By 
Highest peak
40c
Octopus OctopusPeaker, winter
Best flat rate
17c
Meridian Solar + Octopus Flexi
Market spread
8x
Best vs worst per kWh
Plans tracked
15
Verified May 2026
Selectra 2026 ranking
The three plans worth shortlisting
Highest peak earner
Octopus OctopusPeaker
Time-of-use, no fixed term
40c/kWh
Winter peak rate, 23c rest of year
- +Highest single-cell rate on the market
- +Only works with battery or east-west panels
- !Off-peak drops to 10c, night to 5c
Best flat rate
Meridian Solar Plan
Flat rate, 3-year fixed term
17c/kWh
Same rate 24/7, plus $300 sign-up credit
- +Predictable, no calculation gymnastics
- +Beats every TOU plan for plain north arrays
- !Locked in for 3 years
Best flexibility
Octopus Flexi
Flat rate, no fixed term
17c/kWh
Same headline as Meridian, no lock-in
- +Switch any month, no exit fee
- +Same rate every hour, no gymnastics
- !No sign-up credit
The headline-rate trap most solar households fall into
Search any forum and you will find the same advice on repeat: "go with whoever pays the most cents per kilowatt-hour." It sounds rational. It is also wrong for most New Zealand homes, and the reason is in the arithmetic, not in the marketing.
A typical 6 kW north-facing array on an Auckland roof generates about 7,500 to 9,000 kWh a year. Of that, between 50% and 70% never reaches the grid. It is consumed inside the house (the fridge, the heat pump, the dishwasher running at noon) and offsets electricity that the household would otherwise import at the retail price. Only the surplus, roughly 3,000 to 4,000 kWh, is actually sold back at the buy-back rate.
Where every solar kWh actually goes
Indicative split for a 6 kW north-facing array, no battery, average NZ household consumption. Real splits vary by roof orientation, occupancy patterns and battery presence.
This changes the maths entirely. A retail import rate of 30c/kWh that you avoid paying is worth more than twice a buy-back rate of 12c/kWh that you receive. Picking a plan because it pays 17c instead of 12c on exports can save you about NZ$150 a year, but a plan with a $0.40/day lower fixed charge, or 2c/kWh cheaper imports, is often worth $200 to $400 a year on the same household.
The real ranking criterion
The plan that maximises a solar household's return is rarely the one with the highest buy-back. It is the one where (export rate x kWh exported) + (savings on import rate x kWh self-consumed) - (daily charge x 365) gives the biggest number. The buy-back is one of four variables, not the only one.How solar buy-back actually works in New Zealand
Solar buy-back is not a subsidy. It is a commercial purchase: your retailer buys excess electricity from your meter, then resells it on the wholesale spot market or to its other customers. The price they offer reflects what they expect to recover, minus a margin.
That single fact explains almost every pattern in the market:
Mid-day wholesale collapsing
Every new solar array pushes more generation into the same 10am to 3pm window. Wholesale prices there dropped from 12 to 14c/kWh in 2020 to often under 5c in 2026.
Evening peak rising
Demand surges 5pm to 9pm, when solar production is near zero. Wholesale prices regularly hit 25 to 40c/kWh in winter here.
Flat rates compressing
Mercury's 5c reflects the wholesale value of mid-day solar; Meridian's 17c includes a margin for the brand value of a "solar plan".
Mercury, Meridian
Time-of-use emerging
Octopus and Electric Kiwi pay 20 to 40c at peak because that is what the electricity is genuinely worth at 6pm, but only a few cents at noon.
Octopus, Electric Kiwi
The buy-back rate is therefore not a number a retailer chooses freely. It is a wholesale market signal with a retail margin bolted on. Understanding this stops you reading 17c as "more generous than 12c" and starts you reading it as "this retailer is willing to pay a 4c margin to attract solar customers."
2026 NZ solar buy-back rate ranking
Rates verified May 2026. All values in NZ cents per kWh, inclusive of GST unless noted. Flat plans pay the same rate every hour; time-of-use plans pay a high rate only inside their peak window.
| # | Provider | Plan | Rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Meridian Energy
|
Solar Plan |
17c
|
| 2 |
Octopus Energy
|
OctopusFlexi |
17c
|
| 3 |
Powershop
|
Solar Buy-Back |
13c
|
| 4 |
Megatel
|
Residential Electricity |
13c
|
| 5 |
Genesis Energy
|
Flexi residential |
12c
|
| 6 |
Meridian Energy
|
Standard / EV / Bach |
12c
|
| 7 |
Toast Electric
|
Solar BuyBack |
11c
|
| 8 |
Nova Energy
|
Multisaver |
10c
|
| 9 |
Electric Kiwi
|
Everyday / Go250 |
8c
|
| 10 |
Contact Energy
|
Basic / Good Weekends |
8c
|
| 11 |
Mercury Energy
|
Everyday Open Term |
5c
|
| # | Provider / Plan | Peak | Off-peak |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Octopus Energy
OctopusPeaker
|
40c | 10c |
| 2 |
Octopus Energy
Working on Sunshine
|
23c | 10c |
| 3 |
Ecotricity
ecoSOLAR
|
21c | 16c |
| 4 |
Electric Kiwi
MoveMaster
|
20c | 10c |
How to read this table
If your roof faces north and you have no battery, the rate that matters is the off-peak number. That is where the bulk of your generation lands. If you have an east-west split or a battery, the peak number drives your annual return. Compare like-for-like before chasing the highest cell on the page.Flat-rate vs time-of-use buy-back: which wins for your home?
