Ask ten households what they paid for solar and you will hear ten different numbers. That is not because anyone is being ripped off (though some are). It is because the “cost of solar panels” depends on how big the system is, which components go on the roof, what the property throws at the installer, and how much of the federal rebate lands on your quote.
At Greenlight Solar we install residential, commercial and ground-mount systems across New South Wales and Queensland, so the prices below are not guesses pulled from a national average. They are the ranges we see quoted on real roofs, week in and week out. Here is what solar panels actually cost, where the money goes, and how to read a quote so you know whether you are looking at a fair price or a future headache.
How much do solar panels cost in Australia right now?
A quality solar system, fully installed and after the federal rebate, works out to roughly $900 to $1,000 per kilowatt (kW). That is the single most useful number to carry in your head. It already includes the panels, the inverter, racking, cabling, labour, safety compliance and GST.
For the sizes most NSW and QLD homes install, that translates to:
| System size | Typical fully installed price (after rebate, NSW/QLD) | Suits |
| 5 kW | $4,500 – $7,000 | Small home, modest daytime usage |
| 6.6 kW | $5,500 – $8,500 | The most common residential choice |
| 8 kW | $6,500 – $10,500 | Larger family home, some air-con |
| 10 kW | $8,500 – $13,000 | High usage, pool, or planning for a battery/EV |
| 13 kW | $11,000 – $16,500 | Large roof, three-phase supply |
The lower end of each range buys a sound, Clean Energy Council–approved system from a reputable installer. The upper end buys premium panels, a top-tier inverter, and the extra labour that trickier roofs demand. Both are “the right price” — they simply reflect different choices.
A few things move these numbers over time. The rebate steps down slightly every January until it ends completely on 31 December 2030, which nudges prices up. Falling hardware costs have historically pushed the other way. And because most solar equipment is imported and priced in US dollars, a weaker Australian dollar can lift quotes while a stronger one eases them. For the last few years those forces have roughly cancelled out, which is why solar has stayed broadly stable in price, with only slight rises as the rebate winds down.
What you’ll pay in your part of NSW or Queensland
Prices shift a little by region, mostly with how many installers are competing locally and how far someone has to travel to your property. As a guide for the areas we cover:
| Location | 6.6 kW (installed, after rebate) | 10 kW (installed, after rebate) |
| Sydney & metro NSW | $5,500 – $7,500 | $8,500 – $11,000 |
| Regional NSW | $5,800 – $8,500 | $9,000 – $13,000 |
| Brisbane & South-East QLD | $5,500 – $7,800 | $8,800 – $11,500 |
| Regional QLD | $6,000 – $9,000 | $9,500 – $14,000 |
Metro areas tend to sit at the sharper end because more installers are chasing the same jobs. Regional and remote work can carry a travel component. Queensland’s stronger sun also means each kilowatt earns a slightly larger rebate than the southern states, which is why solar in Brisbane and on the Gold Coast often lands close to, or just under, Sydney pricing despite the distance.
Standard vs premium: what the extra spend buys
Every system size above can be built to a standard or a premium specification. Premium generally runs 20 to 30 per cent more, and that money goes into higher-efficiency panels, a better inverter and longer warranties rather than a bigger system. Here is the premium end for the sizes NSW and QLD homes install most:
| System size | Premium installed price (after rebate) | What a premium build usually means |
| 6.6 kW | $7,000 – $9,500 | High-efficiency panels (SunPower or REC) with a premium inverter |
| 8 kW | $8,500 – $12,000 | Tier-1 N-type modules and Enphase microinverters or a premium string inverter |
| 10 kW | $10,500 – $14,500 | Premium panels with a battery-ready hybrid inverter |
| 13 kW | $13,500 – $18,500 | Three-phase premium inverter, top-tier panels and full-system warranty |
The regional pattern from the table above still applies here: metro Sydney and South-East QLD sit at the lower end, regional and remote jobs a little higher.
Premium earns its keep on small or shaded roofs where every square metre has to work harder, on a home you plan to keep for 20-plus years, or where the strongest warranty cover matters to you. For a straightforward roof with room to spare, a well-built standard system delivers most of the value for less.
