The Solar Sharer Offer is a regulated electricity plan that gives households three hours of free electricity in the middle of every day, up to 24 kWh a day. It started on 1 July 2026 in New South Wales, South East Queensland and South Australia. Any home with a smart meter can opt in through its retailer, with or without solar panels. Rates outside the free window are higher than on a standard plan, so it only pays if you can move usage into the middle of the day.
Key facts
- The Solar Sharer Offer started on 1 July 2026 in New South Wales, South East Queensland and South Australia, the three regions covered by the Default Market Offer.
- The Solar Sharer Offer free period is 11am to 2pm in New South Wales and South East Queensland and 12pm to 3pm in South Australia, every day of the year, as set by the Australian Energy Regulator.
- The Solar Sharer Offer makes the first 24 kWh used in the three-hour window each day free; usage above 24 kWh is charged at the plan’s off-peak or solar soak rate.
- Retailers with more than 1,000 customers across the Default Market Offer regions must offer the Solar Sharer Offer to residential customers who have a smart meter and are not in an embedded network.
- The Australian Energy Regulator says Solar Sharer Offer usage rates outside the free period are 1 to 4 cents per kWh higher than the matching time of use default tariff in 2026-27.
- Victoria is not part of the Solar Sharer Offer but has had its own version, the Midday Power Saver, since 1 October 2026, with free power from 11am to 2pm and a 24 kWh daily cap.
What is the Solar Sharer Offer?
The Solar Sharer Offer (SSO) is an opt-in standing offer, created by the Australian Government, that includes three consecutive hours of free electricity in the middle of each day. A standing offer is a default electricity contract with prices capped by a regulator; a market offer is priced by the retailer.
The offer sits inside the Default Market Offer (DMO), the price cap the Australian Energy Regulator (AER) sets each year for New South Wales, South East Queensland and South Australia. Solar pushes wholesale prices very low around midday, so the plan charges nothing then and recovers the cost at other times. You do not need solar panels, and energy.gov.au confirms renters can sign up.
Solar Sharer start date and status in November 2026
The Solar Sharer Offer has been available since 1 July 2026 and is fully in force as at November 2026. Minister Chris Bowen announced it on 4 November 2025, and the AER set its prices on 26 May 2026.
Confirmed by primary sources, checked 12 November 2026:
- The free hours and price caps are fixed until 30 June 2027 (AER).
- The offer applies only in New South Wales, South East Queensland and South Australia (DCCEEW).
- Victoria runs a separate Midday Power Saver from 1 October 2026 (Victorian Government).
Not confirmed:
- Other states. In March 2026 the minister’s office said the Government would work with other states on extending the offer “nationally by 2027”. Energy.gov.au still says only that this work is under way. We found no start date for Western Australia, Tasmania, the ACT or the Northern Territory.
- Prices from 1 July 2027. The AER plans to collect retailer data in late 2026 before setting the next offer.
- Uptake. No sign-up numbers were published in the sources we read.
When are the free hours, and what does Solar Sharer cost outside them?
The free hours are 11am to 2pm in New South Wales and South East Queensland and 12pm to 3pm in South Australia, and every other hour is charged at capped time of use rates. The times follow the clock all year and do not move with daylight saving.
The table shows the maximum Solar Sharer Offer prices for 2026-27 from the AER’s Default Market Offer page and final determination, including GST, checked November 2026. Retailers can charge less but not more.
| Network (region) | Daily supply charge | Cheapest paid rate (also charged above 24 kWh) | Off-peak or shoulder rate | Peak rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ausgrid (Sydney, Hunter) | $1.76 | 27.56c/kWh | 27.56c/kWh | 63.72c/kWh, 3pm to 9pm |
| Endeavour Energy (Western Sydney) | $1.85 | 14.19c/kWh, 10am to 11am | 37.53c/kWh | 48.75c/kWh, 4pm to 8pm |
| Essential Energy (regional NSW) | $2.72 | 27.60c/kWh | 27.60c/kWh | 45.57c/kWh, 7am to 10am and 3pm to 10pm |
| Energex (South East Queensland) | $1.78 | 8.10c/kWh, 2pm to 4pm | 26.41c/kWh, 9pm to 11am | 48.90c/kWh, 4pm to 9pm |
| SA Power Networks (South Australia) | $1.80 | 19.66c/kWh, 10am to 12pm and 3pm to 4pm | 35.17c/kWh, midnight to 6am | 58.84c/kWh, 6am to 10am and 4pm to midnight |
Peak rates do not apply every day in every network. Ausgrid’s peak runs only from November to March and June to August, and Endeavour Energy’s only on working weekdays. Our guide to peak and off-peak electricity times lists each network’s windows.
