Three configurations of fuel cell and photovoltaic hybrid systems were evaluated in this paper based on economic constraints. In order to estimate the energy cost of each configuration, sources were sized with an analytical approach. An energy based modelling has been developed with Matlab/Simulink to observe evolution of the system during the period of one year. The simulation results were used for optimizing the configuration costs in order to obtain the most cost effective system. An appropriate system sizing based on the proposed optimization solution, showed that a system composed with a photovoltaic generator, a fuel cell, an electrolizer and a battery can deliver energy in a stand-alone installation with an acceptable cost. (c) 2008 International Association for Hydrogen Energy. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.