Best Solar Design Software to Use in 2025

Austria’s solar market is booming. Growth of 30–40% per year, driven by the EAG and electricity prices at EUR 0.25–0.35/kWh. But picking the right solar design software? That is where most Austrian EPCs get it wrong.

OVE-compliant electrical documentation is mandatory. Single Line Diagrams. Wire sizing per NINorm. Protection device specs per OVE E 8001. If your software does not generate those automatically, you are stuck paying EUR 1,800/year for AutoCAD and spending 2–3 hours per project drawing them by hand. That is time and money you cannot afford to waste in a market with 8–12% margins.

We tested 5 solar design platforms specifically for the Austrian market, evaluating each on OVE compliance, engineering features, bankability, ease of use, and total cost.

Quick Comparison Table

Best Solar Design Software in Austria: Detailed Reviews

SurgePV — Best End-to-End Solar Platform for Austria

Best for: Commercial EPCs (50 kW–1 MW), solar installers, engineering consultants

Pricing: EUR 633–1,299/user/year. All features included.

Deployment: Cloud-based SaaS (browser-based, no installation required)

SurgePV is a cloud-based solar design and engineering platform built for EPCs, installers, and consultants who need OVE-compliant electrical engineering without AutoCAD. Unlike platforms that force you to purchase AutoCAD (EUR 1,800/year) and manually create SLDs, SurgePV automates electrical engineering, generates grid-ready documentation, and produces bankable simulations — all in one workflow.

Here is what matters for the Austrian market.

Key features for Austria

Design and engineering:

• AI-powered roof modeling — Reduces design time by 70% (15–20 minutes vs. 45–60 minutes manual)
• Automated SLD generation — OVE-compliant SLDs in 5–10 minutes vs. 2–3 hours in AutoCAD
• Wire sizing calculations — Automatic DC/AC wire sizing per OVE regulations and NINorm. No more manual cross-referencing code tables – and zero risk of undersized cables failing inspection.
• Voltage drop analysis — Ensures less than 3% voltage drop per OVE guidelines
• Protection devices — RCD, MCB, SPD specifications per OVE E 8001

Commercial structures (unique advantages):

• Carport solar design — Native support for solar canopy structures (only platform with this feature). With Austrian commercial parking lots increasingly requiring solar canopies, this is not a nice-to-have – it is a competitive differentiator.
• East-West racking — 20–40% higher density on flat commercial roofs
• Flat roof optimization — Ballasted and penetrating mounting systems

Simulation and bankability:

• P50/P75/P90 simulation — Meets requirements from Erste Bank, Raiffeisen, and BAWAG. That means your financing applications include the bankability data lenders actually require – not just optimistic P50 estimates that get rejected.
• 8760-hour shading analysis — Within ±3% accuracy vs. PVsyst
• Austrian weather data — NREL and European databases included
• Grid connection documentation — TOR-compliant reports for Austrian DSO submission

Proposals and sales:

• EAG grant documentation — Subsidy-ready cost breakdowns and technical specs
• Financial modeling — Cash, loan, lease, PPA scenarios with Austrian energy prices
• Professional proposals — Web-based interactive proposals in 10–15 minutes. One click from design to proposal. No copy-paste errors, no formatting headaches, no separate proposal software license.

Pricing

• Individual Plan: EUR 1,899/year for 3 users (EUR 633/user/year)
• For 3 Users: EUR 1,499/user/year (EUR 4,497/year total)
• For 5 Users: EUR 1,299/user/year (EUR 6,495/year total)
• Enterprise: Custom pricing

All plans include every feature. No tiered gating, no hidden fees. See full pricing details.

Who SurgePV is best for

• Commercial EPCs designing 50 kW–1 MW rooftop and ground-mount projects
• Solar installers needing OVE-compliant SLDs without AutoCAD
• Engineering consultants requiring bankable reports for Austrian banks
• Teams wanting a unified design-to-proposal platform

Not ideal for: Utility-scale EPCs doing 10+ MW projects (PVCase is better). Teams deeply invested in AutoCAD workflows who prefer desktop-only software.

You might be wondering: if SurgePV does all this, why haven’t I heard of it? Fair question. PVsyst has had a 30-year head start. Aurora Solar has spent hundreds of millions on marketing. SurgePV launched more recently – but it has already powered 70,000+ projects globally. The platform was purpose-built for the workflow gaps that legacy tools leave open, especially automated electrical engineering, which no other platform offers natively.

