Hampshire
Solar panels in Cowes, priced before anyone visits.
About 7,160 kWh a year from 12 panels in Cowes, £6,360 installed, with your system designed on a free 30-minute video call.
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- Free 30-minute video design call
- Priced before anyone visits
- Installed by our MCS-certified, fully insured teams
Sunlight in Cowes, in numbers
From 38.3 kWh per kWp in December to 139.6 in July: a roof in Cowes makes 3.6 times as much in its best month as in its darkest, and 1,125 kWh per kWp across the year.
Generation per kWp, month by month
Show the monthly figures
| Month | kWh/kWp |
|---|---|
| January | 42.5 |
| February | 58.8 |
| March | 98.8 |
| April | 128 |
| May | 135 |
| June | 138 |
| July | 140 |
| August | 122 |
| September | 104 |
| October | 71 |
| November | 49.3 |
| December | 38.3 |
Source: PVGIS v5.2 (European Commission JRC), SARAH3 database, 1 kWp, 14% system loss, 35 degree pitch, due south, checked September 2026.
Our GB average is 925 kWh per kWp a year, the mean of the 85 county PVGIS estimates we publish; at 1,125, Cowes is 22% above it.
How Cowes compares
Small towns rarely get published solar figures, so here are the numbers for Cowes. It is one of 45 Hampshire towns we track, and it ranks joint 9th of 45 for solar yield, a town of 14,516 people in the House of Commons Library settlement data. PVGIS gives its roofs 1,125 kWh per kWp a year, 3.08 peak sun hours a day averaged across the seasons, and the standard 12 panel model turns that into £993 of year one benefit, £247 of it from your own generation and £746 from export at 12p.
Every figure here assumes a clear, south-facing roof at 35 degrees. Yours will differ, which is what the free design call is for; until then, the calculator below tests panels, batteries and export rates on Cowes' own yield.
Planning applications here go through Isle of Wight; nationally, the House of Commons Library classes Cowes as a small town.
The charger is in the installed price but left out of payback: charging savings depend on your mileage and tariff, which the design call models properly.
Your real roof and usage, worked through on a free 30-minute video call. Use the full form or leave three details below.
Price this for your roof
Three details. We call or text within one working day to book your free 30-minute design call, on video or by phone if you prefer.
Generation is modelled from PVGIS satellite data for Cowes' own coordinates (50.75451, -1.30995), using the same 26.32p/kWh import value and £1,000 per kWp installed pricing as every Clearline estimate; the methodology is on our help page.
SSEN and your Cowes connection
Cowes sits in Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks' Southern England licence area, so SSEN is the network operator (DNO) any solar panels or battery here are registered with.
Below 3.68kW per phase of inverter and battery output, the G98 route applies: the installation is notified to SSEN within 28 days of commissioning, with no prior approval.
Larger systems go through G99 instead, applied for before installation. On timing: SSEN says it can take up to 45 working days to issue a quotation for a generation connection above 3.68kW per phase and up to 50kW.
Sources: NESO DNO licence areas (3 May 2024); SSEN, micro-generation connections page, checked 25 September 2026. G98 vs G99, explained.
Beyond the panels: heating and car charging in Cowes
A heat pump in Cowes
Heating demand peaks when solar is weakest. In Cowes, a 12-panel system makes about 240 kWh in December and 270 kWh in January, a fraction of its 890 kWh in July, which is why a heat pump here is costed on its tariff first.
Grant support in England comes from the Boiler Upgrade Scheme: £7,500 for an air source or ground source heat pump, £2,500 for air-to-air, and an extra £1,500 until March 2027 where the home is heated by oil or LPG off the gas grid (gov.uk, checked 28 September 2026).
Charging an EV in Cowes
Summer is where a car earns its place. In July, 12 panels in Cowes make about 890 kWh, against roughly 70 kWh a typical home uses in daylight that month on our calculator's typical-use settings, so there is surplus a smart charger can put into the car instead of exporting it.
If you rent, or own a flat, and have private off-street parking, the government chargepoint grant covers 75% of the cost, capped at £500 a socket, until 31 March 2027 (gov.uk, checked 28 September 2026). The calculator above prices a 7.4kW smart charger from £1,100 installed.
Installed prices, the same in every town
Every system is designed around your roof on the free call before anything is fitted.
Solar panel servicing and repair in Cowes
The same sourced benchmarks apply in Cowes as everywhere we cover: honest repair pricing and what a service should include.
Common questions about solar in Cowes
How much electricity do solar panels make in Cowes?
About 7,160 kWh a year from 12 panels (6.36 kWp), on PVGIS satellite data for Cowes: 1,125 kWh per kWp, or 3.08 peak sun hours a day on average. July is the strongest month, at about 890 kWh.
What does a typical solar system cost in Cowes?
Solar is priced at £1,000 per kWp installed wherever you live, so a 12-panel, 6.36 kWp system costs £6,360 in Cowes, exactly as it would anywhere else, before any battery. Location changes what the system makes, not what it costs: here that is about 7,160 kWh a year. The final figure comes from your roof on the design call.
Which DNO covers Cowes, and what does it need from me?
Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) covers Cowes. A home system of up to 3.68kW per phase is notified to SSEN within 28 days of commissioning under G98, and nothing waits on approval. Larger outputs need a G99 application before work starts. SSEN says it can take up to 45 working days to issue a quotation for a generation connection above 3.68kW per phase and up to 50kW.
What happens to the solar I do not use in Cowes?
Around £746 a year at 12p per kWh, for the roughly 6,218 kWh a 12-panel system in Cowes exports with typical use. Rates vary by supplier and some need their own tariff; the export rates table is dated and sourced.
How much solar does Cowes get in December?
December is the low point: about 240 kWh from a 12-panel system in Cowes, on PVGIS data, rising to 890 kWh in July. From November to February the same system makes about 1,200 kWh in total, which is why a battery charged off-peak does more of the work in winter.
How Cowes compares with its neighbours
How the towns nearest Cowes compare on the same PVGIS settings, closest first.
| Town | kWh per kWp a year | vs Cowes |
|---|---|---|
| Cowes | 1,125 | this town |
| East Cowes | 1,112 | −13 kWh |
| Newport (Isle of Wight) | 1,150 | +25 kWh |
| Lee-on-the-Solent | 1,104 | −21 kWh |
| Ryde | 1,136 | +11 kWh |
| Locks Heath | 1,090 | −35 kWh |
| Gosport | 1,116 | −9 kWh |
Each row is a PVGIS v5.2 run at that town's centre with the same settings. Treat gaps of a few kWh as noise and gaps over about 30 kWh per kWp as real differences in sunshine.
Also for Cowes: Solar panels in Cowes from OVO Solar & Battery
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Reading for Cowes homeowners
Sourced, dated and written by us. The same ground we cover on your free call.
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Read the guide →Get my free quote
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