OVO Energy Sainsbury’s Energy (September 2026)
Overview
There is no single best choice: compare price, service, app and green-energy evidence separately.
About OVO Energy and Sainsbury's Energy
Who are OVO Energy?
OVO Energy started in 2009 and grew by buying other companies, including SSE's home energy business in 2020. Today, it is one of the UK's largest domestic energy suppliers. In May 2026, E.ON announced a planned deal to buy the company. OVO focuses on smart technology and customer rewards, offering a loyalty scheme called Beyond and a scheme called Power Move that rewards people for using energy at off-peak times.
Who are Sainsbury's Energy?
Sainsbury's Energy started in 2011 as a partnership brand rather than a standalone supplier. Today, its energy is supplied by E.ON Next, which is one of the UK's largest suppliers. E.ON Next holds the supply licence and manages customer accounts and billing. The main draw is its link to the Nectar rewards scheme, letting customers earn extra points on their supermarket shopping.
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Tariffs and pricing
Both suppliers offer identical pricing on their cheapest overall tariffs under our assumptions. OVO Energy's Simpler Energy and Sainsbury's Standard Variable each cost £1,611 a year. These are variable options with no fixed term, so households can switch at any point without paying an exit fee.
For those looking to lock in their rates, Sainsbury's Energy provides a cheaper fixed deal at £1,640 a year, compared to OVO Energy's £1,742 a year. It is worth noting that the Sainsbury's Energy fixed option requires a 24-month contract and carries a £200 exit fee. In contrast, OVO Energy's fixed deal lasts 12 months and includes a £100 exit fee.
Tariff Options
OVO Energy
OVO Energy offers a standard variable tariff alongside fixed deals with terms of 12 months. It also provides specialist options for electric vehicle drivers and homes that generate their own electricity.
Sainsbury's Energy
Sainsbury's Energy provides a standard variable tariff, a 12-month tracker and fixed deals with 24-month terms. These tariffs focus on integrating with the Nectar rewards scheme.
Customer reviews
OVO Energy holds a 4.7 out of 5 rating on Trustpilot from a substantial 299,269 reviews, compared to 4.3 out of 5 for Sainsbury's Energy across 3,139 reviews. Feedback for OVO Energy frequently highlights staff resolving complicated problems and prompt engineer arrivals, though some users mention long wait times. Sainsbury's Energy customers note polite staff and rapid online messaging, alongside minor issues regarding unexpected billing errors.
In Which? testing, Sainsbury's Energy scores higher, achieving 71 out of 100 compared to OVO Energy's 61. Sainsbury's Energy received a perfect 10 out of 10 for help for those who need it, while OVO Energy scored 9 out of 10. Additionally, Sainsbury's Energy scored 8 out of 10 for smart meters, ahead of OVO Energy's 5 out of 10.
Both suppliers maintain a high proportion of five-star reviews on Trustpilot. OVO Energy sees 78% of its reviewers award five stars, while Sainsbury's Energy sits slightly higher at 80%. However, OVO Energy is more active in addressing criticism, replying to 99% of its negative reviews compared to 31% for Sainsbury's Energy.
App quality and features
OVO Energy provides mobile apps for both iOS and Android platforms, whereas app ratings for Sainsbury's Energy are not currently available in our data. The OVO Energy iOS app scores 4.6 out of 5 from 18,000 ratings and has been updated very recently.
On Google Play, the OVO Energy app holds a lower score of 2.8 out of 5 across 10,825 ratings. Recent samples of iOS reviews indicate that some customers appreciate the comprehensive energy usage details, while others report issues with the app loading on certain devices.
Customer service and support
OVO Energy provides full Citizens Advice data, whereas these figures are not currently available for Sainsbury's Energy. OVO Energy scores 3.3 out of 5 overall, placing it 8th in the Citizens Advice rankings.
Callers contacting OVO Energy wait an average of 1 minute 33 seconds. The supplier also responds to 98.5% of emails within two days, and social media queries take an average of 6 minutes 53 seconds to receive a response.
OVO Energy has formal vulnerability commitments registered with Citizens Advice. Its customer support team operates on weekdays between 9am and 5pm, and the supplier accepts direct debit, cash, cheque, and prepayment methods.
Complaints and performance
Complaint figures are shown with each supplier’s reporting period. No winner is declared when periods differ or one figure is missing.
