Most Efficient Solar Panels in Australia for 2024

Putting a smart solar system on your roof is extremely important for safety; otherwise, you end up in a hot mess.

We list some recommended panels based on our 14 years of industry experience to avoid this. Some of these industry-leading brands have pioneered new technology, safety and performance in the solar landscape.

It is important to know who to trust and which information is correct. We’ve compiled a list of the best ”Premium” and “Value” panel brands in the Australian market.

The 1KOMMA5° solar panel features premium performance, a lower carbon footprint and ethical production.

Solar panels just got greener! Featuring German-made polysilicon, the new 1KOMMA5° solar panel is a premium solar panel designed for Australia’s tough environment. It has exceptional performance in the heat, as well as in low light. We bring the lowest prices and cleanest energy possible to our customers in Sydney and Melbourne.

The new 1KOMMA5 panel features:

• German design and quality

• Backed by Porsche

• German-made polysilicon

• All-black design

• 25-year product & 30-year performance warranty

• 420W power rating

Scandinavian quality with a 25-year warranty. Founded in Norway in 1996, REC Group is recognised for producing high-quality solar panels with long warranties and excellent reliability.

REC Alpha Pure panels feature REC’s innovative design, with high panel efficiency & power output thanks to top-quality monocrystalline cells. This enables you to get more out of the space available on your roof – helping to lower your energy bills and shorten the payback time through increased yield and lower costs.

Choosing a top-of-the-range panel such as the REC Alpha Pure panel is an investment in superior standards of design, manufacture, support and customer service. This high-quality results from REC Solar’s strong commitment to developing a module that delivers reliable, high output for decades.

REC solar products are rigorously tested beyond industry standards, and those standards apply equally when selecting materials for their solar modules. When you choose REC Solar, you’ll have peace of mind that you are buying the best.

The best news of all is the price. REC Alpha Pure panels are extremely well-priced for such a quality panel. REC Solar is striving for industry-leading efficiency. However, critically, they incorporate this new technology into their production line to ensure all customers have access to the best technology available. It’s not much use if a company releases a new high-efficiency panel (with a lot of publicity) but only makes 1000 of them and/or charges an absolute fortune for them.

SunPower has recognition as a global leader in top-quality solar panels since 2007. They’ve had many successful releases over the decades, predominantly in the United States. In Australia, SunPower is known for absolute quality, and it is perhaps the best on the market. However, their panels have always come at a high price point.

The top-of-the-range Maxeon panel is no exception. It is a top-quality panel that comes with an astonishing 40-year warranty. That’s enough to outlast the competition (and perhaps a few of us) by decades.

1KOMMA5° previously installed Q Cells panels when they were based in Germany. We are excited to once again have Q Cells panels in stock, with the premium QPeak Duo panel as our premium offering.

We have typically seen all big Chinese manufacturers offer a top-quality panel designed specifically for the Australian market. These panels are normally quite similar in price and output, and even most of the technical specs will be the same.

Trina Solar has once again been voted number #1 by Australian Solar Installers as making the best-value solar panel in Australia. In 2024, this is the Trina Vertex S+ module.

Trina is the largest vertically integrated solar manufacturer. That means they manufacture all the critical components, from ingots to completed modules. Trina performs large-scale solar research and development worldwide. She has teams of scientists working on energy-efficient product research in many of the world’s leading universities—for example, the Australian National University and the University of Queensland.

Trina Solar Panels were selected for Australia’s largest rooftop installation – an enormous 1.22MW array (5,004 panels) – for the University of Queensland. This facility provides a significant proportion of the campus’ power and is also used as a testing ground for ongoing research.

Trina Solar Panels are positioned at the premium of the available Chinese panels. Many industry experts consider the Trina Vertex S+ panel the best-value solar panel made by a Chinese Manufacturer.

Trina solar panels are designed and manufactured to the highest quality standards, and the products have proven themselves in the field and third-party testing against other leading manufacturers. This, combined with its high performance under low light conditions, allows for consistently high output and the ability to maximise system performance.

Trina Vertex Technical Details

Overall, Trina has an exceptional track record and has long led advancements in solar technology. This new 430W module is setting a new standard in Australia for high performance at a great price point.

The technical highlights of this high-performance panel include:

• Doulbe-glass + innovative non-destructive cutting for improved mechanical resistance and strength. They are less prone to micro-cracks and scratches on the back during installation.

