Smart Export Guarantee — what it pays, what's changed in 2026, and how to capture the best rate.

Smart Export Guarantee rates 2026

Every brand-owner page quotes only its own SEG rate. As an independent commercial-solar funding specialist taking no installer or supplier commission, here is the honest, named, multi-supplier comparison — the smart export guarantee rates table the brand pages structurally cannot publish. Rates are indicative and verified as at July 2026 — including Octopus’s cut to Outgoing Fixed from 15p to 12p/kWh on 1 March 2026; always confirm the live rate with the supplier before signing.

Rates verified July 2026 and indicative — verify with the supplier. SEG floor: any supplier with 150,000+ customers must offer a tariff above 0p/kWh; your system must be MCS-certified, under 5MW, with half-hourly export metering. See the full supplier-by-supplier SEG comparison.

How much does the Smart Export Guarantee pay? Annual export revenue by system size

The commercial SEG question is unserved by the brand pages, which are all domestic single-home framed. The table below models indicative annual export revenue by system size at a low flat rate (8p), the best flat rate (12p — the level at which Octopus Outgoing Fixed, EDF Export 12M Small Business and Scottish Power SmartGen+ now sit) and a dynamic-tariff average (16p), assuming a typical commercial export share. Figures are indicative — your real export depends on on-site self-consumption.

Indicative. Assumes ~30% of generation exported (typical for a daytime-occupied commercial site without storage). Adding battery storage cuts export share but lifts total value via self-consumption and peak-shifting — see the battery section below.

SEG cost context: what a commercial solar system costs to install

SEG revenue only makes sense against the capital cost it offsets. Indicative UK commercial solar pricing as at June 2026 is below — note that after the Annual Investment Allowance and 0% VAT the effective net capex falls to roughly 60% of the headline turnkey figure.

Indicative June 2026 turnkey pricing. Headline commercial solar runs £540–£1,100/kWp; the common 250–500kWp band is £660–£760/kWp. Combined with SEG revenue above, post-stack payback typically lands at 4–6 years.

Who is eligible for the Smart Export Guarantee?

To be paid under SEG, your commercial installation must meet all of the following:

• MCS-certified solar PV up to 5MW (or other eligible low-carbon technology; micro-CHP is capped at 50kW).
• MCS certificate in the business's name — the single most common rejection cause is a certificate left in the installer's name.
• A supplier with 150,000+ customers — only suppliers above this threshold are obliged to offer SEG, though smaller suppliers may offer it voluntarily.
• A smart or half-hourly export meter (SMETS2 or commercial CT metering) capable of recording exported kWh — SEG pays on actual metered export, never a deemed estimate.
• No active Feed-in Tariff export payments on the same generation (see the FIT section below).

How to apply for the Smart Export Guarantee

Applying is straightforward once your documents are in order. As an independent specialist we can lodge the whole submission for you, or you can follow these steps directly:

1. Confirm your MCS certificate is in the business name — request a transfer or re-issue from the MCS database if it sits in the installer's name.
2. Confirm half-hourly export metering — most SMETS2 and commercial CT meters qualify; if not, the supplier arranges a free upgrade (allow 2–4 extra weeks).
3. Compare supplier SEG rates against your export profile using the rate table above — flat for stable daytime export, dynamic for battery sites.
4. Apply online with your chosen export supplier using your MCS certificate, export MPAN and bank details. You can keep import with a different supplier.
5. Switch export only and receive quarterly payments — the export-only switch completes in ~14 days with no exit fees; import is untouched.

How the Smart Export Guarantee works

The Smart Export Guarantee is not a grant. It is a statutory tariff payable for electricity you generate from MCS-certified solar PV (or other low-carbon sources) and export to the grid. It replaced the Feed-in Tariff in January 2020. The mechanism: Ofgem-licensed electricity suppliers with more than 150,000 customers (the major UK retailers — Octopus, EDF, British Gas, E.ON, Scottish Power, OVO, Shell, etc.) are required to offer at least one SEG tariff. They publish the rate, you sign an export contract, and they pay you for every exported kWh as recorded by a smart meter capable of half-hourly export readings.

SEG is independent of your import supply. You can hold import with one supplier and export under SEG with another. This is important — the SEG-best supplier for your site is rarely the same as your import supplier, and switching only your export contract is a 14-day no-cost change.

Flat-rate vs dynamic tariffs

The two structural categories of SEG tariff:

Flat-rate SEG (3.5–12p/kWh)

Pays a fixed pence/kWh on all exported electricity, irrespective of when the export happens. Simple, predictable, and the dominant commercial structure since SEG launched. Best 2026 commercial flat rates: Octopus Outgoing Fixed (12p, cut from 15p on 1 March 2026), EDF Export 12M Small Business (~12p), Scottish Power SmartGen+ (~12p), British Gas SEG (~6.4p variable), OVO (~5.5p basic) — the top of the flat tier is now a roughly 12p three-way tie rather than a single leader. Suitable for sites with predictable daytime export profiles and limited active management capability.

Dynamic SEG (variable, 25–40p/kWh peak)

Pays a half-hourly variable rate that tracks wholesale electricity prices. The rate is published 24 hours ahead. During system peaks (typically winter evenings 4-7pm) the rate has hit 40p+/kWh; during overnight surplus periods it can fall to negative pricing. Examples: Octopus Outgoing Agile, EDF Export Variable. Suitable for sites with battery storage that can shift exports into peak hours, or commercial sites with naturally peak-aligned generation.

