By Jeremy, Founder of Australian Battery Quotes
Quick Answer: Yes. Under the Solar Sharer Offer, live since 1 July 2026 in NSW, south east Queensland and South Australia, eligible households get at least three hours of free midday electricity daily. A home battery can charge during that free window and power your evening, which is when grid prices are highest.
The Solar Sharer home battery combination is the most interesting energy story of this winter. From 1 July 2026, electricity retailers in NSW, south east Queensland and South Australia must offer at least one residential plan that includes a free block of electricity for at least three hours in the middle of the day, capped at 24 kWh per day. The scheme exists because Australia’s rooftop solar now floods the grid with cheap power at lunchtime, and the government wants households to soak it up.
Here is the catch: most families are not home at midday to run the dishwasher, the dryer and the air conditioner. A home battery solves that timing problem. It can quietly absorb the free window while you are at work, then discharge through the expensive evening peak. In this guide we explain how the offer works, who can access it, and how to think about battery sizing if you want to make the most of it. As always, the details below are current as at 13 July 2026 and worth rechecking with your retailer before you commit.
What Is the Solar Sharer Offer?
Solar Sharer is a federal initiative that requires electricity retailers in participating regions to offer at least one plan with a free midday electricity window. The first phase went live on 1 July 2026 in NSW, south east Queensland and South Australia, with other regions expected to be considered later.
The key features, as at 13 July 2026:
- At least three hours of free electricity in the middle of the day, every day.
- A cap of 24 kWh of free energy per day, which is more than most households use in total.
- You must opt in by switching to a compliant plan. Nobody is moved automatically.
- You need a smart meter so your retailer can measure when you used the power.
- It is open to owners and renters, with or without rooftop solar.
| Region | Free window (as at 13 July 2026) |
|---|---|
| NSW | 11am to 2pm |
| South east Queensland | 11am to 2pm |
| South Australia | 12pm to 3pm |
One important caveat: retailers still need to recover their costs. Compliant plans typically carry higher peak rates, higher shoulder rates or higher daily supply charges than you might pay elsewhere. That trade off is exactly why a battery changes the maths, and why you should compare the whole plan, not just the free window.
Why a Home Battery Makes Solar Sharer More Valuable
Free power is only useful when you can consume it. Without storage, you are limited to whatever you can run between 11am and 2pm. With a battery, the free window becomes fuel for the rest of your day.
The pattern many households could run looks like this. During the free window, the battery charges from the grid at no energy cost, alongside any solar you already generate. From late afternoon, the house draws down the battery instead of buying peak priced grid power. Because compliant plans often carry higher evening rates, every kilowatt hour your battery covers in the peak is a kilowatt hour you avoided paying a premium for.
A worked example of the logic, not a promise: a household using 20 kWh per day with 75 per cent of that consumed outside daylight hours needs roughly 15 kWh of stored energy to get through the evening and night. If a decent share of that storage was filled during a free window, the grid energy cost of the evening could fall substantially. Actual outcomes depend on your tariff, usage pattern, battery size and how your system is configured, so treat any savings estimate you see, from anyone, with care. Our battery calculator is a good place to start working out your own numbers.
Can Your Battery Actually Charge from the Grid?
Mostly yes, but check before you buy. Almost all modern home batteries sold in Australia, including systems from Tesla, Sungrow and AlphaESS, are physically capable of charging from the grid. What matters is whether it is enabled and controllable:
- Scheduling matters. You want a system whose app lets you set charge windows, so the battery fills between 11am and 2pm rather than whenever it feels like it. Some platforms now automate this around tariff data.
- Charge rate matters. A battery that charges at 5 kW can add roughly 15 kWh across a three hour window. A smaller inverter or a shared hybrid inverter that is also handling solar may add less.
- Your installer’s configuration matters. Grid charging is sometimes disabled by default. Ask the installer to set it up and show you how to adjust it.
These are exactly the questions worth putting to installers when you compare quotes. If you are new to batteries, our battery basics page covers the fundamentals, and the battery buying guide walks through the full decision.
Does This Stack with the Federal Battery Rebate?
Yes. The Cheaper Home Batteries Program continues to discount the upfront cost of installing an eligible battery, and buying a battery to exploit Solar Sharer does not affect your eligibility.
Since 1 May 2026 the rebate has been tiered by size: the first 14 kWh of usable capacity attracts the full rate, capacity between 14 and 28 kWh attracts 60 per cent of the rate, and capacity between 28 and 50 kWh attracts 15 per cent. Industry estimates as at 13 July 2026 put the full rate at roughly $250 per usable kWh, though the exact discount moves with certificate prices and is scheduled to step down over time, so confirm the current figure on your installer’s quote rather than relying on any article, including this one. NSW households can also investigate the state’s new Home Energy Saver support announced in June 2026.
The practical takeaway: the rebate structure now rewards right sized batteries rather than the biggest unit on the pallet, and Solar Sharer strengthens the case for a battery sized to carry your evening load.
Watch Outs Before You Switch Plans
Solar Sharer is a genuine win for many battery owners, but it is not automatically the best plan for everyone:
- Compare the whole tariff. A free midday window paired with steep peak rates could cost a low usage household more overall than a cheap flat rate plan.
- Solar exporters should check feed in terms. If you export a lot at midday, a plan built around free midday consumption may value your exports poorly.
- The free window may move. Windows and conditions are set by retailers within the scheme rules, so recheck the details each time you compare plans.
- VPP interactions. If your battery is enrolled in a virtual power plant, make sure the VPP’s control of your battery does not fight your free window charging schedule.
Get Quotes from Installers Who Understand This Stuff
The difference between a battery that quietly banks free power every day and one that never quite works as promised usually comes down to the installer configuring it properly. Australian Battery Quotes is a free, no obligation service for homeowners: tell us your postcode and a few details, and we connect you with up to 3 CEC accredited installers who can quote a system sized for your usage and set up for the way you want to run it. Get your free battery quotes here, and if you have not sized your system yet, run your numbers through the battery calculator first.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need solar panels to benefit from Solar Sharer with a battery?
No. The offer is open to households without solar, and a battery can charge entirely from the free grid window. That said, solar plus a battery gives you free charging all day, not just for three hours, so panels still strengthen the overall case.
Which states have the Solar Sharer Offer?
As at 13 July 2026 it applies in NSW, south east Queensland and South Australia. Other regions may follow, so check energy.gov.au or your retailer for the latest coverage.
Is the free electricity really free?
The energy in the window is free up to 24 kWh per day, but retailers can recover costs through higher rates outside the window or higher supply charges. Always compare the full plan against your actual usage.
How big a battery do I need to use the free window well?
It depends on your evening usage and your battery’s charge rate. Many households use 15 to 20 kWh per day with most of it at night. Our battery calculator helps you estimate a sensible size.
Will charging from the grid void my battery warranty or rebate?
Grid charging is a standard feature on mainstream systems and does not affect Cheaper Home Batteries Program eligibility. Confirm warranty terms for your specific model with your installer.
Conclusion
Solar Sharer turns the middle of the day into a free fuel window, and a home battery is the tool that lets working households actually use it. If you live in NSW, south east Queensland or South Australia, the combination of free midday power, the federal rebate and falling battery prices makes this winter a very good time to run the numbers. Start with our battery calculator, then get up to 3 free quotes from CEC accredited installers and compare your options side by side.