Three costs sit outside the free window. The daily supply charge still applies. Appliances on a controlled load circuit, often hot water or a pool pump, are billed at controlled load rates even at midday. And peak rates are steep: the AER’s flat rate cap for Ausgrid is 33.14c per kWh all day, against a Solar Sharer peak of 63.72c.
Solar Sharer eligibility: who can get it?
You can get the Solar Sharer Offer if you are a residential customer with a smart meter in New South Wales, South East Queensland or South Australia. Energy Made Easy lists the conditions:
- a residential account, owner or renter
- a smart meter (also called an interval meter)
- an address in a Default Market Offer region
- not supplied through an embedded network, a private network inside a site such as an apartment block, caravan park or retirement village
- a retailer with more than 1,000 customers in those regions.
The plan is opt-in only. A retailer cannot move you onto it by default and must tell you it may not suit your household.
Regional Queensland is outside the Default Market Offer, but Ergon Energy has offered its own Solar Sharer, Tariff 12F, since 1 July 2026 with the same window and cap, according to Ergon’s tariff page.
Which retailers offer Solar Sharer?
Every retailer above the 1,000 customer threshold must offer a Solar Sharer plan, and because prices are capped the plans are close to identical. SolarQuotes reported in July 2026 that Engie, Red Energy, Origin, Dodo, OVO and Sumo had plans out at launch, and it compared AGL’s, Origin’s and Red Energy’s later that month.
EnergyAustralia was late. It made its plan available on 3 August 2026, the day the ACCC accepted a court-enforceable undertaking in which the retailer admitted breaching the Electricity Retail Code.
Amber Electric says on its blog (1 July 2026) that its Solar Sharer plan is a separate standing offer with no wholesale pricing, no SmartShift battery automation and no feed-in tariff. Our Amber Electric review covers its main plan.
Does Solar Sharer save money? A worked example
Solar Sharer saves money only if you move enough usage into the free window; a household that changes nothing can pay more. The example uses the AER’s 2026-27 price caps for the Ausgrid network.
Assumptions: a Sydney home with no solar using 16 kWh on a day when Ausgrid’s peak rate applies, 7 kWh of it between 3pm and 9pm and 3 kWh between 11am and 2pm. The battery case assumes 10 kWh of usable storage and 11 kWh drawn to fill it, with the cost of the battery left out.
| Scenario | Free kWh | Peak kWh | Other kWh | Cost for the day |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flat rate default offer ($1.66 a day, 33.14c/kWh) | 0 | 0 | 16 | $6.96 |
| Solar Sharer, nothing shifted | 3 | 7 | 6 | $7.87 |
| Solar Sharer, 5 kWh moved to the window | 8 | 4 | 4 | $5.41 |
| Solar Sharer, battery filled in the window | 14 | 0 | 3 | $2.59 |
The household that shifts nothing pays 91c more for the day than on the flat default offer. Moving 5 kWh saves $1.55 a day, and a battery saves $4.37. These are regulated caps, and market offers are often cheaper than either, so run your own usage through Energy Made Easy first.
Solar Sharer for solar owners
Solar Sharer rarely suits a home with solar panels and no battery, because the panels already cover midday usage and the plan charges more in the evening. The exceptions are small solar systems with large daytime loads, and homes that charge an EV at midday.
Check the feed-in tariff too. The AER’s caps cover supply and usage charges, and retailers set their own export rates. On Ausgrid plans in July 2026, SolarQuotes found AGL paying 0c per kWh on its Solar Sharer plan, Origin 3c and Red Energy 1.1c to 6.7c depending on the time of day. Compare those with our solar feed-in tariff tracker.
Solar Sharer for battery owners: charging a battery free at midday
Battery owners gain the most from Solar Sharer, because a battery can fill from the grid for nothing in the free window and run the house through the evening peak. Three limits apply:
- The cap. The 24 kWh covers everything the home draws in the window, not only the battery.
- Charging speed. A battery that charges at 5 kW takes in at most 15 kWh in three hours.
- Settings. The battery must be set to charge from the grid on a schedule.
On a sunny day your own panels may fill the battery anyway, so the free window is worth most in winter and cloudy weather. The Victorian Government advises spreading batteries, EV chargers and other heavy appliances across the window to avoid tripping circuit breakers. For the wider question, see are solar batteries worth it.
