How to Create a Project in PVSyst｜5 Steps Even Beginners Can Do

Table of Contents

• What you should understand first when creating a PVSyst project

• Step 1: Organize project information and the purpose of the study

• Step 2: Create a new project and enter basic information

• Step 3: Set location information and meteorological data

• Step 4: Create system conditions and design patterns

• Step 5: Prepare the project so it is easy to save, compare, and review

• Common mistakes in PVSyst project creation

• How to handle on-site information to improve accuracy in practice

• Summary: The way you use PVSyst is determined by how you organize project creation

What You Should Understand First When Creating a Project in PVSyst

The purpose of creating a project in PVSyst is to provide a workspace for calculating the energy production of a solar power system. A project consolidates the information needed for the simulation, such as the plant name, location, meteorological conditions, system specifications, design layout, and loss assumptions. When using it for the first time, people often get confused trying to enter everything accurately at once, but in practice it becomes easier to understand if you adopt two main ways of thinking.

The first is the idea that a project is a container for a case. For example, when considering the installation of a photovoltaic power generation system on a certain plot of land, you create a project corresponding to that land or the case name. Within it, you run multiple simulations while varying panel orientation, tilt angle, capacity, equipment configuration, shadow effects, loss conditions, and so on. In other words, even if there is only one project itself, you can include multiple design conditions within it.

The second is the idea that you don’t need to input perfect conditions from the start. PVSyst is used differently depending on the stage—initial assessment, conceptual design, detailed study, proposal preparation, and so on. In the initial assessment you enter rough location, capacity, azimuth, and tilt to get an approximate estimate of energy production. In the detailed study you reflect site topography, shading, electrical losses, equipment specifications, operational conditions, etc., aiming for results that are closer to reality. Therefore, when creating a project it is important to be clear about "what you want to determine now."

A common misunderstanding when using PVSyst is believing that everything entered on the project creation screen determines the final results. In reality, the simulation results are determined by a combination of the project's basic information, meteorological data, system design, loss settings, shading settings, and so on. Project creation is the starting point, and many items can be adjusted in later stages. However, if you choose the wrong location or meteorological data, the reliability of the results will decrease even if you carefully adjust equipment parameters afterward.

Therefore, what beginners should focus on first is not memorizing the input fields. Instead, they should organize the project’s purpose, location, the design options they want to consider, and the required level of accuracy, and then correctly reflect these in PVSyst. When you are not yet familiar with the operations, rather than trying to think according to the on‑screen fields, it is more stable to first compile the project information on paper or in a note and then enter it.

Step 1: Organize project information and the objectives of the review

Before creating a new project in PVSyst, first organize the project information and the purpose of the study. If you skip this, you may be able to carry out the operations themselves, but you are likely to encounter problems later such as "not knowing under what conditions the results were calculated," "the assumptions for the design options you want to compare are not aligned," and "the justification is too weak to use in proposal materials." Creating a project may look like an on‑screen data entry task, but in practice the ease of using the results depends greatly on the quality of this prior organization.

First, clarify the project name and the subject under consideration. The required input information varies depending on whether the equipment is rooftop, ground-mounted, a retrofit of existing equipment, or a new plan. For rooftop installations, the orientation, tilt, usable area, and presence of obstacles for each roof surface are important. For ground-mounted installations, site slope, land development conditions, racking layout, shading from surrounding features, and maintenance access paths are important. For new plans you may start from conceptual conditions, but evaluating existing equipment requires consistency with the actual equipment configuration and operational performance.

Next, decide on the purpose of the simulation. Depending on whether you want an estimate of power generation, to compare design proposals, to verify the appropriateness of equipment sizing, to examine the effects of shading, or to understand the breakdown of losses, the settings you emphasize after creating the project will change. For example, if you want to see generation differences due to orientation or tilt, you need to compare multiple proposals using the same weather data and the same loss conditions. Conversely, if you want to check the impact of shading, you need to reflect information about surrounding objects and terrain as accurately as possible.

Also, it is necessary to clarify the stage of analysis. In the initial proposal stage, even if the input conditions include some assumptions, you can state the assumptions and treat the results as approximate values. On the other hand, when using the results for detailed pre-contract studies or internal approval documents, you must carefully verify the location, meteorological data, equipment configuration, loss conditions, shading conditions, and so on. Because PVSyst’s results are presented numerically and therefore may appear highly accurate, if the input conditions are coarse the results will remain approximate.

