Everyone knows that solar systems generate electricity, but what happens to that electricity once generated depends on the configuration of your solar system and meter.
Two main solar meter configuration possibilities exist - Gross Metering and Net metering.
Gross Metering
As the name suggests, Gross Metering means that all of your solar production will immediately be exported to the grid and will therefore become subject to your Feed-in Tariff (FiT) arrangements with your electricity retailer.
Net metering
Net Metering means that your solar production is first used to service your own household's energy requirements, and any excess is exported to the grid, becoming subject to your FiT arrangements.
Net metering is the standard configuration for residential solar installations and is vastly more common than Gross Metering.
It's preferable to have Net Metering since the main financial benefit of solar is not in the FiT revenue that can be achieved; it is in the potential to use your own self-generated energy and avoid importing kWh to service some of your household energy needs.