String inverter vs microinverter vs hybrid

Pick the constraint first

• Simple, unshaded roof, no battery in the plan → a string inverter with enough MPPTs is usually the clean design.
• Battery in the plan (or a documented retrofit path) → hybrid, or AC-coupled storage with the extra box priced in.
• Dormers, mixed orientations, stubborn shade → microinverters or DC optimisers.

If a quote leads with a brand and never mentions your roof, the architecture was chosen in a warehouse. The parent page is inverters explained.

A simple north plane on a new metal house in Canberra is not a hip-and-valley roof in inner Brisbane with a liquidambar to the north-west. Those jobs should not share a default SKU.

Failure modes

String: one box, whole array depends on it — also easier to service. Shade on one module can drag a string. Multiple MPPTs mitigate mixed orientations; they do not delete a chimney shadow.

Module-level: more electronics on a hot Australian roof, finer shade handling, finer monitoring. Service may mean a ladder and a module, not only a garage wall. Warranty length belongs on the comparison table.

Hybrid: wonderful when the battery SKU matches; awkward when “ready” means “buy our battery later at an unstated price.” Read when a battery makes sense.

Export limits sit above all three

The DNSP cap is commissioned into whichever box you buy. South Australian feeders and many urban networks already treat export as a scarce thing. A quote that assumes unlimited export is incomplete. See export limits and how solar works.

How to compare without a ranking

Name the roof. Name the battery plan. Name the export assumption. Then name the model — CEC-listed, with an Australian service path. We will not publish a “best inverter 2026” table. Use the installer checklist to put two architectures in the same columns.

Related: solar panels, cost guide. Last reviewed 25 September 2026.

Briefing language you can reuse

“Simple north metal roof, no battery this year, unknown export until the DNSP answers” is a brief. “Hip roof, liquidambar to the north-west, battery maybe in two years” is a different brief. The architecture should change. The brand slogan should not lead.

See inverters, export limits, batteries, and installers. We will not publish a winner table.

Architecture is a brief

Roof first, battery plan second, export third, brand last. Service path and CEC listing still apply to all three families. No winner table.

Carry this into the quote meeting

Roof, battery plan, export, then brand. Service path and CEC listing still apply. Failure modes differ; winners do not exist on this page.

Parent hubs and siblings are linked above. Last reviewed 25 September 2026. General information only.