Where your money actually goes
Most people assume the panels are the bulk of the bill. On a budget system they are closer to a quarter of the pre-rebate cost. The rest is everything that makes those panels safe, legal and productive for the next 25 years.
A typical residential quote breaks down something like this:
- Solar panels – the modules themselves. On a budget build this is a smaller slice than buyers expect.
- Inverter – the brain of the system, converting DC to usable AC. This is where cheap systems most often cut corners, and the component most likely to fail early.
- Racking and mounting – engineered to your roof type and local wind rating. Queensland’s cyclone regions carry stricter requirements than metro Sydney.
- Cabling, isolators and electrical work – often underestimated, and a common place for dodgy operators to skimp.
- Labour and installation – a licensed electrician and Solar Accreditation Australia (SAA)–accredited installer, plus the paperwork that registers your rebate.
- Compliance, monitoring and GST – grid connection approval, safety sign-off and the monitoring that lets you see your system working.
Understanding this split matters because it explains the next question almost everyone asks us.
Why two quotes for the “same” system come back thousands apart
You can request three quotes for a 6.6 kW system and see prices swing from under $5,000 to over $8,500. The system size is identical. What differs is quality, and the differences are hidden inside the components and the workmanship.
A price under $5,000 usually means savings have come from somewhere: entry-level panels, a no-name inverter, a rushed install, or a company that may not be around to honour the warranty. A quote in the $5,000 to $6,000 band typically buys approved mid-range gear from a business with a real track record. Above that, you are paying for high-efficiency panels, a premium inverter such as Fronius or a strong hybrid unit, longer product warranties, and installers who treat cable management like a craft.
The risks of chasing the cheapest number are real and well documented. The Clean Energy Regulator’s inspection program has repeatedly found a meaningful share of installs to be substandard. A cheap inverter that dies at the five-year mark costs $1,000 to $2,500 to replace, which erases the saving you thought you made. And if your panels or inverter are not on the CEC approved lists, you lose the rebate entirely adding well over $1,000 back onto the price.
Our advice is simple: compare quotes on value across the warranted life of the system, not on the headline figure.
The solar rebate: how STCs cut your price
The federal solar rebate is not a cheque you chase after the fact. It is applied as an upfront discount on your quote, and your installer handles the paperwork. It runs through Small-scale Technology Certificates (STCs).
The way it works: your system is issued STCs based on how much clean energy it is expected to generate over the scheme’s remaining life, which comes down to your system size and your location. A bigger system earns more certificates, so it attracts a bigger discount. Panel brand and quality make no difference to the rebate a budget 10 kW system and a premium 10 kW system receive the same certificates.
On a 10 kW system, the STC discount currently knocks roughly $2,500 to $3,000 off the price at the point of sale. Two details worth knowing:
- The value drops a little each January as the scheme winds down, then ends on 31 December 2030. Installing sooner locks in more of the rebate.
- The rebate is worth marginally more in Queensland than in cooler southern states, because QLD’s stronger sun means each kilowatt is credited with generating more. That is part of why Brisbane and regional QLD prices often sit a touch below their southern equivalents.
What changes the price on your roof
The size and the rebate set the baseline. Your property decides the rest. These are the factors we assess on a site inspection before quoting across NSW and QLD:
- Roof type and pitch. Tin and Colorbond are quick to work with. Tile takes longer and adds cost. Steep pitches above 25 degrees need extra safety gear.
- Single vs double storey. A second storey means more access equipment and time on the job.
- Single vs three-phase power. Many larger NSW and QLD homes run three-phase, which can change the inverter required and the price with it.
- Switchboard and meter. Older boards sometimes need an upgrade before a system can be safely connected. Your retailer also has to reconfigure the meter for solar export.
- Shading. Trees, a neighbour’s build, or a chimney may call for microinverters or optimisers, which lift output on shaded roofs and add to the cost.
- Distance from the installer. Regional and remote QLD jobs can carry a travel component that metro Sydney or Brisbane installs do not.
None of these are upsells. They are the difference between a system that performs for decades and one that underdelivers from day one.
Per-panel and per-watt prices
If you would rather think in smaller units, the cost of an individual solar panel in Australia currently runs from about $80 to over $300, depending on brand and wattage.
- Budget and mid-range modules – brands such as Jinko, Trina and Aiko sit around $80 to $150 per panel.
