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Joint Research Centre (Europese Commissie)
International, relevant to the Netherlands

PVGIS, solar power per location

The Joint Research Centre's Photovoltaic Geographical Information System calculates for any coordinate how much sunlight falls and what a solar PV system yields: per year, per month, per hour, for a fixed or tracking system, and a typical meteorological year. It uses radiation data from satellite images (PVGIS-SARAH3 for Europe). There is a web tool and an API without registration. Note: robots.txt disallows all automated visitors, so the Open Data Index does not call PVGIS itself.

EnergyClimate and environmentOpenAPIDownloadWorld · point (coordinate)
Reachable · checked 17:23
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Solar radiation on a flat surface in De Bilt (KNMI measurements): an average of 1,038 kWh per m² a year in 1996–2025, 8% more than in 1958–1987

Solar radiation on a flat surface in De Bilt (KNMI measurements), 1958 – 2025, in kWh per m² a year. That is the highest point in the series.

Source: KNMI, daggegevens van het weer · opgehaald 25 oktober 2026 · selection: station 260 (De Bilt); Q, alleen volledige jarenOpen the table Single block

What can you do with it?4 ideas

Getting started

Do solar panels pay off in your street?

Enter your address, roof pitch and orientation in the web tool. PVcalc gives the annual yield (E_y, kWh) and the irradiation on the panel (H(i)_y, kWh/m²).

Getting started

Summer versus winter

The monthly output shows how unevenly solar power is spread over the year. Useful for stories about net metering and grid congestion.

Advanced

East-west or south?

Calculate the same spot with aspect -90, 0 and 90 (east, south, west). East-west yields less per year but spreads output over the day.

Advanced

North versus south in the Netherlands

Compare a few places with the same settings. Put them next to the measured solar radiation at KNMI stations.

How to process it4 steps

  1. Start in the web tool

    The web tool does the same calculations as the API, with a map to pick a point and downloads as CSV or JSON.

    https://re.jrc.ec.europa.eu/pvg_tools/en/tools.html

  2. One calculation with the API

    GET only. Required are lat, lon, peakpower (kW) and loss (system loss in percent).

    https://re.jrc.ec.europa.eu/api/v5_3/PVcalc?lat=52.09&lon=5.12&peakpower=1&loss=14&outputformat=json

  3. Choose the tool

    PVcalc (grid-connected), SHScalc (off-grid with battery), MRcalc (monthly radiation), DRcalc (daily profile), seriescalc (hourly series), tmy (typical meteorological year) and printhorizon (horizon).

  4. Respect the limits

    At most 30 calls per second per IP, above that 429. Calls from the browser (AJAX) are refused. Prefer outputformat=json.

Interesting combinations

gemeente (coördinaat van de kern)

Do the panels deliver what they could?

Divide actual production from CBS 85005NED by installed capacity and compare it with the PVGIS yield per kWp for that place. Mind panels installed mid-year.

Combine with CBS StatLine
coördinaten van het pand

Solar potential per address

Take a building's coordinate from the BAG and calculate the yield. For roof pitch and shade you need an elevation model.

Combine with Addresses and Buildings Register (BAG)

Similar sources

  • KNMI daily weather data

    KNMI measures solar radiation at its weather stations, day by day (De Bilt since July 1957). No yield calculation, but real measurements.

  • ERA5 climate reanalysis

    Reanalysis with hourly radiation on a grid of about 30 km, worldwide and since 1940. Needs an account.

  • CBS StatLine

    CBS counts how much solar power was actually generated and how many panels are installed (for example table 85005NED), per municipality.

What to watch out for

  • robots.txt disallows bots

    re.jrc.ec.europa.eu has 'Disallow: /' for all user agents. The API is meant for programs (non-interactive service). We do not call it ourselves and show no PVGIS figures of our own here.

  • A calculation, not a measurement

    PVGIS calculates with satellite radiation, a model panel and the system loss you enter. Real yield also depends on shade, soiling and the inverter.

  • Licence not explicit

    The PVGIS pages state no licence of their own. The Commission's general legal notice gives CC BY 4.0 for EU content unless stated otherwise. Credit PVGIS and the JRC as the source.

  • Versions change

    The address without a version number has served PVGIS 5.2 since 25 September 2024, for a limited period; 5.1 is gone. Always put the version in the URL (v5_3).

