As electric vehicles become the norm across the South East, many homeowners are discovering that how you charge your EV is just as important as what you drive. While switching from petrol or diesel already cuts running costs, pairing solar panels with home EV charging can dramatically reduce your cost per mile – often to just a few pence.
In this guide, we explain how solar powered EV charging works, why it makes financial sense in the South East and how households can future proof their transport and energy costs at the same time.
The True Cost of EV Charging at Home
Charging an electric vehicle from the grid is significantly cheaper than refuelling a combustion car, but grid electricity prices remain volatile. Even with off peak tariffs, the cost per mile of EV charging can fluctuate year to year.
By contrast, electricity generated by solar panels is entirely free once your system is installed. When that energy is used to charge your car, your EV effectively runs on self-generated power – locking in predictable, long term savings.
How Solar Panels Reduce Your EV Cost Per Mile
A typical EV consumes around 3-4 miles per kWh. If you charge using grid electricity at 30p per kWh, your cost per mile sits at roughly 8-10p. When charging from solar:
- Daytime solar generation can power your EV directly
- Excess solar can be diverted to your charger
- With battery storage, solar energy can be used in the evening
This can reduce your EV running costs to just 2-4p pre mile, depending on system size, driving habits and charging behaviour. Over thousands of miles per year, the savings quickly add up.
Solar and Home EV Charging: A Perfect Match
Home EV charging works particularly well with solar because:
- Most EVs are parked at home during peak solar hours
- Smart chargers can prioritise solar generation
- Charging can be scheduled to maximise self-consumption
Modern home EV charging systems can automatically adjust charging rates based on available solar power, ensuring your vehicle uses as much clean energy as possible.
What About Evening and Winter Charging?
Solar generation is lower in winter and stops altogether at night, but this does not reduce the value of solar EV charging. Many South East homes combine solar panels for daytime generation with battery storage to capture surplus electricity for use in the evenings and overnight. Smart tariffs can top up you battery or EV on cheaper over night lower priced grid electricity.
This balanced approach ensures your electric vehicle is always charged at the lowest possible cost, regardless of season.
Is Solar EV Charging Worth It in the South East?
The South East benefits from some of the UK’s highest solar generation levels, making it one of the best regions for solar powered EV charging. For homeowners with a driveway or parking space, one or more electric vehicles and high annual mileage, solar significantly improves running costs. Charging your EV using solar reduces your payback period and increases your return on investment, making solar an even better financial investment.
Future Proofing Transport and Energy Costs
With fuel prices unpredictable and EV adoption accelerating, solar powered home EV charging offers long term protection against rising energy costs. It also reduces relance on the grid, with every unit of self-generated electricity you use being one less you need to purchase from the grid.
By using solar power to charge your EV you are lowering your carbon footprint further, contributing to the UK’s pledge to become Net Zero by 2050.
If you come to sell your property in the future, homes with solar and EV charging tend to sell up to 14% higher than homes without, especially as the UK moves towards a cleaner, more sustainable future.
For many households, solar turns EV ownership from “cheaper than petrol” into one of the lowest cost ways to travel available today.
Final Thoughts: Drive Further for Less
Combining solar panels with home EV charging is one of the most effective ways to reduce your cost per mile while future proofing your home. For South East homeowners, it is not just an environmental decision – it is a smart financial one.
At SolarTherm UK, we design integrated solar and EV charging solutions tailored to your driving habits, property and long term energy goals. Contact SolarTherm UK today for a free, no obligation quote and design and to find out how much you can save with solar and EV charging. No hard sell, just honest, expert advice.
Your home. Your energy. Your future.
