup timescale, MCS requirement and battery schematic requirement, accessed 3 August 2026 ovoenergy.com
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