Solar power is a major contributor to electricity supply in Australia. As of December 2025, Australia's over 4.29 million solar PV installations had a combined capacity of 45.1 GW photovoltaic (PV) solar power. Solar accounted for 19.6% (or 46.7 TWh) of Australia's electrical energy production in the National Electricity Market and South West Interconnected System in 2024. The sudden rise in solar PV installations in Australia since 2018 dramatically propelled the country from being considered a relative laggard to a strong leader in under two years. Australia has the highest per capita solar capacity, now over 1.4kW. The installed PV capacity in Australia increased 10-fold between 2009 and 2011, and quadrupled between 2011 and 2016. The first commercial-scale PV power plant, the 1 MW Uterne Solar Power Station, was opened in 2011. The price of photovoltaics decreased, and by 2013, the cost of solar power was less than half that of using grid electricity.
Installations by type
The largest share of solar PV installations in 2018 was from grid-connected distributed sources totalling 8,030 MW. These are rooftop systems in the residential, commercial and industrial sectors. For the purposes of the data, residential grid connect are systems <9.5 kW, commercial are systems between 9.5 and 99.9 kW and industrial are 100 kW to 5 MW. Grid connected-centralised plants was the next largest sector in 2018 with 3,272 MW installed, representing utility scale ground mounted solar with a power rating > 5 MW. Off-grid solar PV was the smallest segment at 284 MW in 2018. Growth accelerated dramatically during 2018 in both rooftop distributed solar and utility-scale solar which became a significant component by the end of the year. By year end 2018, Australia had 1.96 million residential rooftop solar systems and 78,000 commercial and industrial rooftop solar systems, for a total of 2.04 million total rooftop PV systems. Over 200,000 were installed in 2018 alone and the country was on track to install as many again in 2019. Australia leads the world in residential uptake of solar, with a nation-wide average of free-standing households with a PV system at over 20%. By early 2020, Australia had 10.7 GW of rooftop solar in 2.4 million systems. By 2021, Australia had 13 GW of rooftop solar. Where new inverters (solar or batteries) are installed, they are required to have certain functions such as low-voltage ride-through and grid support to handle local grid issues and improve power quality. As of February 2026 there were 4.3 million rooftop solar systems installed nationwide, with a capacity of 28.3 GW. As per AS/NZS 3000 Wiring Rules assembly performed without a licensed electrician must be extra low voltage setups not exceeding 50 V AC or 120 V ripple-free DC.
Potential
Insolation potential Australia has an abundance of solar energy resource that is likely to be used for energy generation on a large scale. The combination of Australia's dry climate and latitude give it high benefits and potential for solar energy production. Most of the Australian continent receives in excess of 4 kilowatt-hours (14 MJ) per square metre per day of insolation during winter months, with a region in the north exceeding 6 kilowatt-hours (22 MJ) per square metre per day. Western and Northern Australia have the maximum potential for PV production. Insolation greatly exceeds the average values in Europe, Russia, and most of North America. Comparable levels are found in desert areas of northern and southern Africa, south western United States and adjacent area of Mexico, and regions on the Pacific coast of South America. However, the areas of highest insolation are distant to Australia's population centres.
Roof top solar potential According to the Institute for Sustainable Futures, the School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering (SPREE) at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) Australia has the potential to install 179 GW of solar power on roofs across the nation. At the end of 2018 Australia had just over 8 GW of rooftop solar.
Even though Australia had a world-leading solar uptake, the study found the country was using less than 5% of its potential capacity for rooftop solar as of June 2019. According to the study, the combined annual output from rooftop solar could theoretically reach 245 TWh, more than the current annual grid consumption of just under 200 TWh per year.
Incentives
Rebates Several incentive programs started in 2008. The Solar Homes and Communities Plan was a rebate provided by the Australian Government of up to A$8,000 for installing solar panels. Schools were eligible to apply for grants of up to A$50,000 to install 2 kW solar panels. Over its four years, 2,870 schools installed solar panels. The Australian Government has financial incentives for installing solar systems in the form of Small-Scale Technology Certificates, also referred to as STCs. Australia is broken up into 4 geographic zones; applicants receive a fixed number of STCs per kilowatt for an eligible solar system base on their zone. STCs typically reduce the cost of a solar setup by about 25–30%, bringing the cost per watt close to a dollar. STCs are phasing out by the end of 2030. Victorian state government is assisting homeowners and tenants by providing a rebate of up to $1,888 and an interest-free loan of an equivalent amount to their Solar PV panel rebate amount. Similar incentives are available to residents in some states for the installation of solar batteries and solar hot water systems as well as wind power.
Feed-in tariffs and direct action
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