--- title: "AE Solar vs SMA Solar - Brand Comparison | ComparePV" description: "Compare AE Solar vs SMA Solar solar panels: full portfolio, efficiency, cell technology breakdown, warranty terms and company background." source: "https://comparepv.com/ae-solar-vs-sma-solar" --- # AE Solar vs SMA Solar AE Solar has the broader catalog (646 vs 0 models). AE Solar leans bifacial (63% of lineup). ## The two companies | Attribute | AE Solar | SMA Solar | | --- | --- | --- | | Country | Germany | Germany | | Headquarters | Gersthofen | Niestetal | | Founded | 2003 | 1981 | | Employees | 501-1000 | 3000-5000 | | Annual capacity | 2+ GW/year | | | Tier 1 | yes | | | Listed | | ETR: S92 | | Website | [https://ae-solar.com](https://ae-solar.com) | [https://www.sma.de](https://www.sma.de) | 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... SMA Solar Technology AG is a leading German manufacturer of solar inverters for photovoltaic systems, serving residential, commercial, and utility-scale applications worldwide. Founded in 1981, the company is the largest solar technology company in Europe by revenue and operates in over 190 countries. SMA focuses... ## Catalog & Power | Measure | AE Solar | SMA 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 | SMA Solar | Margin | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Max Efficiency | 24.43% | - | | | Avg Efficiency | 21.11% | - | | ## Reliability & Warranty | Measure | AE Solar | SMA 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 | SMA 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 | SMA 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 | SMA 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 PV module manufacturer headquartered in Königsbrunn, Germany, with production facilities in China, Georgia, and Turkey. The company has built an annual manufacturing capacity of approximately 2.5 GW and has appeared on BloombergNEF's Tier 1 PV Module Manufacturer list for 17 consecutive quarters as of early 2025 - making it the only European-branded module maker to hold that designation continuously. SMA Solar Technology AG, by contrast, is a solar inverter manufacturer, not a panel producer. Founded in 1981 and headquartered in Niestetal, Germany, SMA has accumulated over 100 GW of cumulative installed inverter capacity across more than 190 countries and remains the largest Europe-based solar technology company by revenue. In terms of overall industry tenure and institutional footprint, SMA carries the longer track record, while AE Solar leads in the specific metric of module bankability recognition. AE Solar's product range spans residential rooftop, commercial and industrial (C&I), and utility-scale ground-mount applications. The company offers both PERC and N-type TOPCon cell technology, with its Meteor series representing the newer TOPCon generation featuring bifacial capability. SMA structures its portfolio around inverter application tiers: Sunny Boy for home systems, Sunny Tripower and Sunny Highpower for mid-size and large commercial plants, Sunny Central for utility-scale and battery storage projects, and Sunny Island for off-grid installations. Because these are fundamentally different categories of hardware, the two companies occupy complementary rather than competing positions in any solar project. A buyer comparing AE Solar and SMA is not making an either-or decision in practice - a single installation can and often does include modules from one and an inverter from the other. Evaluated independently: AE Solar is a strong choice for a bankable, European-branded module with modern TOPCon technology and a notable 30-year product warranty; SMA remains one of the most trusted inverter brands globally, despite facing margin pressure from Chinese competition in 2024-2025. Neither can substitute for the other, and any direct ranking between them is ultimately a comparison of apples and inverters. 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 SMA Solar](https://comparepv.com/aeet-vs-sma-solar) - [AE Solar vs AIKO](https://comparepv.com/ae-solar-vs-aiko) - [AKCOME vs SMA Solar](https://comparepv.com/akcome-vs-sma-solar) - [AE Solar vs ARTsolar](https://comparepv.com/ae-solar-vs-artsolar) - [ASM vs SMA Solar](https://comparepv.com/asm-vs-sma-solar) --- Source: https://comparepv.com/ae-solar-vs-sma-solar Not in this file, on the page: the distributions above drawn as charts.