Solar Panels for Your Home Use

Solar Panels for Home: Rooftop, Ground-Mount and Backup Options

Solar panels for home use fall into three jobs. The first is a permanent array that feeds a hybrid inverter and battery to cut your utility bill or run the house off-grid. The second is a smaller array that keeps a backup battery charged for outages. The third is a portable panel that folds out on the patio to recharge a power station and goes back in the garage afterward. This collection covers all three, so the guide below is about deciding which job you are shopping for before you compare wattages.

There are 45 products here from Sungold Power, Rich Solar, Anker SOLIX and BLUETTI, from $69 for a 50W panel to $980 for a 560W bifacial kit. Residential-scale modules run 370W to 560W; the smaller 50W to 200W panels serve backup and portable duty.

How to choose home solar panels

• Grid-tied, hybrid or off-grid. Panels sold for on-grid or hybrid use, such as the Sungold Power 370W Mono Black PERC Kit and the Sungold Power 440W N-Type UL61730, are designed to string into a residential inverter. For a small off-grid backup bank, a 12V or 24V panel is simpler to wire.
• Wattage per module. Fewer, larger panels mean fewer roof penetrations and less wiring. The 440W and 415W panels are the workhorses for a home solar panel system; the 560W bifacial kit is the highest-output option and suits a ground mount where the rear face sees reflected light.
• Warranty length. The pack lists 25-year output warranties on the Rich Solar MEGA line and Sungold's 415W and 370W kits, and a 30-year linear warranty on the 440W N-Type and 560W bifacial. On a roof you will not climb often, the longer figure is worth the modest price difference.
• Weather rating. Look for the junction box rating. The Sungold 415W, 370W and 440W list IP68 boxes; the Rich Solar MEGA 100W is IP67.
• Portable for a power station. If the goal is recharging a station during an outage, the BLUETTI 350W Portable Panel (23.4% efficiency) or the Anker SOLIX PS400 400W do the job with no mounting at all.

Popular picks in this collection

Sizing tips

• Use the Solar Kit Calculator with a full appliance list and your ZIP code. It sizes the array along with battery and inverter, which keeps you from buying panels that outrun your storage.
• Count usable roof, not total roof. North-facing slopes and anything shaded by a chimney after noon should be left off the plan.
• Keep one module type per string. Mixing a 415W and a 370W panel in series pulls the whole string down to the weaker panel.
• Choose the all-black modules where the array is visible from the street; the 370W, 415W and 440W kits are the mono black options here.
• Plan on a licensed electrician for anything tied into the service panel. Portable panels and stand-alone backup banks are the DIY-friendly part of this collection.

Frequently asked questions

What are the best solar panels for home rooftops in this collection? For output per module and warranty, the Sungold Power 440W N-Type with its 30-year linear warranty. For a smaller budget, the 415W and 370W mono black kits give up a little wattage at a lower price per panel.

How many panels does a house need? An average US home using 25 to 30kWh a day typically needs 6 to 8kW of array, which is 15 to 20 panels in the 400W class. A backup-only bank needs a fraction of that.

Can I use these panels without a battery? Grid-tied panels feed a grid inverter and need no battery. Off-grid and backup arrays always need a battery to store what the panels produce.

Panels ship free to the mainland US from our brand partner warehouses, usually within a few business days, with 30-day returns. Call us with your roof measurements and we will help pick a solar panel kit for home that fits.