This is the single decision that moves the most money. A flat rate pays the same number 24/7. A time-of-use rate pays a lot during a 4 to 6 hour peak window and much less the rest of the day. The right choice depends almost entirely on when your panels actually export.
When your north-facing solar exports vs when retailers pay peak
peak
peak
The orange curve is when a typical north-facing array generates. The amber bands are when TOU plans pay their peak rate. The mismatch is why the blended TOU rate for most NZ homes lands at 11 to 13c, not the headline 23c.
When the export actually happens
Most New Zealand rooftop systems are wired into the cheapest available roof orientation, which is usually north (and on many older homes, the only option). A north-facing array generates a bell curve centred around 12 to 1pm, with substantial output from 10am to 3pm and almost nothing after sunset. The standard TOU peak windows of 7 to 11am and 5 to 9pm capture only the shoulder of that bell curve, not its peak.
In practical numbers, a 6 kW north array on a TOU plan typically exports:
- About 15 to 25% of total export during morning peak (7 to 11am) ;
- About 60 to 70% during the off-peak / shoulder window (11am to 5pm) ;
- About 5 to 15% in evening peak (5 to 9pm), almost all in summer ;
- About 0% at night.
Multiply those weights by the peak / off-peak / night rates, and you get a real "blended" rate. For Octopus OctopusPeaker, a typical north-roof household earns about 11 to 13c/kWh blended, even though the peak headline is 23c. For Meridian Solar Plan at a flat 17c, the same household earns a flat 17c. The flat plan wins.
Advantages
- Predictable income, no calculation gymnastics
- Wins for most north-facing arrays without batteries
- Easier to compare retailers like-for-like
- Less exposed to retailer changing the peak window definition
Disadvantages
- Caps your upside if you do invest in a battery later
- Locks you out of the 23 to 40c peak rates entirely
- Headline rate sits below the best TOU peak numbers
When time-of-use actually wins
A time-of-use plan beats the best flat rate in three specific configurations. Outside these, it loses money.
Battery + evening discharge
A 10 kWh battery set to discharge into the grid at 5 to 9pm earns 23 to 40c on every cycle, versus 5 to 10c idle. Annual swing: $300 to $600 per kWh of usable capacity.
East-west panel split
Roughly 20% of NZ residential arrays now use a split orientation. This pushes more output into morning and evening peaks and lifts the blended TOU rate above any flat rate on the market.
Heavy mid-day self-use
Heat pumps, EVs, pool pumps and laundry running at noon mean little goes to grid in off-peak. Evening export from south or west panels then earns the full peak rate.
The four hidden levers retailers use to set the real price
Retailers compete on the buy-back number because consumers read it first. They recover the margin elsewhere, usually through one of four levers that rarely make the marketing page.
Lever 1
Daily fixed charge
Ranges from $0.30 to $2.50 per day across plans. The gap between cheapest and most expensive is more than NZ$800/year. A plan with 17c buy-back and $2.20/day will lose to a 12c buy-back at $0.60/day on most households.
Lever 2
Self-consumption import rate
Every kWh you do not import is worth retail price. Plans range from 26c to 38c/kWh. A 4c gap on imports is worth ~$200/year, far more than the same 4c gap on exports.
Lever 3
Buy-back cap
Most plans cap residential export at 10 kW DC. A few apply a monthly export ceiling (first 500 kWh at headline rate, balance at 5c). Read this in the contract, not the marketing page.
Lever 4
Fixed-term lock-in
Meridian's 17c flat rate is on a 3-year fixed plan with a $300 credit. Good now, but if rates keep falling (wholesale trend says they will), you cannot leave for 36 months. A no-term plan at 13c may be safer.
Example: Meridian Solar Plan
Quick decision helper
Pick the description that matches your setup. The right plan family is on the right.
Recommendation
Flat rate, 17c/kWh
Most of your export will land in the off-peak window. A flat 17c (Meridian Solar Plan or Octopus Flexi) beats every TOU blended rate for your profile.
- Meridian Solar Plan if you want the $300 credit and accept 3-year term
- Octopus Flexi if you want the same 17c with no lock-in
Recommendation
Time-of-use, headline 21 to 23c
Split panels push generation into both peak windows. Your blended rate on a TOU plan exceeds any flat option on the market.
- Ecotricity ecoSOLAR if you accept the $150 exit risk
- Octopus Working on Sunshine for no-fee TOU
Recommendation
OctopusPeaker, 40c winter peak
A battery discharging into the grid at 5 to 9pm captures the highest paid window. The 40c winter peak is unmatched in NZ.
