How Many Solar Panels Does an RV Need? (5 kWh/Day)
An RV using 5 kWh per day with 200W panels and 4 peak sun hours needs about 8 panels at 80% efficiency.
How to use this tool
- Find your daily kWh use on your electricity bill and enter it.
- Enter the wattage of the solar panels you plan to use.
- Enter peak sun hours for your location (find these on solar resource maps).
- Set system efficiency at 80% as a conservative starting estimate.
Determine how many compact solar panels can power an RV or camper van for off-grid living.
Frequently asked questions
- How many solar panels do I need?
- Divide your daily kWh consumption by the energy produced per panel per day (panel kW × peak sun hours × efficiency). Round up to the nearest whole panel.
- How many peak sun hours does my location get?
- The US averages 4–6 peak sun hours per day. Arizona and Nevada can exceed 6.5. The Pacific Northwest and Northeast average 3.5–4.5 hours.