Solar Cost Estimator

Check a quote before you argue about it

Most people looking up solar prices are not planning from scratch. They have a quote in front of them and no way to tell whether it is reasonable.
The third field above is for exactly that. Enter your system size and the price you have been given, and the calculator tells you where that number sits against what the same build costs from current catalogue prices.
It will not tell you the quote is wrong. Prices vary for real reasons – a premium inverter, a difficult roof, a long cable run from array to distribution board, an installer who actually returns your calls in year three. What it does is give you a defensible number to start the conversation from, and a specific thing to ask about when the gap is large.
If the quote comes in high, ask for the equipment list with model numbers and check them here. If it comes in low, ask what has been left out – that is more often the explanation.

What a system costs, size by size

Grid-tied systems, no battery. Panel and inverter prices are read live from our catalogue; balance of system is added at 35% of equipment cost.

With a lithium battery. Battery pricing is the range across the lithium batteries we track, quoted per usable kWh rather than nameplate – the number that matters, because a battery you can only discharge halfway gives you half of what its label says.

Notice what the battery does. A 10 kW system roughly doubles in price when you add 10 kWh of lithium storage. That is the honest cost of staying on during load shedding, and it is why the battery decision deserves more thought than it usually gets.

Why the range is so wide

A 10 kW system priced anywhere between 8 and 16.6 lakh looks like the calculator is refusing to commit. It is not – that spread is real, and understanding it is most of what you need to negotiate well.
The low end is a budget grid-tied build. A competitively priced on-grid inverter, standard panels, straightforward installation.
The high end is a premium hybrid build. Battery-capable inverters cost several times more per watt than plain grid-tied units – in our catalogue the spread runs from about Rs 12 per watt to Rs 68 – and that single component choice moves the total more than anything else on the list.
So the first question to settle is not “which brand of panel”. It is whether you are buying a grid-tied system or a hybrid one, because that decision alone accounts for most of the range above. Panels are the largest single line item but the most consistent in price; the inverter is where quotes diverge.

Where the money goes

On a mid-range 10 kW grid-tied build, the split is roughly:
Panels – about half the total. The largest line, and the most predictable: panel prices per watt vary far less between brands than inverter prices do.
Inverter – about a fifth on a grid-tied system, considerably more on a hybrid. This is the component where your money either buys real capability or does not.
Balance of system – about a quarter. Mounting structure, DC and AC cabling, protection devices, earthing and labour. It is unglamorous, it is where corners get cut, and a quote that looks cheap has usually been cut here.
That last one deserves attention. Protection devices and proper cabling are not optional extras – they are what stands between a fault and a fire. A quote that is 20% below everything else is not usually finding a better panel price. It is leaving something out.

What this does not include

Net-metering application. The DISCO application, the bidirectional meter and the inspection carry their own costs and their own timeline.
Load enhancement. If your sanctioned load is too low for the system you want approved, that is a separate application with its own fee.
Structural work. If your roof needs strengthening, or the array needs elevating above a water tank, that is site-specific and no calculator can price it.
Long cable runs. The distance from array to inverter to distribution board is priced into the balance-of-system percentage as a typical figure. An unusual layout costs more.
Maintenance. Cleaning, and an inverter that will most likely need replacing once in the system’s life – inverter warranties are typically much shorter than panel warranties, which is worth confirming on any quote.

How to read the quote you have been given

Ask for these five things. A supplier who will not provide them is telling you something.
Model numbers, not categories. “1 × 10 kW hybrid inverter” is not an equipment list. The make and model number is, and you can look it up here.
Panel wattage and count, separately. “10 kW of panels” could be sixteen 620W panels or eighteen 560W ones, and they are not the same product at the same price.
The inverter’s warranty, stated separately from the panels’. These are almost always different lengths, and quoting one number for “the system” hides the shorter one.
Whether net metering is included, and what that covers. Application only, or the meter and inspection too.
What protection is fitted. DC and AC breakers, surge protection, earthing. If these are not itemised, assume they are not costed.

Next step

Knowing the price is half of it. Whether it is worth paying depends on what it saves you, and that depends on your tariff rather than on the system.