Green Energy Comparison
OVO Energy
OVO Energy supplies a fuel mix that is largely fossil fuels, with some renewable, nuclear, and other sources. The company’s Plan Zero aims to cut its carbon emissions. It also runs tree-planting projects in schools and communities. Customers can choose a specific green tariff add-on to support UK renewable energy generation.[1]
Sainsbury's Energy
Because E.ON Next supplies the energy, Sainsbury's Energy shares its partner's fuel mix. Its published fuel mix for 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025 is mostly fossil fuel, with renewable and nuclear sources. The brand uses Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin (REGO) certificates to match the electricity its customers use. It also helps customers lower their carbon footprint by offering discounts on green technology like solar panels and electric vehicle chargers.[2][3]
Our verdict
| If you care most about | Choose |
|---|---|
| The lowest annual cost on our assumptions | Either |
| Overall customer service | Sainsbury’s Energy |
There is no single best choice: compare price, service, app and green-energy evidence separately.
Use the decision table to match the available evidence to the factors that matter most to your household.
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Frequently asked questions
Which is cheaper, OVO Energy or Sainsbury’s Energy?
On the stored annual-cost assumptions, OVO Energy is £1,611 and Sainsbury’s Energy is £1,611. The difference is within £5 a year, so it is treated as a tie.
Can OVO Energy and Sainsbury’s Energy complaint rates be compared directly?
Yes. Both figures cover Q2 2026: OVO Energy reports 1775 complaints per 100,000 customers and Sainsbury’s Energy reports 906.
Which supplier leads on customer service?
On the comparable customer-service measure used in the decision table, Sainsbury’s Energy leads.
Which supplier has the better app evidence?
The supplied data does not support a like-for-like app winner.
Do tariff eligibility rules matter?
Yes. Specialist, time-of-use, EV, heat-pump and export tariffs can have equipment, meter or account requirements. Check the current supplier terms before applying.
Which supplier has the greener evidence?
The supplied data does not support a like-for-like green-energy winner. This row is based on published fuel-mix percentages.
Which is better overall, OVO Energy or Sainsbury’s Energy?
There is no single overall winner in this repaired draft. Price, service, app and green-energy evidence are kept as separate choices in the decision table.
When was this comparison updated?
The structured source payload is for September 2026.
What changed this month
This month, OVO Energy's play store net-positive % fell from 1.3 to -9.2, Sainsbury’s Energy's shortest fixed term rose from 12 months to 24 months, and OVO Energy's iOS app days since last update fell from 37 to 25. There were 15 other data changes this month — see the full changelog below for details.
Data changes this month (20)
OVO Energy
- Trustpilot reviews293,863 → 299,269
- Trustpilot 5-star %77 → 78
- Trustpilot 4-star %10 → 9
- iOS app days since last update37 → 25
- Play Store rating3.0206423 → 2.8167422
- Play Store ratings count10,621 → 10,825
- Play Store days since last update37 → 26
- Play Store positive ratings %48.2 → 43.2
- Play Store negative ratings %46.9 → 52.4
- Play Store neutral ratings %4.9 → 4.4
- Play Store net-positive %1.3 → -9.2
- Cheapest variable tariff£1,804.82 → £1,610.88
- Cheapest fixed tariff£1,923.42 → £1,742.03
- Cheapest tariff£1,804.82 → £1,610.88
Sainsbury’s Energy
- Trustpilot reviews3,127 → 3,139
- Trustpilot negative reviews replied %35 → 31
- Cheapest variable tariff£1,804.81 → £1,610.88
- Cheapest fixed tariff£1,840.79 → £1,639.64
- Cheapest tariff£1,804.81 → £1,610.88
- Shortest fixed term12 months → 24 months
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Written by
Rob Gibbs
Hi, I'm Rob, and I run Energy-Review.co.uk. I initially started this project in 2018 when I was looking to switch energy suppliers and found there wasn't a website that provided simple, data-backed reviews on all the suppliers available. Since then, I have spent a lot of time (too much, some may say!) looking at all publicly available data about each supplier and writing reviews using this information. These reviews are updated as regularly as possible, and any data is backed up by a source where necessary. I have also started writing guides on various energy-related topics, which hopefully you will find useful. If you find any issues, please use our contact form to let us know.