--- title: "AE Solar vs LM8 Solar - Brand Comparison | ComparePV" description: "Compare AE Solar vs LM8 Solar solar panels: full portfolio, efficiency, cell technology breakdown, warranty terms and company background." source: "https://comparepv.com/ae-solar-vs-lm8-solar" --- # AE Solar vs LM8 Solar AE Solar has the broader catalog (646 vs 0 models). AE Solar leans bifacial (63% of lineup). ## The two companies | Attribute | AE Solar | LM8 Solar | | --- | --- | --- | | Country | Germany | Spain | | Headquarters | Gersthofen | Vigo | | Founded | 2003 | 2016 | | Employees | 501-1000 | 10-20 | | Annual capacity | 2+ GW/year | | | Tier 1 | yes | | | Listed | | | | Website | [https://ae-solar.com](https://ae-solar.com) | [https://lm8solar.com](https://lm8solar.com) | AE Solar is a German Tier 1 manufacturer of high-efficiency photovoltaic (PV) modules. The company specializes in producing durable and innovative solar panels with German engineering standards, offering solutions for residential, commercial, and utility-scale applications. AE Solar operates in over 100 countries and... LM8 Solar is a Spanish wholesale distributor of photovoltaic materials, founded in 2016 and headquartered in Vigo, Galicia. The company supplies solar panels, inverters, batteries, and mounting structures from leading brands such as Canadian Solar, Jinko Solar, and Aiko to businesses across Europe. It operates... ## Catalog & Power | Measure | AE Solar | LM8 Solar | Margin | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Panel Models | 646 | 0 | +646 | | Max Power | 730 W | 0 W | +730 W | | Avg Power | 489 W | 0 W | +489 W | ## Efficiency | Measure | AE Solar | LM8 Solar | Margin | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Max Efficiency | 24.43% | - | | | Avg Efficiency | 21.11% | - | | ## Reliability & Warranty | Measure | AE Solar | LM8 Solar | Margin | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Avg Temp Coefficient | -0.312%/°C | - | | | Bifacial Share | 405 (63%) | 0 (0%) | +63 pp | | Avg Warranty | 29.7 yrs | - | | ## Efficiency distribution AE Solar skews to higher efficiency: 9% of lineup is 23%+ | Efficiency band | AE Solar | LM8 Solar | | --- | --- | --- | | \<20% | 74 (11.5%) | 0 | | 20-21% | 171 (26.5%) | 0 | | 21-22% | 142 (22.0%) | 0 | | 22-23% | 199 (30.8%) | 0 | | 23%+ | 60 (9.3%) | 0 | ## Power distribution AE Solar offers more 600W+ panels (13% of lineup) | Power band | AE Solar | LM8 Solar | | --- | --- | --- | | \<400W | 78 (12.1%) | 0 | | 400-499W | 329 (50.9%) | 0 | | 500-599W | 154 (23.8%) | 0 | | 600-699W | 55 (8.5%) | 0 | | 700W+ | 30 (4.6%) | 0 | ## Cell technology Dominant cell tech: **TOPCon** (54%) | Technology | AE Solar | LM8 Solar | | --- | --- | --- | | TOPCon | 349 (54.0%) | 0 | | PERC | 245 (37.9%) | 0 | | Back Contact | 21 (3.3%) | 0 | | N-type | 17 (2.6%) | 0 | | BIPV | 9 (1.4%) | 0 | | HJT | 5 (0.8%) | 0 | ## Top panels, AE Solar | # | Model | Power | Efficiency | Temp. coefficient | Technology | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | 1 | [CME-132BDS-730](https://comparepv.com/panel/ae-solar-cme-132bds-730) | 730 | 23.5 | -0.290 | Monocrystalline | | 2 | [CME-132BDS-730W](https://comparepv.com/panel/ae-solar-cme-132bds-730w) | 730 | 23.5 | -0.290 | Monocrystalline | | 3 | [CME-132BDS-725](https://comparepv.com/panel/ae-solar-cme-132bds-725) | 725 | 23.4 | -0.290 | Monocrystalline | | 4 | [CME-132-725W](https://comparepv.com/panel/ae-solar-cme-132-725w) | 725 | 23.4 | -0.290 | Monocrystalline | | 5 | [CME-132BDS-725W](https://comparepv.com/panel/ae-solar-cme-132bds-725w) | 725 | 23.4 | -0.290 | Monocrystalline | | 6 | [AE CME-132 720](https://comparepv.com/panel/ae-solar-ae-cme-132-720) | 720 | 23.2 | -0.290 | Monocrystalline | | 7 | [CME-132BDS-720](https://comparepv.com/panel/ae-solar-cme-132bds-720) | 720 | 23.2 | -0.290 | Monocrystalline | | 8 | [AE CME-132-720](https://comparepv.com/panel/ae-solar-ae-cme-132-720-1) | 720 | 23.2 | -0.290 | Monocrystalline | | 9 | [CME-132-720W](https://comparepv.com/panel/ae-solar-cme-132-720w) | 720 | 23.2 | -0.290 | Monocrystalline | | 10 | [CME-132BDS-720W](https://comparepv.com/panel/ae-solar-cme-132bds-720w) | 720 | 23.2 | -0.290 | Monocrystalline | ## Summary AE Solar is a German manufacturer headquartered in Gersthofen, Bavaria, founded in 2003. The company operates its own production facilities in China, Georgia, and Turkey, with a combined annual output capacity of approximately 2.5 GW. It has maintained consistent BloombergNEF Tier 1 bankability status, reaching its 17th consecutive inclusion in Q1 2026, and was identified in a 2024 BNEF survey as Europe's sole Tier 1 PV manufacturer with high bankability - a rating that climbed from 26 percent in 2023 to 50 percent in 2024. LM8 Solar, by contrast, is not a manufacturer: it is a wholesale distributor of photovoltaic equipment founded in 2016 and headquartered in Vigo, Spain, with warehouse locations in Valencia, Seville, Madrid, and Rotterdam. On institutional footprint, AE Solar holds a substantially stronger position as a vertically integrated producer with presence in over 95 countries. AE Solar's confirmed product portfolio spans residential rooftop, commercial and industrial, and utility-scale ground-mount applications. The company produces modules using N-type TOPCon and PERC cell technologies, including bifacial double-glass configurations. Its Meteor series - featuring G12R half-cut N-type TOPCon cells - received a Very Good rating in PV Magazine's independent module test, and AE Solar backs its panels with a 30-year product warranty, well above the industry-standard 10 years. LM8 Solar's offering depends on the brands it distributes at any given time - Canadian Solar, Jinko Solar, TCL Solar, and others - meaning that panel technology specifications and warranty terms belong to those original manufacturers, not to LM8 Solar itself. For any buyer - whether residential, commercial, or utility - seeking a direct relationship with a traceable, bankable manufacturer, AE Solar is the clear recommendation based on its verified production capacity, Tier 1 credentials, and extended warranty backing. LM8 Solar serves a different purpose: it is a logistics-oriented distribution channel useful for installers across Spain and Western Europe who want multi-brand access through a single supplier. The two entities operate in fundamentally different roles and should not be evaluated as interchangeable manufacturer alternatives. Written by claude-sonnet from the figures above. ## Other comparisons - [AE Solar vs A.B. Energy](https://comparepv.com/ae-solar-vs-a-b-energy) - [AEET vs LM8 Solar](https://comparepv.com/aeet-vs-lm8-solar) - [AE Solar vs AIKO](https://comparepv.com/ae-solar-vs-aiko) - [AKCOME vs LM8 Solar](https://comparepv.com/akcome-vs-lm8-solar) - [AE Solar vs ARTsolar](https://comparepv.com/ae-solar-vs-artsolar) - [ASM vs LM8 Solar](https://comparepv.com/asm-vs-lm8-solar) --- Source: https://comparepv.com/ae-solar-vs-lm8-solar Not in this file, on the page: the distributions above drawn as charts.