UK Homes Installing Renewables at a Rate of One Every 90 Seconds

UK homes saw a record year for certified renewable installations in 2025, installing a new small-scale renewable energy source roughly every 90 seconds.

According to data from MCS, the UK’s quality mark for small-scale renewables, 2025 was a record year, with 369,000 certified renewable installations in UK homes and small businesses. This equates to one installation every 90 seconds. This is a 34% increase on 2024 and brings the total to 2.4 million certified installations since MCS started recording figures in 2009 – with more than a quarter of these completed in the last two years alone.

The record-breaking year was fuelled by three technologies: solar panels, heat pumps, and battery storage.

• Rooftop solar surpassed the long-standing record set in 2011 by 31%, totalling 267,032 in 2025.
• There were over 60,000 certified heat pump installations in 2025, the most ever for a single year.
• Battery storage saw more than 40,000 certified installations last year, almost doubling the previous record.

The estimated annual generation – which is the amount of energy capable of being generated by installations delivered in 2025 – was 1.8 billion kWh. That is enough to power the London Underground network, including Overground lines and associated offices, for an entire year. It brings the total installed capacity across all MCS installations since 2009 to more than 10GW. View the 2026 Low Carbon Landscape

Installation numbers are rising right across the UK, with Cornwall, Somerset, and North Yorkshire seeing the highest volume in 2025. When looking at the volume of installations as a proportion of households, Welsh local authorities are leading the way – with Isle of Anglesey, Ceredigion, and Gwynedd making up the top three.

A key driver for the record uptake, particularly in solar, has been installations on new build properties. 28% of all installations were on new builds – rising to more than 36% when just looking at solar. Following details announced in the Warm Homes Plan, which stated solar is set to be mandated on new homes, this demonstrates the opportunity within the housebuilding market – for installers, manufacturers, housebuilders, and the wider supply chain.

It’s great to see the record-breaking uptake of small-scale renewables across the UK, and these figures are only set to increase following the release of the government’s Warm Homes Plan. This represents a fantastic opportunity for the sector to grow, but it’s critical that as more people invest in home-grown energy, high-quality, certified installations continue to underpin consumer confidence.

Government funding played a role in boosting installation numbers last year, with 27% of all installations funded – either wholly or in-part – by a government initiative. This is particularly true for heat pumps with the success of the Boiler Upgrade Scheme (BUS). 43% of certified heat pumps installed in 2025 were delivered under the BUS, with a 95% satisfaction rate according to outreach conducted by MCS.

As demand for renewables continues to rise, there is also a growing need for certified installers to deliver these installations to industry-recognised standards. The number of MCS certified installers increased by 7% over the course of 2025, reflecting an industry that is growing as the UK continues its drive towards net-zero and more people seek out the benefits of home-grown energy.

We look forward to building on this growth further with the rollout of our redeveloped installer Scheme, which puts consumer protection and quality at the heart of MCS. We take our responsibility of being the sole certification scheme seriously.

The figures show a substantial uptick in renewable energy installations across the UK.