Choosing a rooftop solar system starts with one question: how reliable is the grid supply at your home? The answer decides whether you need batteries at all — and batteries are the single biggest swing in what a home system costs.
On-Grid: The Default for Most Homes
An on-grid system connects straight to your electricity supply. During the day your home runs on solar first; any surplus is exported to the grid and credited to you through net metering. At night, you draw power back from the grid as usual.
Because there is no battery to buy or replace, on-grid is the simplest and most affordable option — and it gives you the full bill reduction and subsidy benefit. The one trade-off: for safety, an on-grid inverter switches off during a power cut, so it will not keep your lights on in an outage.
Off-Grid: For Sites With No Reliable Connection
An off-grid system stores everything it generates in batteries and runs independently of the grid. It suits farmhouses and remote sites where there is no dependable connection at all. The cost is higher, because the battery bank has to carry your entire night-time load and will need replacing during the life of the system.
Hybrid: Grid Savings Plus Backup
A hybrid system combines the two. It stays connected to the grid and exports surplus like an on-grid system, but also charges a battery that takes over during outages. It is worth considering if power cuts are frequent in your area and you need essential loads to keep running.
A Quick Comparison
- On-grid — lowest cost, no battery, net metering credits, no backup during outages.
- Off-grid — works with no grid at all, highest cost, battery replacement over time.
- Hybrid — grid savings plus battery backup, mid-to-high cost.
What We Usually Recommend
For most homes in Chennai and across Tamil Nadu with a working grid connection, an on-grid system is the better choice: no battery to maintain, and every surplus unit is credited back to you. A battery becomes worth the extra cost only when outages are genuinely frequent.
Not sure which fits your home? Book a free site assessment — we will look at your bills, your roof and your area’s supply before recommending anything.