All-Electric New Home Australia 2026

An all-electric new home in Australia designed properly from the start costs less to run, qualifies for better energy ratings and avoids the $5,000 to $15,000 retrofit bills that catch homeowners who add solar, batteries and EV chargers after handover. The key is getting the decisions right before the slab goes down.

Under the updated National Construction Code (energy.gov.au, 2023), new homes must meet a seven-star NatHERS thermal rating and a whole-of-home energy budget. That budget covers heating, cooling, hot water, lighting and pool pumps. States adopted the rules on different dates, from October 2023 in NSW to May 2025 in WA, so check your state’s start date with the Australian Building Codes Board. Going all-electric with a heat pump and solar makes meeting this budget straightforward. Going gas actually makes it harder, because gas appliances score poorly in the energy budget calculation.

This guide covers what to specify at each stage of your build so the electrical, solar and energy systems work together from day one.

Start With the Building Envelope, Not the Solar

Insulation and glazing do more for your energy bills than adding extra solar panels to a poorly insulated house. A home that leaks heat needs more energy to stay comfortable, which means a bigger solar system, a bigger battery and higher running costs.

The NCC sets minimum insulation values by climate zone, but the minimums are exactly that. Building above minimum pays back within a few years through lower heating and cooling demand.

Component	NCC minimum (Zone 5, Sydney)	NCC minimum (Zone 6, Melbourne)	Recommended for all-electric
Ceiling	R5.1	R5.1	R6.0 to R7.0
Walls	R2.8	R2.8	R2.8+
Floor (slab)	Edge insulation	Edge insulation	Edge + under-slab in cool zones
Windows	Single glazed, some shading	Single glazed, some shading	Double glazed, low-E coating

Homeowners building in southern Australian states report that a well-insulated all-electric home with R6 ceiling batts and double glazing uses 18 to 20 kWh per day for heating. A minimally insulated home of the same size can draw 30 to 40 kWh per day. That gap is $1,200 to $2,500 per year at current grid rates.

Double glazing adds $5,000 to $15,000 to a typical new build depending on window count and frame type. The payback is 4 to 8 years through reduced heating and cooling costs, and it makes the home genuinely more comfortable year-round.

Specify these before the slab:

Deeper eaves on north and west faces (600 mm minimum) to block summer sun while admitting winter sun
Smaller windows on the west wall to reduce afternoon heat gain
Cross-ventilation pathways for passive cooling in milder months
Airtight construction with controlled ventilation

Design Your Roof for Solar From the Start

The cheapest time to design solar into a home is at the plan stage. Changing a roof layout after contracts are signed costs money. After handover, you are stuck with whatever the builder gave you.

Optimal roof design for solar in Australia:

Orientation: Primary roof plane facing north. East-west split roofs work well too, generating power earlier and later in the day when you are home to use it. Due south is the only orientation that does not work.
Pitch: 15 to 30 degrees is ideal for most Australian latitudes. Steeper pitches (up to 35 degrees) suit southern states. Flatter pitches suit northern Queensland.
Clear area: A clean, unshaded north-facing roof of 40 square metres fits a 10 kW system using standard 440 W panels. Allow 50 to 65 square metres for a 13 to 15 kW system.
No obstructions: Keep skylights, dormers, antenna mounts and plumbing vents off the north face. Every obstruction reduces usable panel area and creates shading.

Tell your designer you want an all-electric home before the roof plan is finalised. Builders will sometimes shift a vent or skylight to a south-facing plane at no extra cost if asked during design.

For more on solar sizing, see our guide on what size solar system you need.

Pre-Wire Everything During Construction

Running cables and conduit through open walls costs a fraction of what it costs to retrofit through plasterboard, brick veneer or weatherboard. Pre-wiring is the single highest-return decision in an all-electric new build.

What to pre-wire and where:

Circuit	Specification	Location	Cost at build
EV charger	40A dedicated circuit, 6 mm2 cable	Switchboard to garage wall	$200 to $400
Battery storage	32A circuit + empty conduit	Switchboard to garage/side wall	$150 to $300
Solar inverter	DC isolator location + conduit from roof	Garage or external wall near meter	$150 to $250
Heat pump hot water	Dedicated 20A circuit	Near laundry or external wall	$100 to $200

Retrofitting an EV charger circuit through a completed home costs $800 to $2,000 (EVSE Australia, 2024). At build stage, the same circuit costs $200 to $400. The savings are even larger if the cable run is long or passes through masonry.

