Despite advancements in efficiency, even the best solar panels can't use most of the sunlight that hits them. The average solar panel is lucky if it's 20% efficient, meaning how much of the sun's energy the panel can turn into usable electricity. This may be set to change, because Chinese manufacturer JinkoSolar has announced the Tiger Neo 3.0 modules with an efficiency of 24.8%.
To date, the most efficient solar panel has been the Maxeon 7, which reached nearly 25% (24.9%) efficiency in a lab setting, translating to 24.1% in real life. The Tiger Neo 3.0 panels come pretty close on paper, though it remains to be seen how well they perform in real-life usage.
To achieve this efficiency, the panels take advantage of tunnel oxide passivated contact, or TOPCon modules, which are more complicated than they sound but are low-cost and low-carbon materials for solar cells made out of epitaxially grown p-type silicon wafers. This material allows for higher voltages and fill factors than cells with a front-collecting emitter. According to PV Magazine, the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems achieved a 26.1% efficiency for a TOPCore solar cell.
Maxeon 7 solar panels -- not pictured here -- set a new standard for residential solar panels.
Buena Vista Images/Getty ImagesThe new JinkoSolar panels are available in 495 and 670-watt output versions. The 495-watt panel is intended for residential systems, while the 670-watt is designed for utility-scale projects. The panels come with a 15-year product warranty and a 30-year performance warranty. Panel degradation is expected to be 1% in the initial year, with an annual degradation of 0.4%.
To give you some context, the average solar panel has an efficiency of around 20%, meaning 80% of the sunlight that hits the panel isn't converted into usable electricity. When CNET tests solar panels in our lab, we weigh solar panel efficiency at 5%, balancing it against various other factors to give it a final score. While an efficiency improvement of close to 25% isn't, therefore, a game-changer, it does mean that panels are becoming more efficient, so you'll need fewer of them to meet your needs.
While it's unclear when and where the Tiger Neo 3.0 panels will be available, JinkoSolar recently announced that it plans to list on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange and will establish a wholly owned subsidiary in the US as part of its 1-gigawatt High-Efficiency Module Project.
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Ajay Kumar Editor
Ajay has worked in tech journalism for over a decade as a reporter, analyst, product reviewer, and editor. He got his start in consumer tech, breaking Android news at Newsweek before going to PCMag, where he reviewed hundreds of smartphones, battery packs, and chargers as a Mobile Analyst. He also worked at Lifewire, a Dotdash Meredith brand, as a Tech Commerce Editor, putting together tested best-of lists and assigning product reviews across categories including smart home, uninterruptible power supplies, generators, and automotive tech. Most recently, he was Section Editor, Mobile at Digital Trends, spearheading his team's coverage of breaking news, features, reviews, roundups, deals, and more across a variety of mobile products, including phones, wearables, VR headsets, batteries, and chargers. If you want Ajay's advice about anything tech, especially solar panels, UPS, batteries, EVs, and charging technology, you can reach him at ajkumar@cnet.com.
Expertise 13+ years of experience in consumer product reviews, buying guides, best lists, and tech news across a variety of tech categories. As a homeowner, Ajay is also familiar with the unique electrical issues that can crop up in a prewar apartment building.
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