Solar Sharer vs existing free power plans
The Solar Sharer Offer has regulated prices outside the free window; retailer plans can give longer windows or bigger caps but set their own rates. The table compares it with Victoria’s scheme and two market plans, using government pages and the GloBird fact sheets read for our GloBird Energy review in November 2026.
| Plan | Prices set by | Free window | Daily free cap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solar Sharer Offer | Australian Energy Regulator | 11am to 2pm (12pm to 3pm in SA) | 24 kWh |
| Midday Power Saver (Victoria) | Victorian Government | 11am to 2pm | 24 kWh |
| GloBird ZEROHERO (battery homes only) | GloBird Energy | 12pm to 3pm | 50 kWh |
| GloBird FOUR4FREE (United Energy area) | GloBird Energy | 11am to 3pm | 30 kWh |
AGL and OVO Energy also sell free midday plans, but we could not open either retailer’s plan page during this check. Our Victorian solar rebate guide covers the Midday Power Saver.
Criticisms of the Solar Sharer Offer
The main criticism is that the free hours are paid for by higher charges at other times, so many households are no better off.
- Standing offer pricing. In RenewEconomy commentary on 23 August 2026, community energy advocate Gavin Gilchrist calculated that a high-use Sydney household would pay about $3,270 a year on AGL’s Solar Sharer plan against about $2,900 on an AGL market plan.
- Higher supply charges. Choice (updated 17 September 2026) found the daily supply charge on one Red Energy market plan was about $1.00, against $1.76 on Red’s Solar Sharer plan.
- Weak bill checks. The AER says the “better offer” message on bills is based on past usage and will not model savings from shifting.
- Who can benefit. Embedded network homes are excluded, and renters and apartment residents usually cannot add a battery.
Supporters point to flexible homes. The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis estimated in September 2026 that households charging an electric vehicle at midday could save A$731 to A$2,257 a year on free midday tariffs, including market plans.
How to get the Solar Sharer Offer
To get the Solar Sharer Offer, ask your retailer for it or choose a Solar Sharer plan on Energy Made Easy; it is never applied automatically.
- Confirm you have a smart meter and are not in an embedded network.
- Check when you use power in your retailer’s app or on a bill.
- Compare the plan with market offers on Energy Made Easy, using your meter number.
- Check the feed-in tariff and controlled load rates on the fact sheet.
- Opt in, set timers, then review your first full bill.
When to call a professional
Call a licensed electrician or your battery installer before relying on the free window for large loads. Moving hot water from a controlled load circuit to a timer, setting a battery to charge from the grid, or running an EV charger alongside air conditioning can all involve the switchboard.
Ask for the battery’s maximum charge rate and whether your main switch can carry the combined load. Find installers in our directory, including New South Wales, Queensland and South Australia.
FAQ
What is the Solar Sharer Offer?
The Solar Sharer Offer is a regulated, opt-in electricity plan that gives households three hours of free electricity in the middle of each day, up to 24 kWh a day. The Australian Government created it and the Australian Energy Regulator caps its prices.
When did the Solar Sharer Offer start?
The Solar Sharer Offer started on 1 July 2026. Its current prices apply until 30 June 2027.
Which states have the Solar Sharer Offer?
The Solar Sharer Offer is available in New South Wales, South East Queensland and South Australia as at November 2026. Victoria has a separate Midday Power Saver from 1 October 2026, and no start date has been published for other states.
Is the free power 11am to 2pm everywhere?
Free power runs from 11am to 2pm in New South Wales and South East Queensland and from 12pm to 3pm in South Australia. The times are fixed all year and do not shift with daylight saving.
Do I need solar panels to get Solar Sharer?
No, you do not need solar panels to get the Solar Sharer Offer. You need a smart meter, a home in an eligible region and a retailer required to offer the plan.
Is Solar Sharer worth it if I already have solar?
Solar Sharer is usually not worth it for a home with solar panels and no battery. The panels already supply most midday usage, while the plan’s evening rates are higher than on standard plans.
Can I charge a home battery for free on Solar Sharer?
Yes, you can charge a home battery from the grid during the Solar Sharer free window at no usage cost. The limit is 24 kWh a day across everything the home draws in those three hours.
Sources
- Solar Sharer Offer, energy.gov.au
- Default Market Offer, DCCEEW
- Default Market Offer tariff caps 2026-27, AER
- Solar Sharer Offer fact sheet, AER
- DMO 2026-27 final determination, AER
- Solar Sharer Offer, Energy Made Easy
- Ministerial releases, 4 November 2025 and 19 March 2026
- EnergyAustralia undertaking, ACCC
- Midday Power Saver, Victorian Government
- Solar Sharer Tariff 12F, Ergon Energy
- Amber Electric on Solar Sharer
- SolarQuotes, 3 July 2026 and 24 July 2026
- RenewEconomy, 23 August 2026
- Choice, 17 September 2026
- IEEFA briefing note, September 2026
About this guide
Written by the Solar Cobber editorial team from independent desk research, checked in November 2026. Solar Cobber is a free directory that may earn referral or advertising fees from installers; commercial relationships never affect content. This is general information, not financial advice. Send corrections via /contact.
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