• Trina Vertex panels have a guaranteed power tolerance of +5W, meaning the flash test output may be as high as 435W. However, this additional output is only beneficial if you install a system with panel-level output, such as an Enphase Micro Inverter solution.

• Trina Vertex S+ panels will maintain a minimum of 87.5% power output after 30 years. They also have a 22% module efficiency with high-density interconnect technology.

2. QCells

QCells was voted by Australian installers to be among the top 5 companies that provide good-value solar panels. This is an outstanding achievement as the ‘budget’ QCells Q.Boost panel is a step up in price compared to Trina and Jinko.

Q.BOOST is a high-tech solar module designed with Q.ANTUM DUO Z Technology and a zero-gap cell layout (similar to the top-of-the-range panels) to boost solar panel efficiency by over 21 %.

3. REC Solar TwinPeak 5

On a standard-sized residential system, a REC Solar System with premium TwinPeak 5 panels costs around $1000 more than a standard solar system (with generic Chinese solar panels). This makes the REC panel one of the best value options on the Australian market, considering its high level of performance, reliability, and output in shaded conditions.

As a Certified REC Installer, REC Systems installed by 1KOMMA5° feature an extended 25-year product warranty and a 25-year power output guarantee.

REC TwinPeak 5 features REC’s innovative design with the high panel efficiency and power output of monocrystalline cells. This helps lower energy bills and shorten the payback time through increased yield and lower costs.

REC TwinPeak 5 panels are packed with the same advanced REC TwinPeak technologies that have won REC multiple awards. This p-type mono variant offers higher power output per square meter of panels installed.

4. JinkoSolar

JinkoSolar is one of the world’s largest solar panel manufacturers and has a long history of supplying good quality solar panels to the Australian market at a great price.

The new generation of solar panel technology has been featured in the N-type cells in the Tiger series. Following previous years, Jinko is again firmly in the mix for offering a good value panel for Australian households.

5. Canadian Solar

Canadian Solar is like Trina and Jinko. They are a global leader that makes high-quality panels at a great price for the Australian market.

Importantly, all Canadian panels that hit the Australian market are made in Asia. However, the company still has strong ties to Canada.

German companies are renowned for their high manufacturing standards, and this was particularly true in the solar industry a few years ago.

Buying a panel from a company such as QCells or Solar World was a reliable way of ensuring you were buying a quality system without delving into the mysterious world of Chinese solar manufacturing to try and differentiate one panel from the next.

Unfortunately, the leading German manufacturers are now making their panels in Asia or do not have a local office here in Australia.

The 1KOMMA5° Group has taken matters into our own hands by manufacturing our panels using German Polysilicon and then assembling our panels in China to industry-leading quality standards. This allows us to manufacture a solar panel without forced child labour. We have significantly reduced the panel's CO2 footprint, with the panel paying back its energy footprint in well under one year.

Unlike the bad old days of the Australian solar industry, we aren’t here claiming we have a panel with a ‘German design’ and just making it in China. This is a serious step forward where we balance ethical supply chain management and industry-leading quality at an affordable price point.

An independent study by CSIRO for Choice Magazine tested one panel from 15 of Australia's most common solar panels. During the test, they found that 12 out of the 15 panels performed under their claimed nominal power, some by as much as 10W.

Because only one panel was used in the test, drawing firm conclusions about specific brands is impossible. However, it certainly drew attention to the fact that there are some significant inconsistencies between a manufacturer’s claimed nominal power and real-world output.

For example, a 260W panel from one of the largest manufacturers in China scored a test result of 251W. This inconsistency highlights just how critical it is to have access to panel-level output and monitoring, a Smart Solar Systems feature.

Solar Panels are Manufactured with a Power Tolerance

Each manufacturer is different. However, the better brands tend to have a +3% range. The only way to take advantage of this is to use a system such as Enphase that features panel-level output. Otherwise, you will output power at the rate of the worst-performing panel in your array. At best, this will be at the panels’ rating; at worst, it may be much less.

Output in low light conditions is also critical in Sydney due to our weather. We only get around 100 ‘perfect’ days a year. The rest have some rain on our cloud cover. The better panels (such as those listed below) perform well in the testing laboratory and output more power across the year in all weather conditions. Increased output in low light conditions can significantly affect your power bill over the years.

Cheap solar panels are pumped out of China at a dime a dozen. They are often rebranded with a slick logo or simply shipped to countries like Australia and sold without a brand at all! Have you ever seen a quote for “20 x 300W solar panels”? We see it all the time. It is literally a no-name system!