APIREST (GET; JSON, CSV, EPW) · read 16 Oct 2026

StandardREST (GET; JSON, CSV, EPW)docs
Access no key

No key or account per the documentation. GET only; calls from the browser (AJAX/CORS) are refused. from the description

Formats

jsoncsvbasicepw

Base URL

https://re.jrc.ec.europa.eu/api/v5_3

Endpoints 7

  • GET/PVcalcOutput of a grid-connected system (fixed or tracking): per month and per year (E_y in kWh), with losses; optionally optimal angle and electricity price.
  • GET/SHScalcOff-grid system with battery: how often the battery is empty or full (peakpower in W here, not kW).
  • GET/MRcalcMonthly radiation over the years (horirrad, optrad, mr_dni, avtemp …; at least one required).
  • GET/DRcalcAverage daily profile per month (month required, 0 = all months).
  • GET/seriescalcHourly series of radiation (and with pvcalculation=1 the PV output) over a range of years, in UTC.
  • GET/tmyTypical meteorological year (period ≥ 10 years); also as EnergyPlus EPW.
  • GET/printhorizonHorizon profile (horizon height per direction) at a point.

Filtering from the description

No query language: one point and the system properties as query parameters; each call is a calculation.

Parameters 11

lat / lonDecimal degrees (south and west negative). Required.from the description
peakpowerPeak power in kW (PVcalc, seriescalc) or W (SHScalc).from the description
lossSystem loss in percent (14 is common). Required for PVcalc.from the description
angle / aspectTilt from horizontal and orientation: 0 = south, 90 = west, -90 = east. Default 0 and 0.from the description
optimalinclination / optimalanglesLet PVGIS choose the best tilt (and orientation); overrides angle/aspect.from the description
mountingplace / pvtechchoicefree or building; crystSi (default), crystSi2025, CIS, CdTe, Unknown.from the description
raddatabaseRadiation database: PVGIS-SARAH3 (Europe, Africa, Asia), PVGIS-ERA5, PVGIS-SARAH …; without, PVGIS picks by location.from the description
startyear / endyearPeriod for seriescalc, MRcalc and tmy; default the whole database.from the description
usehorizon / userhorizonInclude horizon shading (default 1) or supply your own heights.from the description
outputformatcsv (default, with explanations), json (recommended), basic (numbers only), epw (tmy only).from the description
pvprice / systemcost / interest / lifetimeCompute the price per kWh from installation cost, interest and lifetime (default 25 years).from the description

Fields in the JSON response (as far as the documentation names them) 4

NameTypeMeaning
inputsobjectDe gebruikte invoer, ook de gekozen database en hoeken
outputsobjectDe uitkomsten: per maand, totalen per jaar of per uur, afhankelijk van de tool
outputs.totals.fixed.E_ygetal · kWhOpbrengst per jaar van een vast systeem (PVcalc)
metaobjectUitleg en eenheid per veld; ontbreekt bij outputformat=basic

Limits and pitfalls

  • 30 calls per second per IP; above that 429. When busy the server waits up to 4–5 seconds, then returns 529 (Site is overloaded). from the description
  • GET only (otherwise 405). HEAD on a tool returns 204 to check it exists. from the description
  • robots.txt of re.jrc.ec.europa.eu is 'Disallow: /'. Open Data Index therefore does not call the API automatically; everything here comes from the JRC documentation. tested
  • The old path /api/ without version serves PVGIS 5.2 'for a limited period' (since 25 Sep 2024); 5.1 is gone. Always put v5_3 (or v5_2) in the URL. from the description
  • Mind the unit of peakpower: kW for PVcalc and seriescalc, W for SHScalc. from the description
  • Out-of-range values return a JSON error message with the allowed range. from the description

Try it

robots.txt of re.jrc.ec.europa.eu is 'Disallow: /': we make no call here. Try for example https://re.jrc.ec.europa.eu/api/v5_3/PVcalc?lat=52.09&lon=5.12&peakpower=1&loss=14&outputformat=json

Read from JRC: the PVGIS non-interactive service, all tools with parameters, limits and error codes. Labels: from the description stated in what the api itself publishes. tested from our own small call. platform applies to every api on this platform, per its documentation. experience learned while building open data index.

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