Queensland's Solar Feed-In Tariff in 2026: Why Batteries Now Beat Selling to the Grid
Regional Queensland's solar feed-in tariff is set to fall for the third year running.
The Queensland Competition Authority's draft determination for 2026–27 proposes a rate of just 6.153 cents per kilowatt-hour — a 29 per cent cut from the current 8.66 cents, and less than half what solar owners were paid two years ago. Here on the Gold Coast, where retailers set their own rates, most households are earning somewhere between 3 and 10 cents for every kilowatt-hour they export.
Meanwhile, the electricity you buy back from the grid in the evening costs several times that. If you have ever looked at your bill and wondered why your solar credits seem to shrink every year, this article explains what is happening — and what the smart response looks like in 2026.
What is the solar feed-in tariff in Queensland in 2026?
A feed-in tariff (FiT) is the amount your electricity retailer pays you for each kilowatt-hour of solar energy your system exports to the grid. In Queensland, how your rate is set depends on where you live.
In South East Queensland — including the Gold Coast, Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast, all on the Energex network — feed-in tariffs are voluntary. Retailers are not required to pay you anything for exported solar, although nearly all offer plans that do. Rates vary by retailer and plan, and many of the higher headline rates only apply to the first 8–12 kilowatt-hours exported each day before dropping to a much lower rate.
In regional Queensland, on the Ergon network, the QCA sets a mandatory feed-in tariff each financial year. For 2025–26 that rate is 8.66 cents per kilowatt-hour. The QCA's draft determination for 2026–27 proposes 6.153 cents, with the final determination due in early June 2026.
How much have Queensland feed-in tariffs fallen?
The trend is unmistakable. Here are the regulated regional Queensland rates over recent years, which also serve as a useful benchmark for what SEQ retailers offer:
That is a drop of more than 50 per cent in three years. The QCA is transparent about why: wholesale energy costs have eased, and more importantly, the value of solar energy exported in the middle of the day keeps falling because that is exactly when the grid is already flooded with it.
Why do feed-in tariffs keep falling?
Queensland has one of the highest rooftop solar uptake rates in the world. On a sunny day, so much solar pours into the grid between 10am and 2pm that wholesale electricity prices at those times regularly fall to very low — sometimes negative — levels. Your exported energy is worth whatever the market says it is worth at the moment you export it, and at midday that is not much.
The value has not disappeared — it has moved. Electricity is most expensive in the evening peak, after the sun goes down. That is precisely the window a home battery is built for: it stores your excess midday solar and lets you use it from 5pm onwards, when grid power costs the most.
Is it still worth selling solar back to the grid in Queensland?
Exporting is still better than letting excess generation go to waste, but as a strategy it is now the weakest way to extract value from your panels. Every kilowatt-hour you self-consume — by running appliances during the day or storing energy in a battery for the evening — saves you the full retail price of grid electricity. On the Gold Coast in 2026, self-consumed solar is typically worth three to five times more than exported solar.
The priority order for any Queensland solar household in 2026 is simple. Use your solar first, store what you cannot use, and export only what is left.
Wondering what that looks like for your home? Get a free battery assessment from our Gold Coast team — we will show you the actual numbers for your usage pattern.
How does a battery change the maths?
A hybrid solar and battery system shifts your excess generation from the lowest-value use (export) to the highest-value use (replacing peak-rate grid purchases). For a typical Gold Coast home, that is the difference between earning a few cents per kilowatt-hour and avoiding a retail rate several times higher.
Two other factors strengthen the case in 2026. The federal Cheaper Home Batteries Program continues to discount installed battery costs by roughly 30 per cent — we covered the details in our guide to the Queensland solar battery rebate. And batteries provide blackout protection, which matters on the Gold Coast every storm season.
If upfront cost is the barrier, green loans can spread the investment while the savings start immediately.
What about the old 44c Solar Bonus Scheme?
If you applied for solar before 10 July 2012, you may still be on Queensland's legacy 44 cent feed-in tariff. That scheme is locked in until 1 July 2028 — but it is easy to lose. Moving house, changing the name on the electricity account, or upsizing your inverter will all forfeit the rate. If you are on the 44c tariff, get advice before changing anything about your system. After July 2028, every Queensland solar household will face the same low-FiT reality, so it is worth planning your battery strategy now.
What should Gold Coast solar owners do now?
Three practical steps. First, check your current feed-in tariff and usage rates — the Queensland Government's energy comparison resources make this straightforward, and a better plan may be a quick win. Second, shift as much daytime usage as you can — dishwasher, washing machine, pool pump, hot water — into solar hours. Third, get a proper assessment of whether a battery stacks up for your household, using your actual consumption data rather than averages.
As licensed Master Electricians, we handle the whole system in-house — solar, battery, switchboard and rebate paperwork — so you get one accountable team rather than a chain of subcontractors.
Feed-in tariffs are not coming back. Make your solar work harder instead — get a free quote from Evolved Solar.