- Premium modules – the likes of SunPower, REC and Tindo – run $250 to $300-plus each.
A typical home fits 14 to 28 panels, so panel choice alone can swing the hardware cost by several thousand dollars. Modern panels mostly land in the 440–475 W range, which is why fewer panels now deliver the same system size than a few years ago.
For comparing whole systems rather than parts, the industry benchmark is dollars per watt installed. A good residential system currently lands around $0.85 to $0.95 per watt fully installed and after the rebate. Premium builds sit 20 to 30 per cent above that.
Does adding a battery change the maths?
A battery lifts your upfront cost well beyond the panels alone, even with the federal battery rebate now in play. As a rough guide, pairing a common 6.6 kW to 10 kW system with a 13.5 kWh battery pushes the total into the $16,000 to $20,000-plus range before you factor the battery incentive.
Whether that stacks up depends on your usage pattern, your feed-in tariff, and how much of your power you use at night. For households already exporting a lot of cheap daytime solar to the grid, a battery captures that value instead. We are happy to model it both ways so you can see the payback with and without storage before committing.
Commercial and ground-mount solar costs
Businesses across NSW and QLD benefit from the same rebate mechanics, and per-watt pricing falls as systems scale. Indicative fully installed commercial ranges look like this:
| System size | Indicative installed cost (NSW/QLD) | Approx. cost per watt |
| 10 kW | $9,500 – $11,000 | ~$0.90 – $0.95 |
| 30 kW | $26,000 – $31,000 | ~$0.85 – $0.95 |
| 50 kW | $46,000 – $53,000 | ~$0.90 – $1.05 |
| 100 kW | $77,000 – $89,000 | ~$0.80 – $0.90 |
Ground-mount systems, a genuine option for rural QLD properties and businesses with land rather than roof, carry different economics again, since framing and civil works replace roof mounting. If you are weighing a commercial rooftop, a ground-mount array, or a mix, that is a conversation worth having with an installer who does all three rather than reading off a residential price table.
Is solar actually worth the cost?
Solar is an investment that pays a return, not a purchase that simply drains money. Over a 25-year life, a well-built rooftop system produces electricity at close to 4 cents per kilowatt-hour against a grid rate in Sydney and Brisbane sitting far higher. Every dollar spent on quality panels can return several dollars in bill savings across the system’s life, and that gap widens every time grid prices rise.
The catch is in the word “quality”. A system that pays back fast but fades after a decade is a poor investment. One that costs a little more upfront and performs for 25 years is the one that actually saves you money. That is the standard we build to, and the reason our quotes explain what you are paying for rather than just what you are paying.
Frequently asked questions
How much do solar panels cost in Australia?
A quality system runs roughly $900 to $1,000 per kW fully installed after the rebate. In practice, a 6.6 kW system costs around $5,500 to $8,500, and a 10 kW system around $8,500 to $13,000, depending on component quality and your roof.
How much does a 6.6 kW solar system cost?
Between about $5,500 and $8,500 fully installed in NSW and QLD, after the STC rebate and including GST. The lower end is a sound approved system; the upper end buys premium panels and a top-tier inverter.
How much does a 10 kW solar system cost?
Around $8,500 to $13,000 installed after the rebate. Standard builds sit at the lower end, while premium panels and inverters push toward the top.
How much is a single solar panel?
An individual panel costs about $80 to over $300 depending on brand and wattage. Budget modules are under $150; premium modules are $250 to $300-plus. A typical home uses 14 to 28 of them.
How does the solar rebate reduce the price?
The federal STC rebate is applied as an upfront discount on your quote, based on your system size and location. On a 10 kW system it currently cuts roughly $2,500 to $3,000. It steps down each January and ends on 31 December 2030.
Why are some solar quotes so much cheaper than others? Cheaper quotes usually cut costs on panels, the inverter, or the installation itself. That often shows up later as early inverter failure, underperformance, or a warranty no one is left to honour. Comparing value over the system’s life is safer than comparing the headline price.
Are solar panels worth it in NSW and Queensland?
Yes, for most homes and businesses. Strong sun across NSW and QLD, high grid prices, and a rebate that is still generous mean a quality system typically pays for itself well inside its warranted life, then keeps saving for years after.