As project information, it makes the work easier if you organize the site location, latitude and longitude, installation method, assumed capacity, panel orientation (azimuth) and tilt, equipment configuration, site or roof constraints, surrounding shading factors, and assumed operating conditions. In particular, because the site location affects the selection of meteorological data and the calculation of the sun position, it is reassuring to have coordinates rather than only an ambiguous address whenever possible. Even if coordinates are unknown before an on-site survey, confirm the target point on a map and record that it is a provisional condition so it can be corrected later.

How you name projects is also important in practice. Not only the project name, but using a name that indicates the study stage, creation date, and an overview of the conditions makes it easier to find results later. For example, if you create initial studies, detailed studies, revised versions, shaded conditions, and unshaded conditions for the same project, ambiguous names make file management difficult. The more you become accustomed to using PVSyst, the more opportunities you'll have to create and compare multiple conditions, so it's important to be mindful of a naming convention that is easy to manage from the very beginning.

Step 2: Create a new project and enter basic information

After organizing the project information, create a new project in PVSyst. The basic procedure is to start a new project, enter basic information such as the project name and installation location, and create the data that will serve as the basis for the work. Beginners can easily be confused by the large number of fields displayed here, but prioritize correctly entering the information needed to identify the project and the location information that will serve as the basis for the simulation.

For new projects, set a name that is easy to understand. Include not only the project title but also the subject under consideration and the type of conditions, so it will be easier to review later. For example, even for the same power plant, if you are examining each roof surface, creating an overall plan, or verifying the impact of shadows, using the same name alone makes them hard to distinguish. A project name is not just a label but important information for managing results in later stages.

Next, enter the basic information about the site. Location and coordinates are fundamental parameters of the project. In solar power generation simulations, solar irradiance, temperature, solar altitude, and solar azimuth greatly affect power output. Therefore, if the site location is off, the results will change even when the same equipment specifications are entered. This is especially true in mountainous areas, coastal areas, snowy regions, basins, and regions with large elevation differences, where meteorological conditions can differ even between nearby locations. In preliminary studies you may proceed using information from a nearby location, but for detailed studies it is desirable to choose conditions as close to the actual site as possible.

When creating a project, also check the unit system and how values are displayed. Mistaking units for capacity, area, angle, distance, etc., can lead to later input errors. For example, if you intend to enter the tilt angle but enter a different angle, or if you use the wrong azimuth reference, the resulting power generation estimate can change significantly. If the meaning of an input field is ambiguous, don’t rush to enter numbers—proceed while confirming what that item represents.

When entering basic information, it is useful to leave notes as needed so that a third party can understand them later. For example, recording assumptions such as that the coordinates are provisional values prior to on-site surveying, the roof angle was read from drawings, or the capacity is an estimate makes it easier to judge how to handle the results afterward. When using PVSyst results for internal or client presentations, it is important not only to present the figures themselves but also to be able to explain the assumptions used in the calculations.

Also, assuming that you will create multiple design scenarios after creating the project helps keep the work organized. In PVSyst, the idea of assigning multiple simulation conditions to a single project is important. For example, when comparing options with different tilt angles, different panel capacities, with shading taken into account, and without shading, it is easier to compare results if you separate and manage those conditions within the project. You should view the initial project creation as the process of laying the groundwork for later comparative evaluation.

Step 3: Set Location Information and Weather Data

After entering the project's basic information, next set the site location and meteorological data. Handling this meteorological data is particularly important when using PVSyst. In photovoltaic simulations, no matter how high-performance the equipment assumed is, if the input solar irradiance and temperature conditions are not appropriate, the estimated energy production will deviate from reality. Beginners tend to focus on equipment settings, but in practice the choice of meteorological data affects the reliability of the results.

First, confirm the project site. In addition to the address, being able to verify the latitude and longitude and elevation makes it easier to set more appropriate conditions. In flat urban areas, a representative nearby point may not produce large differences, but caution is necessary in mountainous areas, coastal regions, and snowy regions. Changes in elevation alter temperature, and changes in temperature affect the output characteristics of panels. Also, along the coast, cloud cover, humidity, and wind conditions can differ from inland areas, and in mountainous areas terrain can cause differences in sunshine hours.

