Why the UK Has No Net Metering (and How the Smart Export Guarantee Works)

If you have read about net metering and gone looking for the UK equivalent, you will not find one. The UK has never operated a net-metering scheme.

There is no arrangement where exported units cancel imported units at the same price. Instead, exports are paid for separately under the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG), and imports are billed at your normal tariff. Mechanically, the UK has always done what many other countries are only now moving to.

SEG rates are set by individual suppliers and change frequently. Check current tariffs directly before switching.

How the SEG works

The SEG replaced the old Feed-in Tariff for new installations in 2020. The essentials:

• Licensed suppliers above a certain size must offer an export tariff. They must offer something; they choose what.
• You are paid per kWh exported, measured, not estimated.
• You need a smart meter capable of half-hourly export readings. Without it you cannot claim.
• Your import supplier and your export supplier do not have to be the same company.

That last point is underused. You can buy your electricity from one supplier and sell your exports to another, which means you can optimise both sides independently.

The rates, and why the spread is so wide

Because suppliers set their own rates, the market is genuinely dispersed. Reported SEG rates in 2026 span from around 3p/kWh at the bottom to 15p/kWh for competitive standard offers, with some premium tariffs quoted higher still.

Two things drive the top end:

Bundled tariffs. The highest rates - reported in the 15-25p range - typically require that the same company both installed your system and supplies your energy. They also tend to be introductory, often running about 12 months before reverting.

Time-of-use export. Some suppliers pay a variable rate tracking wholesale prices. Export in the evening peak can be worth several times a midday unit. If you have a battery, this is where the money is.

The practical consequence: the gap between a poor SEG tariff and a good one can be a factor of four or five on identical exports. Very few solar decisions offer that much upside for that little effort. Comparing tariffs is worth an afternoon.

SEG vs net metering: which is better?

For the owner, net metering is straightforwardly better. An offsetting unit is worth your full retail rate - typically well above any SEG rate.

But the comparison is less lopsided than it looks, for two reasons.

Net metering is disappearing anyway. The Netherlands abolishes its scheme in January 2027, Pakistan moved to net billing in February 2026, and California cut export value by roughly three quarters in 2023. The UK's model was arguably just early. See net metering by country.

The SEG rewards flexibility. Because rates can vary by half hour, an owner with a battery can actively arbitrage - store cheap midday generation, export into the evening peak. Under a flat 1:1 scheme there is nothing to optimise.

What this means for how you use your system

The UK's economics have always pointed the same way, and it is the direction other markets are now moving in too.

Self-consumption beats export, comfortably. If you import at roughly 25p and export at roughly 5-10p, a unit you use yourself is worth two to five units you sell. Every load you move into daylight is worth more than every panel you add.

Batteries make sense earlier here than under net metering. With a wide import/export spread and time-varying export rates, storage has a genuine financial case rather than just a resilience one.

Switch export suppliers as readily as import suppliers. The tariff is not permanent and there is no penalty for moving.

Getting set up

1. Get a smart meter capable of half-hourly export readings. This is the gating requirement.
2. Get your installation certified - MCS or equivalent - which suppliers require for SEG eligibility.
3. Compare export tariffs across suppliers, including ones you do not buy from.
4. Apply, supplying your certificate and MPAN.
5. Check your statements against your own export figures.

That last step matters. Export payments are only as good as the readings behind them, and disputes are much easier to resolve when you have your own record.

Tracking your own numbers

Even without netting, the underlying arithmetic is worth watching: how much you import, how much you export, and how the balance moves as you change habits.

Our free calculator works in pounds and separates imports from exports, so you can see how much of your generation you are actually keeping versus selling - which, under an export tariff, is the number that decides your savings.

Frequently asked questions

Is the Smart Export Guarantee the same as the old Feed-in Tariff? No. The FiT paid both a generation tariff and an export tariff at government-set rates and closed to new applicants in 2019. The SEG pays only for export, at supplier-set rates.

Can I stay on the old Feed-in Tariff? If you were accredited before it closed, yes - existing FiT agreements continue for their term. You cannot join now.

Do I need a battery to benefit from the SEG? No, but it helps considerably on a time-varying tariff, where evening export can be worth several times midday export.

Why does the UK not just adopt net metering? The standing argument is the same one now driving other countries away from it: retail rates bundle network costs, and crediting exports at retail lets those costs shift to customers without solar.

Can I use one supplier for import and another for export? Yes. They are separate arrangements, and using different suppliers is permitted.