Installers in Pakistan often put every panel at the same angle no matter where the house is. It works, but you can usually do a little better by matching the tilt to your city.
- Face panels south (true south, not magnetic) whenever possible.
- A tilt close to your latitude gives the best yearly total.
- Most Pakistani cities land between about 20 and 33 degrees.
- East-west works when space is tight, with a small drop in total output.
Direction first
Pakistan is in the northern hemisphere, so the sun sits in the southern half of the sky. Panels should face south. A few degrees east or west of south makes very little difference. A phone compass shows magnetic south, which in Pakistan is close enough to true south for practical purposes.
Tilt angle by city
The general rule for best yearly output is a tilt roughly equal to your latitude. Many installers go a few degrees flatter to favour summer, when you use the most power.
| City | Approx. latitude | Practical tilt |
|---|---|---|
| Karachi | 25° | 20 to 25° |
| Hyderabad | 25° | 20 to 25° |
| Multan | 30° | 25 to 30° |
| Faisalabad | 31° | 25 to 30° |
| Lahore | 31.5° | 25 to 30° |
| Islamabad / Rawalpindi | 33.7° | 28 to 33° |
| Peshawar | 34° | 28 to 33° |
Summer vs winter tilt
In winter the sun is lower, so a steeper angle catches more. In summer a flatter angle is better. Adjustable structures exist, but in practice most homeowners never adjust them. A fixed angle near your latitude is the sensible choice.
Don’t go too flat
Panels laid almost flat collect more dust and don’t rinse clean in rain. Even if the “ideal” angle for your situation came out low, keep at least 10 to 15 degrees so water runs off.
East-west layouts
On small roofs, some installers place panels in an east-west “tent” shape. The total for the day is a bit lower than south-facing, but production starts earlier and ends later, which suits homes that use more power in the morning and evening. If you go this way, an inverter with two MPPT inputs helps, one for each side.
Row spacing
If you have more than one row, leave enough gap so the front row doesn’t shade the back row in December, when shadows are longest. A rough rule is a gap of about two to three times the height of the raised panel edge.
Planning a new system? Get your size from the load calculator, then check how many panels fit in our guide on roof space for solar.
Unsure about your roof layout?
Send a photo and your city. We’ll suggest direction, tilt and spacing.