When selecting meteorological data, you need to understand not only how close it is to the site but also the nature of the data. Data come in various types: those based on long-term averages, those based on observations, those that include satellite estimates, and those organized as regional representative values. In preliminary assessments you may use general data to produce rough estimates, but in detailed studies you need to consider the distance to the site, terrain conditions, elevation differences, and the representativeness of the period. When comparing power generation results, it is fundamental to use the same meteorological conditions for the different design options.

After setting the meteorological data, review the monthly trends in solar radiation and temperature. Check for any unusually high or low values and whether they deviate significantly from the area's typical climate. For example, if an area normally has heavy snowfall but winter solar radiation and loss conditions have not been adequately accounted for, the predicted power generation may be higher than actual. Conversely, if the meteorological data are overly conservative, the expected performance of the installation may be underestimated. The important point is not simply selecting data, but confirming that the chosen data are appropriate for the project's objectives.

Location information and meteorological data can sometimes be modified later, but they are extremely important as assumptions for the simulation results. In particular, if you change the meteorological data while comparing multiple scenarios, it becomes difficult to tell whether differences are due to design conditions or to meteorological conditions. Therefore, when conducting comparisons, it is easier to organize if you fix the location and meteorological data first, and then vary orientation, tilt, capacity, losses, and so on.

Also, in practice it is useful to record the reasons for selecting meteorological data. If you note whether you chose the station closest to the site, prioritized stations with similar elevation or terrain, or adopted data used as an internal standard, it will be easier to explain later. When creating a project in PVSyst, clarifying why you selected those conditions—rather than the operations themselves—adds credibility to the results.

Step 4: Create system requirements and design patterns

Once you have set the site information and meteorological data, the next step is to create the system conditions and design patterns. Here you input the solar panel installation conditions, capacity, azimuth, tilt, electrical configuration, combinations with power conversion equipment, and so on. When learning how to use PVSyst, this stage is the part that most closely resembles actual practice, because even at the same location differences in design can cause large variations in energy production, losses, and equipment utilization rate.

First you set the panel surface orientation and tilt. Orientation affects seasonal variations in energy production and the daily generation curve. The tilt angle influences not only the annual energy yield but also the balance of generation between summer and winter. On rooftop installations, panels are often matched to the roof shape, while for ground-mounted systems the angle is determined by considering site conditions, racking structure, wind loads, maintainability, and other factors. Beginners tend to try to optimize solely for annual energy yield, but in practice it is also important to balance constructability, maintainability, equipment layout, shading, and electrical design.

Next, set the system capacity. The relationship between panel capacity and the capacity of the conversion equipment has a major impact on simulation results. Increasing panel capacity generally makes it easier to increase energy production, but under some conditions it can increase output clipping or losses. Conversely, if panel capacity is too small relative to the conversion equipment capacity, equipment utilization can decrease. In PVSyst you can create design proposals while checking these capacity balances, but if you proceed without understanding the meaning of the input values you may end up with an unrealistic configuration.

In the electrical configuration, you consider the number of series and parallel strings and the configuration for each system. Here you need to be mindful of the voltage range, temperature conditions, and the equipment’s allowable limits. Because voltage rises at low temperatures and falls at high temperatures, confirm that the configuration will operate safely and appropriately throughout the year. PVSyst may display warnings and cautions, but rather than aiming simply to clear them, it is important to understand why the warnings are appearing.

When creating design patterns, it is important not to change too many conditions at once. For example, if you change tilt angle, azimuth, capacity, loss conditions, and shading conditions simultaneously, it becomes difficult to determine what caused differences in energy production. The basic principle for comparison is to change one primary condition while keeping the other conditions the same. If you want to examine differences in azimuth, keep everything else as identical as possible; if you want to examine differences in capacity, align everything except capacity. Simply following this approach will make PVSyst results easier to use for practical decision-making.

Giving design patterns clear, descriptive names is also important. For example, use names such as basic plan, south-facing plan, east–west layout plan, tilt-angle modification plan, shading-included plan, and capacity-change plan so that differences in conditions are apparent from the name. If names are ambiguous, misunderstandings can occur later when outputting reports or sharing them internally. In PVSyst project creation, you should consider not only the data-entry work but also the task of organizing projects into a state that makes comparisons easy as part of overall work quality.

