Solar panel grants at a glance
Which scheme could apply depends first on where you live, and then on your household income and your home.
| Scheme | Where | Can it fund solar panels? | Who it is for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warm Homes: Local Grant | England | Yes, as part of a package of upgrades | Lower-income households in homes rated EPC D to G |
| ECO4 | England, Scotland and Wales | Only alongside a heat pump or certain electric heating, until 31 December 2026 | Households on qualifying benefits, or declared eligible by a council |
| Nest | Wales | Yes, where the home assessment recommends it | Lower-income owner-occupiers and private tenants |
| Warmer Homes Scotland | Scotland | Possibly: home renewables can be part of the package | Households struggling to heat their home who meet the scheme’s conditions |
| Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan | Scotland | No, not standard solar panels | Homeowners in Scotland |
| Boiler Upgrade Scheme | England and Wales | No | Heat pumps and biomass boilers only |
| Any scheme | Northern Ireland | No support at present | A replacement fund is proposed for 2027 |
None of these is a solar grant you apply for on its own. In each one, the panels are one possible part of a wider set of home improvements, chosen after someone has assessed the property.
England
Warm Homes: Local Grant
The Warm Homes: Local Grant is the main route to grant-funded solar in England. Councils deliver it, and it can pay for solar panels and home batteries alongside insulation and low-carbon heating.
To be considered, a household generally needs:
- a home in England rated EPC D, E, F or G, owned or privately rented;
- a gross household income of £36,000 or less, a means-tested benefit, or an address on the government’s list of eligible postcodes;
- a council that is taking part and still has funding.
You start with the official checker on GOV.UK. If you appear eligible, your council contacts you to arrange a survey, and the survey decides which improvements are offered. A battery can only be included where the home has, or is getting, solar panels.
ECO4, until 31 December 2026
ECO4 is funded by energy suppliers and runs until 31 December 2026. It can include solar panels, but only where the home is heated by a heat pump or certain efficient electric heating, or will be once the work is done. A home with a gas boiler that is staying does not get solar through ECO4.
Work has to be finished before the scheme ends, so in practice the time left to start a new ECO4 project is short. Our ECO4 eligibility page explains who qualifies.
What does not fund solar
The Boiler Upgrade Scheme pays towards heat pumps and biomass boilers only. It does not fund solar panels or batteries. If you already have solar panels, that does not count against a heat pump application.
Scotland
Scotland has its own schemes, and the Warm Homes: Local Grant does not apply there.
- Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan. This is the main scheme for homeowners, and it funds heat pumps and insulation. Standard solar panels and batteries are not among the measures it lists. Hybrid solar PV-T systems are listed, for a loan only.
- Warmer Homes Scotland. For households struggling to heat their home who meet its conditions. An assessor chooses the improvements, which are mainly insulation and heating and can include home renewables. You cannot ask for solar panels on their own.
- ECO4. Covers Scotland on the same terms as England, until 31 December 2026.
Our guide to home energy grants in Scotland sets out who qualifies for each scheme and how to apply.
Wales
Wales has the most direct route to funded solar for lower-income households.
- Nest. The Welsh Government’s scheme can install a heat pump, insulation or solar panels free of charge. It is for owner-occupiers and private tenants who receive a means-tested benefit or have a low household income, in homes with a poor energy rating. The package is chosen after a whole-house assessment.
- Green Homes Wales. For homeowners who do not qualify for Nest, there are interest-free loans of £1,000 to £25,000, repaid over up to 10 years, which can cover solar panels and battery storage. You need energy advice from Nest first, and affordability and credit checks apply.
- ECO4. Covers Wales until 31 December 2026, on the same terms as England.
The Warm Homes: Local Grant does not apply in Wales. Our guide to home energy grants in Wales has the Nest eligibility rules in full.
Northern Ireland
There is no solar panel grant in Northern Ireland at present. nidirect states that there is currently no financial support for households that want to generate their own electricity. ECO4 and the Warm Homes: Local Grant do not apply there.
The Department for Communities has consulted on a Warm Healthy Homes Fund, planned for 2027. Its proposals include solar panels and battery storage for lower-income households, subject to a home assessment, but they are not final and nothing is open yet. Our Northern Ireland guide covers the schemes that are open.
Help that is not a grant
Most households that install solar pay for it themselves. These four things reduce the cost or improve the return.
VAT relief
Installed solar panels and batteries in homes currently have 0% VAT until 31 March 2027. From 1 April 2027 the rate is due to return to 5%. The relief applies when the equipment is installed for you, not when you buy it on its own.
Export payments
Under the Smart Export Guarantee, larger electricity suppliers must offer a tariff that pays you for the electricity you send to the grid. Each supplier sets its own rate and terms, and you do not have to choose the company that supplies your electricity, so it is worth comparing. An MCS-certified installation is normally needed.
Warm Homes loans
The government’s Warm Homes Loan Scheme is intended to make borrowing for solar panels and batteries cheaper. Its rules set a cap of £15,000 for solar panels and describe a first launch phase from September 2026 through participating lenders. No list of lenders had been published when we checked, so we cannot yet point you to one. Our Warm Homes Plan page tracks what is open. We do not offer finance ourselves.
Plug-in solar
Small plug-in solar kits of up to 800W became legal to buy and use in Great Britain on 27 August 2026. They plug into a normal socket and are far smaller than a roof system, so they suit renters and flats more than a household looking to cover most of its electricity use.
Who is most likely to qualify
Funded solar is aimed at households that would struggle to pay for improvements themselves. You are more likely to qualify if:
- your household income is low, or someone in the home receives a means-tested benefit;
- your home has a poor energy rating (EPC D or below);
- you own the home or rent it from a private landlord, with the landlord’s agreement.
If none of those applies, the realistic options are the ones in the section above: 0% VAT, export payments and, once lenders are confirmed, a Warm Homes loan.
Be careful with “free solar panel” offers
Check before you sign
- A real grant never asks for a fee to “secure” or “release” funding.
- Offers of free panels in return for the export income, or a long lease over your roof, can affect selling or remortgaging the home. Read the agreement and take advice.
- The Warm Homes: Local Grant is checked on GOV.UK and delivered by your council. Nest is reached through the Welsh Government’s own phone line.
- If someone contacts you out of the blue, check them against the official scheme page before sharing any details.
Is solar worth it without a grant?
It depends on your roof, how much shade it gets and how much electricity you use during the day. We do not publish savings figures, because they vary so much between homes. A good installer should base a quote on your own roof and your own electricity use.
Before you ask for quotes
Our solar panels page explains what makes a roof suitable and what the installation involves, and our battery storage guide covers whether a battery is worth adding.
Check which schemes could apply to you
Tell us what heats your home and whether you own it. We will take you to our eligibility check with those answers filled in. It is free, and nothing is sent until you choose to send it.