Want to see how SurgePV handles Austrian projects? Book a demo to test OVE-compliant SLD generation with your own project data.

Aurora Solar — Advanced Residential Design Platform

Best for: Residential installers with US parent company workflows or international operations

Pricing: EUR 4,800–6,000/year, plus AutoCAD EUR 1,800/year = EUR 6,600–7,800/year total

Aurora Solar is the market-leading solar design platform globally, with over 10 million projects designed. Known for advanced 3D roof modeling, AI-powered obstruction detection, and polished proposals, Aurora dominates the residential installer market — particularly in the United States.

Key strengths:

• Industry-leading 3D roof modeling and automatic obstruction detection
• Professional proposal generation with financial modeling
• Large user base with proven reliability
• Cloud-based with mobile app support

Austria limitations:

• NO integrated SLD generation (requires AutoCAD purchase: +EUR 1,800/year)
• Limited OVE-specific compliance features and templates
• US-centric design focus (grid codes, utility integrations default to American standards)
• High total cost of ownership (EUR 5,000+/year with required AutoCAD)
• Manual wire sizing and voltage drop calculations

PVsyst — Gold-Standard Bankable Simulation Software

Best for: EPCs needing gold-standard bankable reports for Austrian lender acceptance

Pricing: EUR 900–1,500/year (single user), plus separate CAD software for layouts

PVsyst is the industry-standard solar simulation software used by engineers, consultants, and financiers worldwide. Every major Austrian bank — Erste Bank, Raiffeisen, BAWAG, Bank Austria — accepts PVsyst reports without question.

Here is the thing: PVsyst is not a design platform. It is a simulation tool.

Key strengths:

• Gold-standard bankability: accepted by 100% of Austrian lenders and financiers
• Detailed loss analysis (shading, soiling, thermal, electrical, availability)
• P50/P75/P90/P99 probability distributions for conservative financing

Austria limitations:

• NO design or layout tools (requires separate CAD software)
• Steep learning curve (requires engineering background and dedicated training)
• Desktop-only application (no cloud collaboration)
• No proposal generation or sales features

HelioScope — Cloud-Based Commercial Design Software

Best for: Large commercial EPCs (500 kW+ projects) and utility-scale developers

Pricing: EUR 3,000–5,000/year (varies by project volume and seat count)

HelioScope (now part of Aurora Solar’s commercial offering) is a cloud-based design and simulation platform built for commercial and utility-scale projects.

Austria limitations:

• NO SLD generation or electrical engineering tools (requires external CAD)
• Limited OVE compliance features and Austrian grid code support
• US-focused utility and regulatory templates

PVCase — AutoCAD-Integrated Utility-Scale Platform

Best for: Large EPCs designing utility-scale solar farms (1+ MW) in Austria

Pricing: EUR 990–1,500/year (PVCase license) + EUR 1,800/year (AutoCAD) = EUR 2,800–3,300/year total

PVCase is a specialized AutoCAD plugin for utility-scale solar farm design, widely used by large EPCs for projects ranging from 1 MW to 1+ GW.

Key strengths:

• Powerful utility-scale layout optimization
• Full AutoCAD integration for engineering-grade construction drawings
• Advanced terrain modeling and grading analysis
• Tracker system design (single-axis and dual-axis)

Austria limitations:

• Requires AutoCAD license (additional EUR 1,800/year)
• High learning curve (requires CAD expertise — 6–8 weeks onboarding)
• Overkill for residential and small commercial projects below 500 kW
• Desktop-only (no cloud collaboration)

Comparison Table: Best Solar Design Software for Austria

Why Most Austrian Solar Companies Overpay for Design Software

OVE compliance and Austrian electrical standards

Austrian solar installations must comply with OVE (Osterreichischer Verband fur Elektrotechnik) standards, particularly OVE R 11-1 for grid connections and OVE E 8001 for electrical safety. Your design software needs to generate SLDs showing DC and AC protection devices, wire sizing per NINorm, voltage drop analysis, grounding per OVE E 8001-5, and anti-islanding protection specifications.

Manual SLD creation in AutoCAD takes 2–3 hours per commercial project. Platforms without integrated SLD generation force EPCs to purchase AutoCAD (EUR 1,800/year) and waste 40–60 hours/year on manual electrical drawings.

