What are the best SEG rates?

You can make money from sending your excess solar electricity to the grid – but to get the highest returns possible, you have to pick the right rate for your home.

There are dozens of tariffs with different requirements, and even the best ones are often only the right choice for certain households. In this guide, we’ll run through the best export rates for the different types of solar homes.

To qualify for any of these tariffs, you’ll need a smart meter and documents to prove your solar installation is certified. However, you can access these tariffs regardless of whether you've paid the upfront cost of solar panels or opted for a solar subscription.

If you would like to see the savings you could get from a solar & battery system, just answer a few quick questions below, and we’ll provide an estimate.

What are the best Smart Export Guarantee rates?

The best overall export tariff is Intelligent Octopus Flux.

With this tariff, customers who choose Octopus as their energy supplier can typically gain 30.31p for every kWh (kilowatt-hour) of solar electricity they export between 4pm and 7pm, and 22.73p per kWh at all other times.

After that, it's standard Octopus Flux, which again pays two different rates at off-peak and peak times, averaging out at 21p per kWh.

Both of these rates are significantly better than the next best tariffs, which are fixed 20p per kWh offerings from OVO, Good Energy, and So Energy.

If you don’t want to switch your energy supplier, your best choice is ScottishPower’s SmartGen tariff, which currently pays all solar generators 12p per kWh.

The best SEG rates: explained

1. Intelligent Octopus Flux

Intelligent Octopus Flux is the best choice for Octopus customers who have solar panels and a GivEnergy battery.

If your only barrier is switching to Octopus, we’d recommend doing so in most cases – as long as it makes financial sense to your household.

With Intelligent Octopus Flux, you’ll receive 30.31p per kWh you send to the grid from 4pm to 7pm, and 22.73p per kWh the rest of the day.

This works out to 27p, on average – but you can earn more by exporting all your excess electricity at peak times, which your Octopus app can do for you.

Everything you need to know

2. Octopus Flux

Octopus Flux is a variable tariff that pays you different amounts depending on when you export your solar electricity, and also where you live in the UK. It currently pays out 21p per kWh, on average.

Generally speaking, if you export between 2am and 5am, you’ll only be paid about 6p per kWh – but if you send your electricity to the grid between 4pm and 7pm, the rate will rocket up to around 26p per kWh.

If you export your energy at other times, you’ll typically make about 16p per kWh – but if you export as much electricity as you can during peak hours, you can earn a lot more.

All you need to access this rate is to be an Octopus customer, and own a solar panel system that includes a battery.

This tariff doesn’t pay as much as Intelligent Octopus Flux, but it is less restrictive about which battery you can have.

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3. OVO SEG Tariff

If you receive electricity from OVO, and buy its solar package – which includes a storage battery – you can access the company’s highest SEG rate of 20p per kWh.

Like most export tariffs, OVO’s offering applies at any time of the day – though 20p is the highest rate available, if you’re happy to switch suppliers.

Apart from requiring you to buy solar panels, a battery, and grid electricity through OVO, the main drawback of this tariff is that it’s not nationwide.

When OVO Solar launched in 2023, it was only available in Wales and south-west England – some of the best places in the UK to have solar panels.

The campaign has since expanded to most parts of England and Scotland, but it’s still not available in places including Cambridge, Ipswich, Liverpool, Manchester, and Northampton.

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4. Good Energy Solar Savings Exclusive

Good Energy’s 20p per kWh rate is generous, but limited.

It’s only available in the south and south-west of England, to customers who have solar panels and a battery installed by Wessex ECOEnergy, which Good Energy acquired in 2023.

You also have to import your grid electricity through Good Energy, specifically on either the company’s Standard Variable Tariff or Good to Fix tariff.

If you live in an eligible area and already receive your electricity from Good Energy, this could be the best rate for you – but that doesn’t include many households.

Everything you need to know

Everything you need to know

6. E.ON Next Export Exclusive

If E.ON supplies you with electricity, you can take advantage of this decently generous export tariff without needing to get E.ON-installed solar panels.

16.5p per kWh rate is the highest rate you can get without needing to either buy your solar installation through the same company – in the case of OVO and Good Energy – or get a specific piece of gear, in the case of Octopus’s battery requirements.

Just like OVO and Good Energy, you’ll be guaranteed to receive this rate until your contract ends – but you have to request quarterly payments, or E.ON will pay you annually.