For a commercial site with battery storage cycling once per day, the difference between flat 8p and dynamic averaging 14p over the year is roughly £12,000 of additional annual revenue per 200 kWh of battery storage. Over a 25-year system life that's £350,000+ of cumulative differential — material on most projects.

Why SEG matters more in 2026 than it did three years ago

Three reasons:

1. The major direct grants closed. IETF Phase 3 closed after Spring 2024; PSDS Phase 4 closed November 2024; UKSPF closed March 2026. SEG is now a larger relative contributor to total project economics.
2. Dynamic tariffs matured. Octopus Outgoing Agile launched in 2022 but became commercially competitive around 2024. The price spreads on dynamic tariffs are now wide enough to make battery storage clearly NPV-positive on most commercial sites.
3. Wholesale electricity prices are structurally higher. The 2022 wholesale spike has receded but prices remain materially above the 2018-21 baseline, and SEG tariffs (which track wholesale) followed them up. The headline flat rate has since eased back, though — Octopus cut Outgoing Fixed from 15p to 12p on 1 March 2026 — so treat any quoted flat rate as a figure to re-check rather than a one-way ratchet.

SEG and commercial battery storage

SEG and battery storage are now the dominant pairing on UK commercial solar. Here's why: a commercial site without storage typically self-consumes 65–80% of its solar generation; the remaining 20–35% exports at whatever SEG rate applies. With a properly-sized battery (typically 0.4–0.8 kWh per kWp of PV), self-consumption rises to 85–92%, AND the battery can shift export into peak SEG windows. The combined effect on annual revenue is typically £15–£30 per kWh of battery capacity per year.

For a 500kWp solar + 200kWh battery commercial site, the SEG + storage uplift over solar-only is £4,000–£6,000/year. Combined with grid-services revenue (Balancing Mechanism, Demand Flexibility Service), some sites add £8,000–£15,000/year of incremental battery revenue. See our battery analysis.

Practical SEG sign-up checklist

1. Confirm MCS certificate is in your business name. SEG requires the certificate. If your installer registered it in their name, ask for a transfer or replacement.
2. Confirm smart meter capability. SMETS2 commercial export meters are required. Some sites need an upgrade — usually free.
3. Compare supplier tariffs against your demand profile. Highest-paying flat rates win for stable daytime profiles. Dynamic tariffs win for sites with battery storage. See our supplier comparison.
4. Sign the SEG contract directly with the chosen export supplier. Switching only export takes ~14 days; import stays where it is.
5. Receive payments quarterly against half-hourly export readings.

SEG and the broader 2026 commercial solar funding stack

SEG sits alongside the Annual Investment Allowance, 0% VAT, REPF, and PPAs in the active 2026 commercial solar funding stack. Each contributes a different revenue or cost-saving line:

• Annual Investment Allowance — capex relief (25% of capex back via tax)
• 0% VAT — capex reduction (~17% of VAT-inclusive cost)
• SEG — recurring revenue (£400–£15,000+/year depending on system size)
• PPA route — alternative zero-capex structure
• REPF — capex grant (rural businesses only)

Together these deliver 4–6 year payback on most UK commercial solar projects without depending on any closed grant.

Flat-rate vs dynamic (tracker) SEG tariffs

The brand pages quote a single flat rate because they sell a single product. The real decision is structural — flat versus dynamic — and it hinges on whether you have battery storage. This is the named-tariff comparison the incumbents won't run:

Without a battery, take the highest flat rate you can access. With a battery that can discharge into the 4–7pm peak, a dynamic tariff can earn 25–40p/kWh during exactly the hours your battery is exporting — comfortably out-earning any flat rate.

Can I export with a different supplier than I import from?

Yes — and it is the single most valuable thing the brand pages will never tell you, because they want both halves of your account. SEG is a separate export-only contract. You can keep your import deal exactly where it is and sign a higher-paying SEG tariff with a different supplier. The export-only switch completes in about 14 days with no exit fees, and your import contract is untouched (so no early-termination penalty on a fixed import deal). For most commercial sites the best-paying export supplier is not the same as the best-value import supplier — splitting them is how you capture both.

SEG vs Feed-in Tariff: can I have both?

No — you cannot draw Feed-in Tariff export payments and SEG payments for the same exported electricity simultaneously; the two export mechanisms are mutually exclusive. If you are still on a FIT agreement (the scheme closed to new entrants in 2019) you keep your FIT generation tariff, but you have a choice on the export side: stay on the deemed FIT export rate, or move export onto a higher-paying SEG tariff. Because legacy FIT export was deemed at 50% of generation, switching the export half to a metered SEG tariff is often worth doing — but run the maths against your install date first, as it varies.

SEG and battery storage: the numbers

Everyone mentions batteries; nobody quantifies them. Here is the worked economics for a representative 500kWp solar + 200kWh battery commercial site, the pairing that now dominates UK commercial solar:

• Self-consumption uplift: a storage-free site self-consumes 65–80% of generation; a 0.4 kWh-per-kWp battery lifts that to 85–92%, displacing grid import at 25–35p/kWh rather than exporting at the SEG rate.
• Peak-shifting revenue: on a dynamic SEG tariff, discharging into the 4–7pm peak captures 25–40p/kWh instead of an off-peak flat rate.
• Indicative value: £15–£30 per kWh of battery capacity per year — roughly £3,000–£6,000/yr on a 200kWh battery from SEG and self-consumption alone.
• Grid-services stack: Balancing Mechanism and Demand Flexibility Service participation can add a further £8,000–£15,000/yr on well-sited commercial batteries.

The combined effect typically pulls 1–2 years off solar-only payback. See our full commercial battery analysis.