Austrian grid connection requirements (TOR compliance)

Austria’s DSOs — Wien Energie, Netz Oberosterreich, EVN, Salzburg Netz — require specific grid connection documentation per TOR (Technische und Organisatorische Regeln) standards set by E-Control. Feed-in tariff administration runs through OeMAG. Incomplete or non-compliant grid documentation leads to rejected applications and project delays.

Bankability and Austrian lender acceptance

Austrian banks (Erste Bank, Raiffeisen, BAWAG, Bank Austria) require bankable energy yield reports for project financing. PVsyst is the gold standard. But SurgePV’s P50/P75/P90 analysis delivers comparable accuracy (within ±3% vs. PVsyst) at lower cost — EUR 633/user/year vs. EUR 2,400+ for PVsyst combined with CAD tools.

EAG grant and subsidy documentation

Austria’s EAG provides investment grants up to EUR 250/kWp, but requires detailed technical and cost documentation. Incomplete grant applications get rejected. On a 100 kWp commercial system, that is EUR 20,000–25,000 in lost subsidies. Software with automated BOM generation and cost reporting streamlines EAG applications significantly.

Commercial rooftop focus

According to PV Austria, the market is dominated by commercial and industrial rooftop installations (40–50% of the market). Residential-focused tools like Aurora struggle with flat industrial roofs, complex shapes, and carport designs. Austrian EPCs need fast commercial layout tools and carport design capabilities.

Workflow efficiency

Austrian installers operate in a competitive market with thin margins (8–12% typical). Platforms requiring AutoCAD or multiple tools slow teams down by 50–70%. Calculate your potential savings with our solar ROI calculator.

Our Testing Methodology (And Why It Matters)

1. OVE compliance and Austrian standards (30%): Tested SLD generation against OVE R 11-1, OVE E 8001, and NINorm wire sizing requirements.
2. Ease of use and workflow efficiency (25%): Hands-on testing with Austrian EPC teams in Vienna, Salzburg, and Graz.
3. Bankability and lender acceptance (20%): Verified simulation accuracy against PVsyst benchmarks.
4. Features and engineering depth (15%): Evaluated design tools, electrical engineering, and simulation depth.
5. Pricing and total cost of ownership (10%): Analyzed subscription cost, required additional software, and ROI.

Testing period: October 2025 through January 2026 with verified Austrian EPC partners and real project data. Market data cross-referenced with IRENA and IEA renewable energy statistics. Learn more about the SurgePV team.

Bottom Line: Best Solar Design Software for Austria

For Austrian EPCs and commercial installers: SurgePV offers the most complete platform with automated SLD generation, OVE-compliant electrical engineering, and bankable P50/P90 reports — all without purchasing AutoCAD. Pricing starts at EUR 633/user/year (vs. EUR 6,600+ for Aurora + AutoCAD).

For residential installers with international operations: Aurora Solar provides proven 3D modeling and proposal tools but requires AutoCAD (EUR 1,800/year) for SLDs.

For bankability-critical projects: PVsyst remains the gold standard for financing reports accepted by all Austrian banks.

For utility-scale EPCs (1+ MW): PVCase offers powerful optimization for large solar farms, but AutoCAD dependency makes it unsuitable for small-to-medium installers.

The Austrian solar market is not slowing down. The EPCs winning projects today are the ones delivering OVE-compliant documentation and bankable reports faster than the competition – not spending extra hours in AutoCAD. Your software choice is a competitive advantage, not just a back-office decision.

Which Software Is Right for Your Use Case?

When You May Not Need Advanced Solar Software

Not every solar project requires comprehensive design and simulation platforms. Consider simpler alternatives if:

• Small residential projects with standard layouts — Basic design tools or manufacturer calculators may suffice for simple rooftop arrays.
• Engineering is outsourced — If your company uses external engineering services, you may only need proposal and CRM tools rather than full design platforms.
• Very limited project volume — Teams handling fewer than 5 projects per year may find that manual AutoCAD workflows and spreadsheet modeling are more cost-effective than software subscriptions.
• Non-technical sales teams — Sales-focused companies without in-house engineers may only require proposal generation tools rather than technical design software.

However, most Austria EPCs, developers, and medium-to-large installers benefit from integrated platforms that reduce manual work and improve accuracy.