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Solar design software

Solar design software for installers: Solispec and the alternatives

An installer needs more than a yield figure: a frame designed to the norms, a string check, an estimate and a proposal the client can accept. Below is what Solispec does, what PVsyst, PV*SOL, HelioScope and OpenSolar do, and where Solispec is honestly weaker.

Design your first plant for freePricing

In the browser, nothing to install, no card: the Start plan is free.

Ground frame designer

Design the ground frame for your solar plant

Solispec picks the profiles and posts, checks the frame against snow and wind to the DBN and prices it down to the last bolt.

Design the frameCalculate for free

What an installer needs from the software

  1. 01

    A panel layout on the site, roof or ground, with real dimensions and setbacks.

  2. 02

    A frame and fixings that pass the snow and wind check to the country’s norms.

  3. 03

    Strings per MPPT input with the cold voltage, the current and the DC/AC ratio checked.

  4. 04

    An estimate with a bill of materials for steel, fixings and equipment, at your own prices.

  5. 05

    A proposal for the client as a PDF and a link, with options and a validity date.

  6. 06

    Client review and acceptance without a meeting, from a phone.

Comparison: Solispec, PVsyst, PV*SOL, HelioScope, OpenSolar

Solispec does what installation demands: the frame, the loads, the estimate, the proposal. Simulation software does what a bank demands: yield and shading. Different jobs, so the table is not a ranking.

SolispecPVsystPV*SOLHelioScopeOpenSolar
Frame and mounting to local normsYesДБН В.1.2-2, ДБН В.2.6-198, EN 1993-1-3Not stated on the vendor’s siteNot stated on the vendor’s siteNot stated on the vendor’s sitePartlyMounting Designer
Snow and wind by addressYesNot stated on the vendor’s siteNot stated on the vendor’s siteNot stated on the vendor’s siteNot stated on the vendor’s site
String checkYesYesYesYesSingle-line diagramsYesSingle Line Diagrams
Yield simulationPartlyPVGIS yield by month and an hourly balance; no hourly simulation from module modelsYesYesYesNot stated on the vendor’s site
Shading from 3D surroundingsPartlyneighbouring buildings and trees from the map, the yearly shade loss; no 3D model importYesYesYesNot stated on the vendor’s site
Estimate with a bill of materialsYesNot stated on the vendor’s sitePartlya 20-year economic analysis; a bill of materials is not statedPartlyfinancial modelling on the Pro plan; a bill of materials is not statedYesAuto BOM
Proposal for the clientYesPartlya simulation report, not a sales proposalYesYesYesSales Machine Proposal
Client view and acceptanceYesNot stated on the vendor’s siteNot stated on the vendor’s siteNot stated on the vendor’s siteYesE-signature
In the browser, no installYesNoWindows onlyNoWindows 10/11YesYes
Free planFreeTrial30-day evaluation with a watermark on the reportTriala trial version on the vendor’s siteTriala free trial on the vendor’s siteFree
Languages: uk, pl, de, esUkrainian, English, Polish, German, SpanishNot stated on the vendor’s siteGerman, English, Spanish, Polish and five more; no UkrainianNot stated on the vendor’s siteNot stated on the vendor’s site
Pricing modelStart is free; Pro and Business monthly, prices on the pricing pagePaid licence, price on the vendor’s sitePaid named-user licence for one year, price on the vendor’s siteBasic and Pro plans per licence, Enterprise custom; prices on the vendor’s siteFree for the installer: the platform’s partners pay

Checked October 28, 2026

Where Solispec is honestly weaker

  1. Depth of yield simulation. Solispec takes the yield from PVGIS by month and computes an hourly balance; PVsyst and PV*SOL simulate hour by hour from module and inverter models. That matters for a bank report, not for a household proposal.
  2. Shading from 3D models. Solispec places neighbouring buildings and trees from the map and computes the yearly shade loss, but imports no 3D building models and models no single chimney.
  3. Bankable reports. A Solispec report is a preliminary calculation that a qualified engineer has to check before installation; on Business the engineer’s signature goes into the report. Financing of large plants usually asks for a PVsyst report.

Read on

Alternatives

Jobs

Guides

Questions and answers

Can I design a solar plant in Solispec for free?

Yes. The Start plan is free with no time limit: the designer in the browser, the frame with the snow and wind checks to the DBN, an estimate at typical prices, a watermarked PDF. The client proposal, your own prices, every drawing and strings per MPPT are on Pro.

How does Solispec differ from PVsyst?

PVsyst is yield simulation software for Windows: an hourly model, shading from a 3D scene, a report for the bank. Solispec is an installer’s tool in the browser: frame and fixings to the DBN, strings, an estimate and a proposal the client accepts from a phone. They are often used together.

Which norms does Solispec design the frame to?

Snow and wind to DBN V.1.2-2:2006 for the chosen city or oblast, steel members to DBN V.2.6-198:2014 and DSTU-N B EN 1993-1-3 for cold-formed C profiles, the electrics to PUE:2026 and DSTU HD 60364-7-712. The calculation is preliminary and needs an engineer’s check.

Does Solispec work outside Ukraine?

The interface, proposals and reports are in Ukrainian, English, Polish, German and Spanish. The PVGIS yield works for any address in Europe. The frame loads are still taken from the DBN: for Poland, Germany or Spain they have to be checked against the national annex to the Eurocode.

What do I have to install?

Nothing. Solispec runs in the browser on a computer and a phone; projects live in the cabinet, a guest project in the browser. PVsyst and PV*SOL are Windows programs.

Can I move a project over from PVsyst or PV*SOL?

Project files are not imported. The inputs carry over: the address, the panel and inverter models from the Solispec catalogue, the tilt and the azimuth. Solispec takes the yield from PVGIS, so the figures agree within the difference of the methods.

Can a Solispec report go to a bank?

The report is a preliminary calculation with drawings, checks and an estimate. On Business an engineer reviews the project version and signs it with the licence number into the report. Whether a given bank accepts it is the bank’s call: for large plants they usually ask for a simulation report.

Sources

About the competitors only what their public pages state (October 28, 2026); what they do not state is marked «not stated». No competitor prices: they change, see the vendor’s site.

  1. PVsyst: pvsyst.com/help/
  2. PVsyst: pvsyst.com/help/getting-started/requirements.html
  3. PVsyst: pvsyst.com/help/getting-started/licensing/index.html
  4. PVsyst: pvsyst.com/help/project-design/index.html
  5. PV*SOL: valentin-software.com/en/products/pvsol-premium/
  6. HelioScope: helioscope.aurorasolar.com/
  7. HelioScope: helioscope.aurorasolar.com/pricing/
  8. OpenSolar: opensolar.com/
  9. OpenSolar: opensolar.com/why-free
  10. OpenSolar: opensolar.com/features