Plug-in solar kit

That depends on where the panels are, which way they face and how much electricity you use during the day. Sample calculations by the consumer advice centre of North Rhine-Westphalia (Verbraucherzentrale NRW), C.A.R.M.E.N. and eza! come to around 100 to 150 euros a year for an 800-watt kit. You get the most out of it when the panels are tilted towards the south and a lot is running at your place during the day. With a battery you save more, but it also costs more. The calculator shows how much it is for you, with a battery too.

Stiftung Warentest tested eight kits in 2025. The two good ones, from GreenSolar and Heckert, are no longer available on Amazon in the version that was tested. So I searched Amazon in Germany for kits without a battery that are currently available, and looked for tests of each one on other sites. I only found a test for the Solakon onBasic with 1,000 watts. It was good in the home&smart field test, but has too much panel output for a normal socket. That is why its smaller sister kit with 900 watts is my pick. A test of the whole kit is missing for both kits here. smartzone.de did measure the inverter in the SUNNIVA kit itself, though, and praised it. For the batteries I read tests by TechStage (heise), Notebookcheck, ComputerBase, PC-WELT, techtest.org, smartzone.de and Stiftung Warentest. I only picked batteries that did well in several tests and are available on Amazon in Germany. Stiftung Warentest rated the Anker best; it did not test the other two.

In Germany yes, as long as the panels together have no more than 960 watts. That is what the standard in force since December 2025 says. Both kits here are below that. Many kits on Amazon have 1,000 watts or more. According to the standard, those belong on a dedicated feed-in socket, for example from Wieland, installed by a qualified electrician. Some city subsidy programmes require such a plug even for smaller kits. So check beforehand if you want a subsidy.

Only the Marktstammdatenregister of the Bundesnetzagentur (Germany's official register of power plants), and there is a simple online form for it. You no longer have to register it separately with the grid operator. If you still have an old meter, it may run backwards for now until the grid operator replaces it. Allowed are 800 watts at the inverter and panels with up to 2,000 watts in total. Also let your home contents and your liability insurance know. With a battery there is a bit more to it, see the next question.

You also enter the battery in the Marktstammdatenregister, where it counts as a separate unit. Many grid operators also want it reported via a short form, and some require an electrician to connect it. So ask your grid operator before buying. A dedicated standard for these small batteries is still being drawn up. If it is to go on a normal socket, it may feed at most 800 watts into the grid, and the panels may have no more than 960 watts together.

A small device on the electricity meter measures it. The simplest is a reading head that sticks to your digital electricity meter with a magnet. You attach it yourself, without an electrician. Many meters need a PIN for this. You get it free of charge from the meter operator, usually your grid operator. A meter in the fuse box, like the one that comes with some batteries, may only be installed by a qualified electrician.

Ideally protected from rain and blazing sun, for example under a canopy or in the garage, and close enough to the panels for the cables to reach. The batteries are approved for outdoor use, but at Stiftung Warentest water got into the socket on the unit in four out of five during heavy rain.

Yes, you have to ask first. Since October 2024, however, landlords and owners' associations in Germany may only refuse if it would be unreasonable for them. Not liking the look of it is not a reason.

None is included with the kits here. Buy one that fits your spot exactly: balcony railing, wall, flat roof or garden. Unfortunately there are no independent tests of mounts on their own. Stiftung Warentest tested kits with flat-roof mounts in 2025, and in five out of eight the mounts buckled or broke in the simulated storm. On a railing it is trickier, because there may be people or cars below. If you are unsure, have a specialist company install it.

With two panels it pays for itself more slowly than the kit alone, because it costs more than the kit. According to the consumer advice centre and the TÜV association, it is more worthwhile for larger systems, for example with four panels. It brings the most if you use little power during the day and more in the evening. Work it out for yourself in the calculator: choose “With battery” there. Then you also see after how many years the battery alone has paid for itself.

It tested five batteries in March 2026. The Anker was best, the only one rated satisfactory. Three were poor because they sent out too much interference, which can disrupt Wi-Fi, for example. In four out of five, water got into the socket on the unit during heavy rain. Other test sites have tested more batteries and rated many of them well. In the tests I read, however, interference was not measured.

Stricter rules apply there: at most 600 watts per electricity meter, a Swiss plug and residual current protection (RCD). Before switching on, you report the system in writing to your grid operator, and as a tenant you need your landlord's consent. In return, the grid operator has to take and pay for the power you feed into the grid. A battery is allowed there if everything together feeds in no more than 600 watts and there is a declaration of conformity for the whole kit. Include it when you report the system. The kits and batteries here deliver up to 800 watts and have a German plug, so they are not allowed in Switzerland as they are. A kit made for Switzerland is currently not available on Amazon. I'm looking for a good kit that you can also buy in Switzerland.

In Austria 800 watts are allowed. You don't need a permit, but you must report the system to your grid operator two weeks before switching it on. Grid operators see differently whether a normal Schuko plug (type F) is enough. So ask yours beforehand. In a condominium, the consent of the other owners counts as given if they don't object within two months. A battery is allowed if everything together can deliver at most 800 watts. What counts is what the inverter can do according to its data sheet. If it is only limited to 800 watts by an app, that isn't enough for some grid operators. So include the battery when you register and attach the data sheet.

The Zendure suits best. It is on the Austrian inverter list with 800 watts, and according to the manufacturer, too, 800 watts is its maximum. Your grid operator doesn't have to check devices on this list again one by one. The Anker is on the list as well, but according to its data sheet it can do up to 1,200 watts. Only a setting in the app limits it to 800 watts, so ask your grid operator beforehand. I didn't find the Solakon ONE on the list.

No. The rules here apply to Germany, Austria and Switzerland. If you live elsewhere, ask your grid operator before buying what is allowed.