Step 5: Make it easy to save, compare, and review

After entering the system conditions, save the project and organize it so that comparisons and reviews are easy. Beginners tend to think the work is finished once they run the simulation and get results, but in practice, management from this point onward is important. What matters in using PVSyst is not merely producing the energy output but verifying the basis for the conditions, comparing multiple proposals, and compiling them into a form that can be explained.

First, review the basic conditions before saving. Check the main input items in order: location, meteorological data, azimuth, tilt, capacity, equipment configuration, loss conditions, presence of shadows, etc. In particular, azimuth direction, tilt angle, capacity unit, number of installation surfaces, and the location for the meteorological data are items prone to mistakes. When you are not yet familiar with the operation, it is difficult to notice errors by looking only at the numerical results, so it is important to make a habit of checking each input item one by one.

Next, review the simulation results. Look not only at the annual energy production but also at monthly generation, the breakdown of losses, trends in equipment utilization, and whether any output limitations are present. Do not judge solely by whether the annual production is high or low; confirm why the result occurred. For example, if generation does not increase in summer, temperature effects, orientation, tilt, or output limitations may be involved. If production drops significantly in winter, you should check solar irradiance conditions, shading, snow accumulation, tilt angle, and so on.

When comparing multiple options, make the differences in conditions clear. If you line up only the results without making the differences between the base plan and the comparison plans understandable, it becomes difficult to use for practical decision-making. Even if you create a separate comparison table, leaving the condition differences in the design pattern names or notes within PVSyst makes it easier to check later. In particular, when using the results for proposals or internal presentation materials, clarifying which conditions were changed to produce the results makes your explanation more persuasive.

Version control is also important in file management. If you make multiple revisions on the same project, it can become unclear which file is the latest. Saving files with names and dates for each stage—initial review, after site inspection, after design revisions, and for the final submission—makes them easier to manage. Also, because overwriting old conditions can make comparisons impossible, we recommend saving under a different name at important milestones to preserve the history.

Finally, confirm whether you can explain the input conditions and the results to a third party. A PVSyst project being "created" does not simply mean that a file has been generated. It means you can explain why you set the location, meteorological data, system conditions, loss conditions, shading conditions, and comparison conditions as you did. In practice, the validity of the assumptions is questioned more than the calculation results themselves. Keeping a project easy to review reduces the burden of later revision work and of responding to inquiries.

Common mistakes when creating projects in PVSyst

When creating a project in PVSyst, there are several mistakes that beginners tend to stumble over. These often occur less because of operational errors and more because of insufficient organization or verification of the prerequisites. By knowing these failures in advance, you can reduce rework and improve the reliability of the results.

One common mistake is treating the selection of locations and meteorological data lightly. Even if you input equipment conditions in detail, if the meteorological data does not match the target site, the estimated power generation will be off. In particular, when using data from a location far from the target site, you need to check elevation differences, topography, distance from the sea, presence or absence of snow, and so on. In preliminary studies you can proceed with approximate conditions, but in that case you should make it clear that the results are rough estimates.

Another common error is mistakes in entering azimuth and tilt angles. When entering angles read from drawings or on-site information, if you misinterpret the reference direction the calculations may assume a different orientation than intended. Also, when there are multiple roof surfaces, letting a single surface represent the whole can lead to results that do not match actual power generation trends. For systems with multiple surfaces, it is important to either separate the conditions for each surface or clarify the rationale for treating one as the representative condition.

Failures can also easily occur in capacity settings. If you enter values without fully checking the relationship between panel capacity and the capacity of the conversion equipment, you may end up with an oversized or undersized configuration. Even if calculations can be performed in the simulation, they may not be valid as an actual design. PVSyst is a tool to support analysis and does not automatically or fully guarantee the validity of electrical design. If warnings or cautions appear, you should check their meaning and, if necessary, review the design conditions.

In practice, proceeding with loss conditions left at their initial values requires caution. Wiring losses, temperature effects, soiling, shading, ageing, and equipment conversion losses all affect power generation. Temporary assumptions are acceptable at the initial stage, but in detailed studies they need to be reviewed and adjusted for each project. Because changing the loss conditions can substantially alter the results, it is important to record which values were adopted.

