Solar Together: How the UK's Group-Buying Solar Scheme Works

If you have been researching solar panels, you may have come across Solar Together — a scheme that lets households join forces to buy solar at reduced prices. It is not a grant, and it is not a charity. It is a structured group-purchasing arrangement organised at council level, designed to make the buying process simpler and more affordable.

This guide explains how it works in practice, what you typically get, and how to decide whether it suits your situation.

How Solar Together works

Solar Together is operated by iChoosr, a Dutch company that runs similar group-buying schemes across Europe. In the UK, iChoosr partners with local councils to run campaigns in defined areas. Here is the process from start to finish:

1. Register your interest

You sign up via your local council's Solar Together landing page — usually found through the council's website or a direct iChoosr link. Registration is free and non-binding. You provide basic details about your property (roof type, approximate energy use, postcode) so that iChoosr can build an accurate picture of the demand pool.

2. The council launches the scheme

Once enough households have registered, the council formally opens the procurement round. iChoosr collects the pooled data and prepares a tender specification representing all the registered properties.

3. iChoosr runs a reverse auction

Rather than installers quoting high and negotiating down, the reverse auction works the other way: pre-vetted MCS-certified installers compete against each other by submitting progressively lower bids. The winner is the installer who can meet the specification at the lowest price — and all registered households benefit from that winning rate.

4. You receive a personalised offer

Once the auction closes, you receive a quote tailored to your specific property — your roof orientation, system size, and energy consumption are all factored in. The price reflects the group rate, not a standard individual quote.

5. Accept or decline — no obligation

You have approximately three weeks to decide. During that window, you are free to compare the offer with independent quotes from other MCS-certified installers. If the Solar Together offer works for you, you accept. If not, you walk away with no penalty and no cost.

6. Installation by the winning installer

If you accept, you are connected directly with the winning installer who carries out the work. You receive full MCS certification, and the system qualifies for Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) payments through your electricity supplier.

Which councils participate?

The list of participating councils changes each year as areas join, pause, or rotate through different rounds. Listing specific councils here would become inaccurate quickly, so the most reliable approach is to use the Solar Together postcode checker on the iChoosr website, which shows whether your area is currently active or scheduled.

Typical discounts and what is included

Solar Together installations typically come in at 20–30% below the average market price for a comparable individually arranged system. The exact saving depends on your area, the level of competition in the auction, and the size of your system.

A standard Solar Together installation package generally includes:

• Solar panels (brand and specification set by the auction winner)
• Inverter (string or microinverter, depending on the installer's offer)
• Mounting and racking hardware
• Scaffolding for installation access
• MCS certification — issued on completion
• DNO notification — the installer handles the grid notification (G98 or G99, depending on system size)
• SEG registration support — guidance on applying to your electricity supplier for export payments

What is usually not included by default:

• Battery storage — this is typically available as a paid add-on rather than part of the base package. If you want a battery alongside your panels, ask for a separate quote during the offer stage.
• EV charger — similarly, an EV charger is generally an optional extra if offered at all.
• Smart monitoring — some installers include this; others do not. Worth confirming before you accept.

Pros of Solar Together

• Council-vetted installer — iChoosr screens installers before they can enter the auction. All must hold MCS certification and meet quality criteria. You are not picking from a cold list of strangers.
• Group pricing without the effort — the bulk negotiation happens automatically. You do not need to organise neighbours or negotiate anything yourself.
• MCS-certified installation — identical to any individually arranged installation in terms of warranty validity and SEG eligibility.
• No obligation to proceed — you can register, receive an offer, compare it, and decline without any cost or commitment.
• Simpler process for first-time buyers — if you find the solar market confusing and do not want to manage multiple installer relationships, Solar Together streamlines the decision into a single accept-or-decline moment.

Cons of Solar Together

• No choice of installer — you get whoever wins the auction. If that company has reviews you are not comfortable with, declining is your only option.
• Limited availability — not every part of the UK is covered, and rounds are not continuous. You may have to wait, or your area may not participate at all.
• May not offer your preferred panel brand — the winning installer selects the equipment. If you have researched specific panels or have a preference for a particular brand or efficiency rating, you may not get it.
• May not beat the best independent quotes — Solar Together delivers a competitive price, but a skilled buyer who obtains three or four independent quotes and negotiates may match or occasionally beat it — particularly for larger or more complex installations.
• Longer timeline — the registration-to-installation process typically takes three to six months, as the scheme operates in structured rounds. Going direct to an installer is often faster.

Check whether you may also qualify for grant funding

Solar Together pricing stands on its own, but it does not prevent you from exploring additional support. Some households who pursue Solar Together are also eligible for separate grant schemes — particularly if the property meets income or energy-efficiency criteria.

Check whether you may also qualify for grant funding alongside a Solar Together scheme.

How Solar Together compares to getting independent quotes

Neither approach is universally better. It depends on what you are optimising for.

Solar Together is worth considering if you value simplicity, trust the council-backed vetting process, and are not particular about installer or equipment brand. It is a legitimate, low-effort route to a fairly priced, properly certified installation.

Getting independent quotes is worth considering if you want full control over who installs your system and what equipment is used, or if you want to test whether you can beat the group price through direct negotiation. Even if you plan to use Solar Together, collecting one or two independent quotes first gives you a useful benchmark to judge the offer against when it arrives.

The two approaches are not mutually exclusive — you can register for Solar Together and simultaneously explore independent quotes. Many households do exactly that.

Related guides

For a broader look at community energy models — including energy cooperatives and peer-to-peer trading — see community solar and group buying in the UK.

To understand what the full range of grants and schemes could mean for your installation, see solar panel grants UK.

For a detailed breakdown of what solar panels cost and how to interpret a quote, see how much do solar panels cost.

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