Solar panel size and weight: How big are solar panels?

For residential solar panels, the standard dimensions are 66x40 inches for the panel, about 1.25x1.6 inches for the frame, and each panel usually weighs about 42 pounds. While this may vary from brand to brand, it's typically the same for all residential solar panels. The smaller size makes them ideal for rooftop residential installations. Read our article to learn more about how many solar panels you'll need to power your home.

What is the area of a solar panel?

While residential solar panels tend to be around 5.5 feet long and a little over 3 feet wide for an area of around 15 feet, the dimensions of commercial panels are typically larger at around 6.5 feet long, and they usually weigh 50 pounds or more. Like residential solar panels, size can vary depending on the manufacturer and how the solar panel is made. Commercial solar systems tend to produce more power than residential systems.

Types of solar panels

Solar panels can also be composed of different materials–either monocrystalline, polycrystalline, or thin film. The main difference between the technologies is the type of silicon solar cell they use: monocrystalline solar panels have solar cells made from a single crystal of silicon, while polycrystalline solar panels have solar cells made from many silicon fragments melted together. While their composition doesn't inherently affect their size or weight, monocrystalline cells are more efficient overall, so you'll need fewer for the same output.

Regardless of its application, residential and commercial solar panels are made the same way. Each solar panel is made up of individual solar photovoltaic (PV) cells. PV solar cells come in a standard size of 156 mm by 156 mm, which is approximately 6 inches long and 6 inches wide. Most solar panels for rooftop solar installations are made up of 60 solar cells, while the standard for commercial solar installations is 72 cells (and can go up to 98 cells or more). Learn more about solar cells in this article.

For example, the most popular solar panel on the EnergySage Marketplace, the Panasonic EverVolt WBS EVPV370 WBS, which is made from monocrystalline cells, is 1721.0 mm (5.6 ft) long and 1016.0 mm (3.3 ft) wide for an area of 18.5 ft2 and weighs roughly 45 lbs.

Solar panel size and weight, residential and commercial panels