There can also be failures where conditions are changed so much that comparisons become impossible. When creating multiple design options, if you change azimuth, tilt, capacity, meteorological data, and loss conditions all at once, you won’t be able to tell which factor affected the difference in energy yield. In comparative evaluations, it is fundamental to clearly define which items will be varied and which will be held constant. The less familiar you are with PVSyst, the more important it is to keep the comparison conditions simple.

How to Handle On-site Information to Improve Accuracy in Practical Work

To make practical use of PVSyst project creation, it is important not only to input data on the screen but also to accurately reflect on-site information. Solar power installations, even with the same capacity, generate different amounts of electricity depending on the installation location and surrounding environment. Therefore, when creating a project, it is desirable to grasp as accurately as possible the site's topography, obstacles, orientation, tilt, shading, and available area.

Particularly important are the position and orientation of the installation surface. For rooftop installations, the orientation shown on drawings may differ slightly from the actual orientation. For ground-mounted installations, the ideal layout may also be impossible due to the shape of the site, land development plans, surrounding roads, adjacent properties, and maintenance access routes. Even if a layout appears optimal in PVSyst, it is of little practical value if it cannot be implemented on site. You need to determine the input conditions while confirming the site constraints.

Shading effects are also a point that is easy to overlook. Nearby buildings, trees, utility poles, equipment, mountain ridgelines, and roof-mounted protrusions cast shadows depending on the time of day and season. Shadows affect not only annual power generation but also output drops at specific times and imbalances between circuits. In initial assessments, shading may be simplified, but for projects where shading has a significant impact, it is important to reflect the conditions by conducting site inspections and utilizing three-dimensional information.

Topography also affects energy yield and layout planning. For ground-mounted installations, if the site is sloped, racking height, row spacing, shadowing behavior, and constructability will change. Elevation differences that cannot be seen from plan views can become important in the actual design. If on-site elevation information, point cloud data, and survey data can be utilized, a more realistic assessment becomes possible. To improve simulation accuracy in PVSyst, it is essential not only to adjust settings within the software but also to enhance the quality of the on-site data used as inputs.

When handling on-site information, it is important to manage assumptions and measured values separately. At the stage before on-site surveying has been conducted, you may proceed using provisional conditions derived from maps and drawings. In that case, record that they are provisional and treat them on the premise that they will be updated after on-site verification. Once measured values are obtained, update orientation, slope, coordinates, elevation differences, obstacle locations, and so on, and rerun the simulation. Having this workflow in place allows a smooth transition from initial investigation to detailed analysis.

Summary: How to use PVSyst is determined by how you organize project creation

Creating a project in PVSyst is the starting point for power generation simulations. For beginners, the on-screen input fields may appear numerous, but the basic workflow consists of five steps: organizing the project information, creating a new project, setting the location and meteorological data, defining the system conditions, and arranging everything so that saving and comparison are easy. Understanding this workflow makes using PVSyst considerably easier.

What matters is not rushing the process, but clarifying the preconditions. If the site location, meteorological data, orientation, tilt, capacity, loss conditions, and shading conditions remain ambiguous, the resulting figures will be difficult to use for practical decision-making. Conversely, if you clarify the basis for input conditions, align the comparison conditions, and manage design patterns so they are easy to understand, PVSyst becomes a powerful tool for assessing energy yield and comparing design proposals.

Also, to make PVSyst results more representative of actual practice, accurate on-site information is indispensable. By correctly understanding elevation differences, obstructions, the surrounding environment, the orientation of the mounting surface, and site constraints that cannot be determined from drawings or maps alone, the assumptions of the simulation will more closely match reality. In particular, for ground-mounted installations, complex roof shapes, or projects where shading has a large impact, it is important to carefully obtain on-site location and terrain information.

In that regard, the LRTK, a high-precision GNSS positioning device that can be attached to an iPhone, can be used for on-site inspection and positioning of solar power generation equipment, terrain understanding, point cloud acquisition, and recording geotagged photographs. If you grasp the site coordinates, candidate installation areas, obstacles, and terrain variations before creating a project in PVSyst, it becomes easier to have a basis for your input conditions. By linking simulation analyses with on-site measured data, you can achieve consistent accuracy improvements not only in energy yield calculations but also in design, construction, verification, and explanations.