Switchboard sizing matters. The NCC requires a minimum of four empty single-phase circuit breaker slots for all-electric homes. Specify more. A 60-circuit switchboard gives you room for solar, battery, EV charger, heat pump, air conditioning zones and future additions without needing a board upgrade. The cost difference between a 40-circuit and 60-circuit board is roughly $300 to $600 at build stage.

Three-Phase or Single-Phase: Decide at Build Stage

Most Australian homes run on single-phase power. Three-phase is more common in newer large homes (particularly in WA and SA), rural properties and homes with heavy workshop loads.

When three-phase is worth it for an all-electric home:

You want an 11 kW or 22 kW EV charger (single-phase caps at 7.4 kW)
Your solar system will exceed 10 kW (some distributors restrict single-phase exports)
You plan to run a workshop, pool pump or ducted air conditioning on separate phases
Your distributor charges less for three-phase connection at the build stage than for a retrofit

When single-phase is fine:

A 7 kW EV charger covers your daily needs (it adds 40 to 50 km of range per hour, filling most EVs overnight)
Your solar system is 10 kW or under
You have no heavy fixed loads beyond standard household appliances

Installing three-phase at build costs $1,500 to $2,500 including the distributor connection. Retrofitting three-phase after handover costs $3,000 to $10,000 depending on distance from the street transformer, trenching requirements and your distributor’s fees (DLG Electrical, 2024).

If you are on the fence, install three-phase at build. The upfront cost difference is small and you cannot easily upgrade later.

Heat Pump Hot Water: The First Appliance to Specify

A heat pump hot water system replaces gas and electric-element systems for a fraction of the running cost. It uses a refrigeration cycle to extract heat from ambient air and transfer it to water, consuming roughly one-third to one-quarter the electricity of a traditional electric element unit.

For a four-bedroom all-electric home, a 270 to 315-litre heat pump handles daily demand. Brands like Reclaim Energy, Sanden, Rheem and iStore are widely available in Australia and qualify for federal STC rebates worth $800 to $1,200 at installation (Clean Energy Regulator, 2026).

Installed cost: $3,200 to $5,500 including the STC discount. A comparable gas hot water system costs $1,800 to $3,000 installed but adds a gas connection fee ($800 to $1,500) and ongoing gas supply charges ($300 to $500 per year in fixed fees alone).

Place the heat pump on an exterior wall with good air circulation, away from bedroom windows (they produce a low hum during operation). Running the hot water circuit during the day when solar is generating reduces grid draw to near zero.

For brand comparisons, see our heat pump hot water guide. You can also explore solar panels and home batteries to compare products before your build.

Solar System Sizing for All-Electric Homes

An all-electric home with a heat pump, reverse-cycle air conditioning, induction cooktop, electric oven and daily EV charging uses more electricity than a gas-hybrid home. Plan for it.

Typical daily consumption by component:

Load	Daily kWh (estimate)
Base household (lights, fridge, cooking, laundry)	8 to 12
Heating and cooling (reverse-cycle, moderate climate)	5 to 15
Heat pump hot water	2 to 4
EV charging (35 km daily average)	5 to 7
Total	20 to 38

A 10 kW solar system in Sydney generates roughly 38 to 42 kWh per day annually (Clean Energy Council, 2025). In Melbourne, expect 32 to 36 kWh. In Brisbane, 42 to 48 kWh.

For a four-bedroom home in Sydney or Melbourne, 10 to 13 kW is the right range. Perth and Brisbane homes can sometimes get away with 8 to 10 kW. Homes in Tasmania or highland Victoria may need 13 to 15 kW to offset higher heating demand and lower winter output.

Install solar at handover or within the first few months. The federal STC rebate provides an upfront discount equivalent to roughly 30 percent of system cost (dcceew.gov.au, 2026). A 10 kW system costs $6,000 to $9,000 after the rebate. See our solar panel cost guide for current pricing.

When to Add a Battery (and How to Prepare for One)

Install the conduit and circuit during construction. Install the actual battery 6 to 12 months after you move in.

The reason is simple: you do not know your real energy patterns until you have lived in the home through at least one season. Your builder’s energy estimates will not match your actual usage. Living in the house first lets you size the battery accurately.

When you are ready, a 10 to 13.5 kWh battery is the right size for most all-electric homes. The federal Cheaper Home Batteries program provides an upfront discount of roughly $300 per usable kWh, reducing a typical 13 kWh system from $12,000 to $16,000 pre-rebate down to $8,000 to $12,000 post-rebate (dcceew.gov.au, 2026). From 1 May 2026, the rebate uses a tiered structure: full rate for the first 14 kWh, 60 percent for 14 to 28 kWh, and 15 percent for 28 to 50 kWh.

