Solar Panel Efficiency Rating

What you need to know.

Solar panel efficiency rating.

Solar panel efficiency is a measurement of a solar panel s ability to convert sunlight into usable electricity. The efficiency of the solar cells used in a photovoltaic system in combination with latitude and climate determines the annual energy output of the system for example a solar panel with 20 efficiency and an area of 1 m 2 will produce 200. The efficiency of a solar panel simply describes how well it turns sunlight into usable electricity. Solar panel efficiency is a measure of the amount of solar energy irradiation which falls on a panel surface and is converted into electricity due to the many recent advances in solar cell technology over the last 5 years average panel conversion efficiency has increased from 15 to 20.

They know but don t want to tell. A higher efficiency rating is better because it means that your solar panel is able to convert more of the sunlight it captures into electricity. This large jump in efficiency resulted in the power output of a standard size. The best solar panels available on the market today are sunpower s a series residential solar panels which are 22 8 efficient at their maximum.

These days the average efficiency of a solar panel is about 18 7 percent. Because one high efficiency panel can generate more electricity than a similarly sized panel with a standard efficiency rating efficiency is particularly important if you have limited roof space and large energy bills. Solar panels have been consistently increasing in efficiency at about 5 annually since 2010. So if a solar panel has an efficiency rating of 15 that means 15 of the sunlight that hits the solar panels will be converted into electricity.

A higher solar panel efficiency rating means a panel will produce more kilowatt hours of energy per watt of power capacity. Solar cell efficiency refers to the portion of energy in the form of sunlight that can be converted via photovoltaics into electricity by the solar cell. Of course one obvious answer is that not all companies can necessarily boast a 22 efficiency rating let alone a 21 5. The average efficiency of solar panels falls between the 17 to 19 percent efficiency range.

Factors that affect solar panel efficiency. It s possible that certain information such as solar panel efficiency may not ever leave the warehouse. The highest efficiency solar panels on the market today can reach almost 23 percent efficiency.