- OctopusPeaker for winter heating-load arbitrage
- →Schedule battery to fill mid-day, discharge 5pm to 9pm
Recommendation
Optimise for low import rate, not export
If less than 25% of your generation exports, the buy-back rate barely matters. Hunt the lowest c/kWh import rate plus the lowest daily charge instead.
- →Add a hot-water diverter before adding a battery
- →Pick the retailer with the lowest c/kWh on imports, the buy-back rate is a tie-breaker
Four steps to actually pick the right plan
Pull 12 months of data
From your inverter app or retailer portal, get the split between self-consumed and exported kWh. Without these two numbers, every comparison is guesswork.
Pick flat or TOU based on profile
Less than 25% of export inside peak windows, pick flat. More than 35% (battery, east-west split), pick TOU.
Optimise the whole bill
(Export rate x kWh exported) + (avoided import x self-consumption) - (daily charge x 365). Biggest result wins.
Avoid fixed terms unless credited
A 3-year lock at 17c is good today but exposes you to falling rates. Take it only if the sign-up credit covers the expected drop.
Beyond the plan: levers that actually move your annual return
Once the plan is chosen, three operational changes do more for solar economics than any retailer switch.
- Time-shift large loads to midday. Run the dishwasher, washing machine, dryer, pool pump and EV charger between 10am and 3pm. This converts kWh that would have exported at 5 to 17c into kWh worth 28 to 35c (the avoided import). For a typical home this is worth NZ$300 to $600 per year. If you drive an EV, pair this with a dedicated EV electricity plan to overlay the off-peak window on top of solar self-consumption ;
- Add a hot-water diverter before adding a battery. A Catchpower, Paladin or Solar Edge diverter pushes excess solar into the hot-water cylinder for a fraction of the cost of a battery, and turns 5c export into 30c avoided import on every kWh diverted ;
- Match the array to consumption, not the roof. An east-west split costs about the same as north-only but produces fewer mid-day peaks and more peak-window energy. For new installs, this is the standard recommendation for any household on a TOU plan. See our guide to solar panels in New Zealand for sizing and orientation rules of thumb.
Pitfalls to avoid in 2026
Watch out for these
- Oversizing past the 10 kW residential cap. Anything above the cap exports for free until the retailer reclassifies you commercially ;
- "Up to" peak rates. Some retailers advertise a peak rate that only applies for 2 to 3 winter months. Read the small print on seasonal definitions ;
- Bundled gas or broadband discounts. They reset when you switch retailer, even on no-fixed-term plans ;
- Stale data on rate-comparison sites. Buy-back rates change quarterly in 2026, verify directly with the retailer before signing.
Read next
Frequently asked questions
Octopus Energy OctopusPeaker pays the highest headline rate at 40c/kWh during winter peaks and 23c/kWh at other peak times, but it is a time-of-use plan: off-peak exports are paid only 10c and overnight 5c. For a flat rate that pays the same every hour, Meridian Solar Plan and Octopus Flexi top the list at 17c/kWh. The right answer depends on when your panels actually export.
No. The rate is paid only on the kilowatt-hours you push to the grid, which for most NZ households is 30-50% of what they generate. The other 50-70% never leaves the property and offsets imports at the much higher retail price (around 28-35c/kWh). A plan with a lower buy-back but a lower daily charge or a lower import rate can earn you more across the full bill cycle.
Mercury repriced its export tariff in line with the wholesale spot price it can resell exported electricity at, which has compressed across the day as solar penetration rises. Other retailers like Octopus and Electric Kiwi compensate by offering a higher rate only at peak demand windows, when wholesale prices spike. A flat 5c reflects the unsubsidised market value of mid-day solar; a 23c peak rate reflects what the same electricity is worth at 6pm.
Only for households that can shift export to the paid windows. Without a battery, a typical north-facing array exports between roughly 10am and 4pm, i.e. inside the cheap off-peak window of every TOU plan. A battery that discharges into the grid at 5-9pm flips the maths, and so does an east/west panel split that pushes generation toward morning and evening peaks. If your roof and habits already match the peak window, TOU wins; otherwise the higher flat rate wins.
The standard cap is 10 kW DC for residential buy-back. Systems above 10 kW need a commercial export agreement (different tariff structure) and a more demanding metering setup. Some retailers will accept up to 15 kW with prior approval, but at a reduced export rate. Always confirm before installation: oversizing past the cap can leave excess generation unpaid.
For an owner-occupied residential system, Inland Revenue treats solar buy-back as a private receipt and it is not taxable income. If the home is rented out, or the system is owned by a company or trust, the payments may be assessable. Battery export from a household system is still treated as residential. This is general guidance, not tax advice, check with IRD or an accountant for non-standard arrangements.
Most NZ retailers offer open-term plans with no break fees, so technically you can switch as often as monthly. In practice, switching takes 2-10 business days and your new retailer handles the meter handover. Watch for: fixed-term plans (Meridian 3-year, Ecotricity tariffs with $150 exit), bundled discounts that reset on switching, and the time it takes a new retailer to register your export meter.