Feed-in tariffs have dropped to 3 to 8 cents per kWh across most states. Storing solar and using it in the evening saves 24 to 30 cents per kWh compared to exporting and buying back. That gap is why batteries now make financial sense for most solar households.

Preparation checklist for battery-ready build:

32A circuit from switchboard to battery location
Empty conduit (25 mm minimum) along the cable route
Flat, shaded wall space at the battery location (minimum 800 mm wide, 1,200 mm tall)
Adequate ventilation (most LFP batteries are rated for outdoor installation)
Switchboard with spare capacity for a battery isolator

For battery comparisons and pricing, see our home battery cost guide.

EV Charger: Pre-Wire Now, Install When You Buy the Car

Even if you do not own an EV yet, pre-wire the garage. Australia had 454,000 EVs on the road by end of 2025, and 13.1 percent of new car sales were electric or plug-in hybrid (Electric Vehicle Council, January 2026). Your next car, or the one after that, will probably be electric.

Pre-wiring spec:

40A dedicated circuit on a 6 mm2 cable from switchboard to the garage wall
RCD/RCBO protection at the switchboard
Mounting point at a height of 1,000 to 1,400 mm on the garage wall
Cable run kept as short as practical (under 15 metres keeps future installation costs under $1,200)

When you buy the EV, an electrician installs the charger on the pre-wired circuit in 2 to 3 hours. Total cost: the charger unit ($700 to $2,200) plus a simple install ($450 to $1,200). Without pre-wiring, the cable run, wall penetrations and potential switchboard work push the install to $1,500 to $3,500.

For charger recommendations, see our best home EV charger guide. If you have solar, a charger with solar diversion like the Zappi lets you charge the car from surplus solar rather than exporting at low feed-in rates.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Skipping insulation upgrades to fund solar. A bigger solar system on a leaky house is less effective than a right-sized system on a well-insulated one. Spend on the envelope first.

2. Not leaving enough switchboard capacity. A 40-circuit board fills fast in an all-electric home. Specify 60 circuits. The marginal cost at build is minimal.

3. Putting vents and skylights on the north roof. Every obstruction reduces solar potential. Move them to the south face.

4. Installing the battery at handover. You will probably oversize or undersize it without real usage data. Wait.

5. Running gas “just in case.” A gas connection adds $800 to $1,500 in connection fees and $300 to $500 per year in supply charges before you use a single megajoule. The economics of gas for new homes are increasingly difficult to justify. Victoria banned gas connections in new homes from January 2024, and the ACT banned them from December 2023 (Grattan Institute, 2023; ACT Government). Other states are expected to follow.

6. Ignoring cable run distances. The further your switchboard is from the garage and battery location, the more the eventual installation costs. Place the switchboard in a central location with short runs to the garage, the hot water system and the planned battery wall.

The All-Electric New Build Checklist

Use this with your builder and electrician at the design stage:

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does it cost to build an all-electric home in Australia?

The electrical premium for an all-electric new build over a gas-connected home is roughly $3,000 to $8,000 including the heat pump hot water system and additional switchboard capacity. Solar adds $5,000 to $12,000 depending on system size. Pre-wiring for EV charger and battery adds $400 to $1,000 at build stage.

Do I need three-phase power for an all-electric home?

Not always. Single-phase handles most all-electric homes with up to a 10 kW solar system, a battery and a 7 kW EV charger. Three-phase is worth it if you want an 11 kW or 22 kW EV charger, a system larger than 10 kW, or you plan to add a pool or workshop. Install it at build for $1,500 to $2,500 rather than retrofitting.

Is solar mandatory on new homes in Australia?

Solar panels are not mandatory under the NCC. However, the updated NCC (adopted state by state since October 2023) requires a seven-star NatHERS thermal rating and a whole-of-home energy budget that is much easier to meet with rooftop solar. Most all-electric new builds install solar to satisfy the energy budget and reduce running costs.

Should I install a battery when building or wait?

Wait 6 to 12 months after moving in. Your actual energy usage patterns will be different from your builder’s estimates. Living in the home first lets you size the battery to your real consumption, which avoids overspending on capacity you do not need.

What size solar system do I need for an all-electric home with an EV?

A four-bedroom all-electric home with a heat pump, reverse-cycle heating and cooling, and daily EV charging typically needs 10 to 13 kW of solar to cover most of its annual consumption. Homes in southern states or with high heating loads may need 13 to 15 kW.