Glossary
Feed-in tariff
A feed-in tariff is the rate, in cents per kilowatt-hour, that an electricity retailer pays a household for surplus solar electricity exported to the grid. It is separate from STCs, which are a one-off up-front benefit for installing the system.
A feed-in tariff is what your electricity retailer pays you for the surplus solar power you send back to the grid. It is quoted in cents per kilowatt-hour and appears as a credit on the electricity bill.
The rate depends on the retailer, the plan and the state. It changes when plans change, and it has been much lower in recent years than the old premium schemes that paid well above retail prices. If a customer asks for a figure, point them to their retailer’s current offer rather than giving one from memory.
In practice
Customers mix up the two money streams from a solar system, and installers are the ones who clear it up. They are different in almost every way.
| STCs | Feed-in tariff | |
|---|---|---|
| When it arrives | Once, at installation (as an up-front discount) | Ongoing, on each bill |
| Who pays | Market buyers, through retailers’ obligations | The customer’s retailer |
| What it rewards | Installing eligible small-scale technology | Exporting electricity |
| Set by | Market price and scheme rules | The retailer’s plan |
The STC discount is already included in the quote. The feed-in tariff is part of the customer’s running savings, and will vary by plan. A clear quote shows them separately, with an estimate for the first and a note that the second depends on the plan.
Battery owners often find their feed-in credit falls in importance, because a battery stores the surplus for use in the evening instead of exporting it. Some VPP providers pay for the battery’s flexibility in place of, or alongside, the usual export credit. See VPP definition.
Common confusion
A feed-in tariff is not an STC and it does not interact with the certificates. A high or low tariff does not change the count of certificates created, which depends on system size, zone rating and deeming period. See deeming definition.
Historic gross feed-in schemes, which paid for all generation, were closed to new entrants some years ago, so most current customers are on a plan that pays only for exports. See net and gross metering.
For what the up-front side is worth, see what an STC is worth in 2026 and the certificate trading glossary.
Related terms
Also in the glossary
Net vs gross metering
Net metering measures only the difference between what a site consumes and what its solar system generates, exporting th…
STC definition
An STC (Small-scale Technology Certificate) is a federal certificate created under the Renewable Energy Target's Small-s…
VPP (Virtual Power Plant)
A VPP (virtual power plant) is a network of home batteries and other distributed energy devices that a provider controls…
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