What is plug-in solar?
Plug-in solar is a small solar kit you set up yourself, with nothing fixed to the roof. One or two panels, a small box called a microinverter and a plug. It clips to a balcony rail, hangs on a fence or stands in the garden, and the electricity it makes feeds straight into your home, cutting what you buy from the grid. It's the version of solar built for the millions who've never been able to get it: no roof to own, no installer, no scaffolding.
Where the idea comes from
The UK is late to this. In Germany they're called Balkonkraftwerke, "balcony power plants" and they've become an ordinary household purchase, sold in supermarkets next to the kettles. Around 800,000 were registered with the German grid by the end of 2024, on Bundesnetzagentur figures and over 1.2 million by late 2025. The Netherlands, Belgium, Austria and France all run their own frameworks and the German Association for Plug-in PV estimates 4 to 5 million systems are now operating across Europe once unregistered units are counted.
The reason it caught on is simple: most people can't put solar on their roof. They rent, they live in a flat, or they don't own the roof above them. A plug-in kit gets round all of that, because it connects through a normal socket rather than needing to be wired into the building. We explain why that distinction matters for renters and leaseholders in our guide to whether plug-in solar is legal in the UK.
What does the kit include
There are only a few components and none are complicated. Plug-in solar is built to be straightforward, with DIY installation.
The panels. One or two photovoltaic panels that turn daylight into electricity. They come in flexible lightweight versions for balconies and rigid glass ones for the garden.
The microinverter. This is the critical component. It's a small weatherproof box that sits behind the panel and converts the direct current (DC) the panel makes into the alternating current (AC) your home runs on, matched exactly to the mains. It's also the safety component, which is why we go on about it. There's more on that in our guide to how plug-in solar works.
The mount and the cable. Brackets or hooks to hold the panels and a cable that ends in a normal UK plug. That's how the power gets into your home.
How it's different from rooftop solar
Rooftop solar is a big fixed installation: panels bolted to your roof, wired into your fuse box by an accredited installer, usually 8 to 16 panels and a bill running into thousands. Each panel weighs around 18 to 20kg before mounting hardware and a full rooftop array can add 200kg or more to your roof, which is why it needs a structural check before anything goes up. None of that is available to you if you don't own the roof, can't get planning sign-off, or simply can't find several thousand pounds upfront. Those are exactly the barriers that have kept most of the country out of solar.
A plug-in kit removes them. Sola's flexible panels weigh around 4kg each, light enough to clip to a balcony rail or fence without any structural assessment. It's small, you set it up in less than an hour, it costs a few hundred pounds rather than a few thousand and it comes with you when you move. It generates less, because it's smaller, but it's aimed at the people rooftop solar was never going to reach. We compare the two properly in our plug-in versus rooftop guide.
Who it's for
Around 19 million people in the UK rent their home, live in a flat, own a leasehold flat without the roof above it, or have a roof that won't take solar, based on ONS tenure data and leasehold housing statistics. That figure doesn't even count everyone who could technically fit rooftop solar but is priced out by the upfront cost, so the real number locked out of solar is probably higher still. Plug-in solar is built for all of them. If you've ever looked at rooftop solar and thought "not an option for me", this is the version that is.
Can you buy one in the UK yet?
The UK has approved the regulatory framework for plug-in solar. BS 7671 Amendment 4, in force since 15 April 2026, allows plug-in solar up to 800W with a free notification to your network operator. DESNZ has since published an interim product specification, now at version 2.0, and run a public consultation on the next step, a direct plug-in-the-socket connection. That consultation closed in June 2026 and the resulting law, the Electricity Safety, Quality and Continuity Regulations 2002 (Amendment) Regulations 2026, comes into force on 27 August 2026. Until then, and until a specific kit's plug has notified-body approval, the fully compliant connection goes in via a CPS-registered electrician. We've set out exactly where the law stands in our guide to whether plug-in solar is legal in the UK.
Staying on the safe side
Whichever kit you buy, check that its microinverter is G98 type-tested on the ENA Type Test Register, plug it into a sound wall socket rather than an extension lead and notify your network operator after installation. Our guide to plug-in solar safety covers the detail, including why the technology has a clean track record across Europe.
Common questions
A small solar kit you set up yourself, with nothing fixed to the roof. It's one or two panels, a microinverter and a plug, clipped to a balcony, fence or garden frame. The electricity it makes feeds into your home and cuts what you buy from the grid. It's also known as balcony solar, or Balkonkraftwerk in Germany, where it started.
Rooftop solar is a large fixed installation bolted to a roof you own and wired in by an accredited installer, costing thousands and requiring you to own the roof. A plug-in kit removes those barriers: it's small, self-installed, costs a few hundred pounds and moves with you. It generates less, but it's built for the millions rooftop solar was never going to reach.
Yes. "Plug-in solar", "balcony solar" and the German "Balkonkraftwerk" all describe the same thing: a small panel-and-microinverter kit that plugs into a standard socket rather than being hardwired in. Sola kits aren't limited to balconies; they also mount on fences, garden frames and walls.
A typical 800W kit generates roughly 600 to 900 kWh a year in the UK, depending on sun, orientation and how much you're home in the day to use the power as it's made.
Yes, in most cases. Nothing is fixed to the building, so it suits rented homes and leasehold flats and moves with you when you leave. Tell your landlord or freeholder in writing first.
Solar for everyone
We didn't build a solar company for people who already have solar. We built one for the millions who've never been able to benefit from it.
See the Sola kits- Bundesnetzagentur (Germany's Federal Network Agency), for German balcony solar registration figures to end of 2024.
- Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ), on the UK legalisation of plug-in solar and the interim product specification.
- BS 7671 Amendment 4 (the IET Wiring Regulations), in force 15 April 2026.
- Office for National Statistics, UK housing tenure data.
- House of Commons Library, leasehold housing statistics for England.
- The Eco Experts, typical rooftop solar panel weight.
This guide is general information, not legal or electrical advice. Rules and product standards for plug-in solar are still settling in 2026, so check the current position for your property and network operator before you buy or connect. Last updated: 30 July 2026.