Good Energy Export Tariff: Is It Worth It? (2026)

Good Energy is one of the few UK suppliers that generates and supplies 100% renewable electricity — a genuine commitment that resonates with homeowners who have gone to the trouble of installing solar panels. So it is natural to wonder whether Good Energy's Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) tariff is the right home for your surplus solar exports. This review looks at what Good Energy actually pays, who qualifies, and whether it is worth switching supplier to access it.

What is the Smart Export Guarantee?

The Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) is a UK government-mandated scheme that requires licensed electricity suppliers with more than 150,000 customers to offer a tariff that pays solar panel owners for every kilowatt-hour (kWh) they export to the grid. Ofgem sets the rules — including the requirement that the rate must be greater than zero — but each supplier chooses its own rate. There is no longer a government-set minimum price, so rates vary enormously from 4p/kWh to more than 25p/kWh depending on the supplier and tariff.

The scheme replaced the old Feed-in Tariff (FiT), which closed to new applicants in April 2019. If you installed solar panels after that date and have not yet registered for SEG, you are almost certainly leaving money on the table. Understanding how export income affects your payback period is an important part of the full financial picture.

Good Energy SEG tariff: the current rate

Good Energy offers two SEG tariff products:

Solar Savings — a variable rate of 15p/kWh. This is Good Energy's standard export tariff, available to existing Good Energy electricity customers with an eligible solar installation. The rate is variable, meaning Good Energy can change it with notice.
Solar Savings Exclusive — a fixed introductory rate of 25p/kWh for the first 12 months, available to customers who install solar panels (and a battery) through Good Energy Solar. After 12 months the tariff rolls onto the standard Solar Savings variable rate.

At 15p/kWh, the standard Solar Savings tariff is solid — ahead of British Gas (15.1p/kWh, effectively similar) and significantly ahead of Octopus's Outgoing Octopus flat rate (12p/kWh). The Exclusive 25p/kWh rate is among the highest fixed rates currently available in the market, though EDF offers a competing 24p/kWh fixed rate for 12 months through their Export Exclusive tariff.

For a typical 4 kWh system exporting around 1,200 kWh per year (roughly half of generation), the difference between 12p and 25p per kWh is about £156 per year — a meaningful sum when weighed against switching costs. Always check current rates at goodenergy.co.uk before making any decisions, as variable tariffs can change.

Eligibility and sign-up

To qualify for either Good Energy SEG tariff, your installation must meet the standard SEG eligibility criteria set by Ofgem:

MCS certificate — your solar installation must be certified under the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS), or an equivalent approved scheme. This is non-negotiable: without a valid MCS certificate you cannot register for any SEG tariff in the UK.
Smart meter — you must have a SMETS2 smart meter (or a SMETS1 meter that has been enrolled onto the DCC network) capable of providing half-hourly export readings. Good Energy will use these readings to calculate your export payments.
Export MPAN — your meter will need a registered Export Meter Point Administration Number, which your installer or network operator can arrange.
System capacity — the installation must have a total capacity of 5 MW or below (all domestic systems qualify by definition).

Do you need to be a Good Energy customer?

Yes — this is the most important caveat. Unlike some SEG rules that allow you to export to a different supplier from the one you import from, Good Energy requires you to be an electricity supply customer to access their Solar Savings or Solar Savings Exclusive tariffs. If you currently buy your electricity from Octopus, OVO, or British Gas, you would need to switch your import supply to Good Energy to access their export rate.

This is a significant consideration. Good Energy's electricity tariffs tend to sit at a slight premium compared to the cheapest deals in the market, reflecting their genuine renewable sourcing commitments. Before switching, calculate whether the higher export rate offsets any difference in your import unit rate. For a home exporting 1,200 kWh and importing 3,500 kWh per year, even a 1p/kWh difference in the import rate represents £35 per year — easily erased by the export uplift, but worth confirming with a full cost-of-switch calculation.

How Good Energy compares to other SEG tariffs

The SEG market has become considerably more competitive since 2024. Here is a snapshot of major supplier rates as of June 2026 (rates are variable unless stated):

Good Energy Solar Savings: 15p/kWh (variable)
Good Energy Solar Savings Exclusive: 25p/kWh fixed for 12 months (requires installation via Good Energy)
EDF Export Exclusive: 24p/kWh fixed for 12 months (requires EDF import customer, system ≤5 kW)
OVO SEG Install Exclusive: 20p/kWh (requires installation via OVO)
British Gas Export & Earn Plus: 15.1p/kWh (variable, dual-fuel customers)
Octopus Outgoing Octopus: 12p/kWh (variable, open to non-Octopus supply customers)

Octopus's time-of-use tariffs — Intelligent Octopus Flux and Octopus Flux — can pay considerably more during peak export windows (up to 32p/kWh) but require a battery, compatible hardware, and an Octopus supply contract. For an overview of Octopus Energy's tariff options and how their Trusted Partners scheme works, see our dedicated review.

The headline takeaway: Good Energy's standard 15p/kWh is above-average for a variable open-market rate, and their 25p/kWh Exclusive sits at the top of the fixed-rate table. The trade-off is the requirement to be a supply customer.

Is Good Energy SEG worth it?

The answer depends on two things: your existing import tariff and how much you value Good Energy's renewable credentials.

On the numbers alone, the standard 15p/kWh Solar Savings tariff is a reasonable choice if you are already a Good Energy customer or are considering switching for ethical reasons. It is better than Octopus's 12p/kWh flat rate and competitive with British Gas. The 25p/kWh Exclusive is genuinely attractive for new installs, though the restriction to Good Energy Solar installations limits its accessibility — and 12 months goes by quickly.

On the brand side, Good Energy is not just claiming to be green: they have been a dedicated renewable supplier since 2000, sourcing electricity from UK wind, solar, and hydro farms. For solar owners who care about closing the loop — generating clean power and selling it to a supplier that genuinely uses it — Good Energy has a coherent story that the Big Six cannot match. Whether that is worth a potential import tariff premium depends entirely on your priorities. See our broader look at whether solar panels are worth it for the full financial framework.

How to apply

To sign up for Good Energy's Solar Savings export tariff:

Switch your electricity supply to Good Energy (you can do this via their website or through a comparison site). You do not need to switch gas.
Once you are a Good Energy electricity customer, apply for the Solar Savings SEG tariff through your online account or by calling their customer team.
You will need your MCS certificate number, Export MPAN, and smart meter serial number.
Good Energy will verify your installation details with the MCS database and arrange half-hourly export readings from your smart meter.
Payments are typically made quarterly, based on actual half-hourly export data.

If you have not yet had solar installed and are interested in the Solar Savings Exclusive 25p/kWh rate, you would need to arrange installation through Good Energy Solar specifically. You can get competing quotes first — see our solar quote tool — and factor the export rate into the overall value comparison before committing to any single installer.