The 10 best solar panel installers in the UK

The best solar panel installers: at a glance

These installers made the list because they’re all:

• Certified by MCS or Flexi-Orb
• Accredited by the HIES
• Approved by TrustMark
• Registered with NAPIT
• Which? Trusted Traders
• Rated 85% or higher by customers on at least one top review site

We also looked at which installers provided solar subscriptions, though Sunsave was the only top-rated company that fulfilled that particular requirement.

We’ll explain our methodology in more depth at the end of the article, but if you’re wondering why your favourite installer didn’t make the list, it’s because they failed to meet these exacting standards.

Sunsave’s mission is to make solar accessible to all UK households – which is why we're offering the country’s first solar subscription service.

Sunsave Plus allows you to start saving on your energy bills immediately, without having to pay anything upfront.

You’ll get the best-in-class kit installed on your roof, access to one of the best export tariffs around, and the 20-year Sunsave Guarantee, which includes 24/7 monitoring & maintenance, a free replacement battery and inverter, and downtime cover – all for a fixed monthly fee.

Your system will also be insured by Aviva against damage, fire, and theft.

As well as passing the various tests set by the UK’s most rigorous accreditation bodies, we have also attracted millions of pounds of funding from numerous backers including the government, through its Green Home Finance Accelerator initiative.

If you want to find out how much you could save with a solar & battery system at no upfront cost from the best installer in the country, enter a few details below, and we’ll generate an estimate.

J Kirby Electrical is very much the best of the rest.

Since 2011, this small business run by husband-and-wife team James and Samantha Kirby has served its area on the south coast in a professional, dedicated manner.

As a result, it’s earned hundreds of perfect reviews on Checkatrade – and the company cements its customer-friendly status by offering a five-year workmanship guarantee, which is about double the standard warranty.

Talking on the Brilliant Businesses podcast in 2023, Mr Kirby said his company’s motto – ‘we do things differently’ – refers to the way it treats the public.

“It's customer service and how we try to look after people. Around this area, there don't seem to be too many companies that worry about that too much,” he explained.

“20-30% of our diary's filled up with small jobs, because a lot of other electrical companies locally just don't want to know. They just put the phone down.”

However, like every firm on this list apart from Sunsave, it doesn't offer a solar subscription.

This Cheshire company expanded in 2023 to serve many regions of the UK, including Scotland, north Wales, and east England – but only its original branch is a Which? Trusted Trader.

You can see why the business went national, as its north west division has been recommended by 100% of its customers on Which?, with perfect ratings for customer service and quality.

The family-run firm, which is led by David, Elaine, and Charles Lukeman, provides households with Qcells solar panels and batteries.

Speaking to Plumbing, Heating and Air Movement News in 2023, David Lukeman said: “Having built my own business over a decade, I take great pride in our reputation for reliability and service.

“We are profitable and have been fortunate to attract nothing but great reviews in 10 years. That level of success indicates our level of commitment.”

Spectra Solar, which is based in Wigan, serves customers from Birmingham up to Harrogate. This includes Skegness and Hull in the east, and Wrexham all the way up to Blackpool in the west.

The company has a near-perfect set of Google reviews, which it explains by stating on its site that “at Spectra Solar we’re a family-run business with a customer-first approach.

“We are all about being open and honest,” the business says, before adding: “We don’t employ ANY sales reps. No hard sales.”

If your inverter is malfunctioning, the company’s website contains a free online tool that asks you questions with the aim of helping you to repair the device for free – which is a lovely touch that speaks to how highly Spectra prizes customer service.

The firm also offers financing through a credit broker – but no solar subscription.

Tile Energy has served south-west England for well over a decade and still has a fantastic score on Checkatrade and Which?, which is no mean feat.

The company installs Tesla and SolarEdge batteries with a 10-year guarantee, and provides a 12-year guarantee on its SolarEdge inverters.

You’ll also receive a 10-year installation warranty, which is decent compared to most firms, even if it’s not the best on the market.

Tile Energy recently doubled its workforce from four to eight, and expanded its fleet as well – both signs of a successful, growing business.

Adept Renewables provides a comprehensive solar service to households all over Dorset.

As well as handling the design and installation of Jinko solar panels and Greenlinx batteries, this small business also provides aftercare, in the form of a £24.99 per month maintenance package.

For this fee, you’ll get an annual clean and electrical inspection, as well as the installation of replacement equipment, as long as it’s under the manufacturer’s warranty.

You can still find the company’s owner, Steven Hook, out on jobs every day, providing the kind of excellent service that’s led dozens of customers on Checkatrade to personally recommend him as friendly, professional, and reliable.

Mr Hook told Sunsave that his company’s success was down to its “unwavering commitment to customer satisfaction and our expertise in crafting tailor-made solutions. 

“We consistently exceed expectations by engaging closely with clients to understand their unique energy needs and environmental contexts.”

Heatable is an established, trusted name in boiler installations, and the company has expanded into solar with success.

Its founders, brothers Sam and Ben Price, have built a reliable, nationwide service that supplies customers with REA panels, Enphase microinverters, and AlphaESS batteries – and Ben often helps out with installations.

Customers can use a free online tool to give them an idea of what they’ll pay without having to hand over any personal details or committing to anything.

All they need to do is provide their annual electricity consumption and outline which roof space they’d like to use – but bear in mind that scaffolding costs aren’t included in the quote.

You should also consider that Heatable’s main focus isn’t on solar – the great majority of its Trustpilot reviews are about boiler jobs – and it offers an underwhelming two-year installation warranty.

And though it offers financing, it doesn’t provide a solar subscription service.

The Solar Co. hasn’t received enough Trustpilot reviews to earn a fully fledged five-star rating yet, but the feedback so far has been flawless.

Customers have exclusively given this small, Bromley-based business perfect ratings, with installers’ professional, knowledgeable, helpful approach shining through.

Currently, the company offers Canadian Solar and JA Solar panels, as well as batteries from Tesla, SolarEdge, and Sunsynk.

The business’s site also includes a savings calculator, which is useful but needs a bit more development.

Not many businesses would’ve thrived after opening in April 2020, a month which saw the fewest certified solar installations since February 2010.

But Fusion8 took full advantage of solar’s rise in popularity during the rest of the pandemic to become one of the best installers around.

The company provides Jinko, Qcells, and Trina panels, GivEnergy and Solis inverters, and GivEnergy batteries.

The Fusion8 site also lays out all the most common extra costs that can be incurred during an installation, such as optimisers and custom cable runs, which is a welcome addition.

Its solar installations come with a 10-year workmanship warranty, and the individual products are covered by the manufacturers – apart from the inverters.

You can extend the five-year inverter warranty by another five years, but it’ll cost you £295 per inverter.

Home Smart Energy has designed and installed more than 10,000 solar installations – and well over half of these have happened since 2021.

Since 2015, the business – run by Neil and Vivienne Mitchell – has taken on more than 25 employees and can now provide households with solar panels made by Phono Solar, DMEGC Solar, and JA Solar, and batteries made by Pylontech or Fox ESS.

In a January 2024 edition of the Burgess Hill Business Parks Association newsletter, Mr Mitchell wrote: “Home Smart Energy has proved that a personalised solar package can offer outstanding protection against energy inflation, while reducing household bills.”

Though it operates all over the country, Home Smart Energy also has strong roots in its West Sussex community.

Mr Mitchell said his company had a focus on “community engagement and development” in the same newsletter article, and the firm has proven itself by partnering with group-buying scheme Solar Together, which makes it easier for households to go solar.