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7. Octopus Outgoing Fixed

This is Octopus’s simplest export tariff.

All you need to do is get your grid electricity from Octopus, and every month you’ll receive 15p for every kWh your solar panels export, which is a reasonably good rate.

If you’re not looking to get a solar battery, and if you’d rather have Octopus as a supplier than E.ON or British Gas, this is your best choice.

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8. ScottishPower SmartGen+

This 15p per kWh tariff is a good offer for households who want to purchase either solar panels or a battery from ScottishPower, but not their grid electricity.

This flexibility makes SmartGen+ stand out in a crowded field – and if you’re completely wedded to your energy supplier, this is the option for you.

However, if you don’t mind switching suppliers to earn more from your solar output, there are better choices.

Octopus Flux and E.ON Next Export Exclusive tariffs offer higher rates, and don’t mind which company is responsible for your solar installation, as long as it’s appropriately certified.

SmartGen+ is variable, so you could technically end up making more with ScottishPower – but all else being equal, you won’t.

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9. British Gas Export and Earn Plus

15p per kWh is a good rate, and the qualifying conditions are pleasingly limited: you just have to import your electricity from British Gas.

Households don’t even need a full solar installation to be eligible – so if you don’t have panels yet, you can start using this tariff with just a battery.

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10. OVO SEG Tariff

To access this 15p per kWh rate, you’ll need to have solar panels installed through OVO, and to get your electricity through the Bristol-based company too.

Like OVO’s other export tariffs, it comes with a £15 exit fee, and is only available in certain areas – a list which includes London, Birmingham, and Edinburgh, but not Liverpool or Manchester.

So if you like getting your electricity from OVO, live in an eligible region, and would rather not buy a battery through OVO – or at all – this may be the tariff for you.

However, if your only issue is not wanting to buy a battery, E.ON's 16.5p per kWh rate is both higher and widely available across the UK.

Everything you need to know

11. Good Energy Solar Savings

This is the best choice for customers who want Good Energy to supply their grid electricity, but would rather have flexibility in all other areas.

The Solar Savings tariff doesn’t require you to buy your solar panel system through Good Energy’s subsidiary, Wessex ECOEnergy, unlike the Solar Savings Exclusive rate.

Since Wessex ECOEnergy is limited to households in the south and south-west, this opens up savings to Good Energy consumers all over the country.

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12. ScottishPower SmartGen

ScottishPower SmartGen is the best tariff on the market for customers who want to choose their energy supplier and solar installer.

If you don’t like being forced to use a specific product, this 12p per kWh is far better than the next-best option of its kind, So Energy’s 7.5p per kWh So Export Flex tariff.

If you’re picking between the two, you can earn 60% more by signing up with ScottishPower for your SEG tariff – with no strings or downsides.

Everything you need to know

What is the best SEG rate for you?

The highest SEG rate for a household with solar panels and a battery is the Intelligent Octopus Flux tariff.

However, every home’s energy consumption and preferences are different, so no tariff will be perfect for every customer.

If you add an electric vehicle to your solar and battery system, you may well make more money on Intelligent Octopus Go, while heat pump customers will probably get better returns on Cosy Octopus.

You should also ask yourself whether you’d be comfortable switching suppliers, how much it matters to you who installs your solar panel system, and whether you want the security of a fixed tariff, or the potentially higher profits of a variable rate.

There’s a best SEG rate for everyone. For example, if you don’t mind who your supplier or installer is, you should generally choose Intelligent Octopus Flux – but if you don’t want a battery, E.ON Next Export Exclusive is your best option.

And if you decide you’re not ready for solar panels yet, but you do want a storage battery, there’s a best SEG rate for you too: British Gas’s Export and Earn Plus tariff.

Summary

Export tariffs have come a long way since the Smart Export Guarantee was introduced in 2020.

With Intelligent Octopus Flux, you and your supplier will pay each other identical amounts for each kWh of electricity. Whether it’s the solar power you send them, or the electricity you get from the grid, it costs the same.

That represents huge progress, as does the sheer amount of variety, which allows households to pick a decent export rate no matter their inclinations over suppliers, installers, and types of system.

Sunsave can help you model your consumption and lay out all the best options for you, so you can choose the best tariff for your home.

If you’re interested in how much you could save with a solar & battery system, click the button below, enter a few details, and we’ll generate a quick estimate.

Best SEG rates: FAQs