OVO Energy Utility Warehouse (September 2026)
Overview
There is no single best choice: compare price, service, app and green-energy evidence separately.
About OVO Energy and Utility Warehouse
Who is OVO Energy?
OVO Energy was set up in 2009 and is owned by the OVO Group. It grew to become one of the UK's largest suppliers after buying SSE's retail energy business in 2020. In May 2026, E.ON announced a planned deal to buy the company, which would increase its scale. The supplier focuses on smart technology and energy-saving tools. A key difference is its OVO Beyond rewards programme, which gives customers perks like free electricity hours and savings towards solar panels.
Products & services
Awards & recognition
Who are Utility Warehouse?
Utility Warehouse was set up in 2002 and is owned by Telecom Plus PLC. It is one of the UK's largest suppliers and uses a multi-utility model, selling energy alongside broadband, mobile, and home insurance. Instead of traditional advertising, it uses a network of independent partners to recommend its services. Customers can get cheaper energy rates by bundling services together, and they can earn money off their bills using a cashback card for everyday shopping.
Products & services
Awards & recognition
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Tariffs and pricing
The lowest-priced option across both suppliers is the UW Tracker Saver 5 from Utility Warehouse, estimated at £1,511 a year. This zero-month variable tracker tariff includes a £150 exit fee. OVO Energy’s most affordable equivalent is the Simpler Energy variable tariff, costing £1,611 a year. While Utility Warehouse is £100 a year cheaper on its lowest-priced deal, OVO Energy does not apply an exit fee to its variable option.
For households preferring to lock in their unit rates, Utility Warehouse again provides the cheaper fixed deal. The UW Fixed Saver 95 tariff is priced at £1,595 a year on an 11-month contract, carrying a £150 exit fee. By comparison, OVO Energy’s cheapest fixed option is the 1 Year Fixed + Boiler Cover deal, which costs £1,742 a year over a 12-month term and includes a £100 exit fee.
Both suppliers provide tariffs tailored to electric vehicle owners. Additionally, OVO Energy offers a green electricity add-on for selected fixed deals.
Tariff Options
OVO Energy
OVO Energy offers a range of standard variable and fixed-term tariffs for households, alongside specialist options for electric vehicle owners and customers with solar panels. The fixed deals shown here have terms of 12 months.[1]
Utility Warehouse
Utility Warehouse offers standard variable, tracker, and fixed-term tariffs, with rates that often depend on how many other home services a customer bundles. Its fixed deals come with terms of 11 months, and it also has specialist options for electric vehicle owners.
Customer reviews
OVO Energy leads on Trustpilot with a 4.7 out of 5 rating, drawn from 299,269 reviews. Utility Warehouse holds a 4.2 out of 5 rating across 83,008 reviews. Furthermore, OVO Energy sees a higher proportion of top marks, with 78% of its feedback rated at five stars, compared to 70% for Utility Warehouse. Both suppliers reply to 99% of negative reviews, generally within 24 hours.
In written feedback, OVO Energy users frequently note that staff are patient when resolving account issues and that engineers arrive promptly for home visits. Conversely, some reviewers mention communication delays and long wait times. Utility Warehouse customers often highlight polite support staff and the convenience of bundling household services into a single bill, though a portion of users report difficulties reaching customer support and extended phone queues.
In the annual Which? survey, Utility Warehouse achieves an overall score of 69, ahead of OVO Energy’s 61. Utility Warehouse performs better across several Which? sub-categories, including a 7 out of 10 for smart meters, compared to OVO Energy's 5 out of 10. Both suppliers record strong results in the 'help for those who need it' category, with Utility Warehouse scoring 10 out of 10 and OVO Energy scoring 9 out of 10.
App quality and features
Both suppliers provide well-reviewed iOS applications on the App Store. OVO Energy scores 4.6 out of 5 from 18,000 ratings, while Utility Warehouse scores 4.5 out of 5 from 11,000 ratings. Both apps receive regular updates, with OVO Energy's recent release notes citing performance improvements and defect fixes.
On Google Play, the scores diverge significantly. Utility Warehouse maintains a 4.2 rating from 11,195 ratings, resulting in a positive net sentiment of 62.9%. OVO Energy drops to a 2.8 rating across 10,825 ratings. Both suppliers maintain a substantial Android user base; OVO Energy shows over 1,000,000 installs, while Utility Warehouse exceeds 500,000.
A sample of iOS reviews indicates varying user experiences. OVO Energy customers frequently note the app's detailed usage tracking and historical consumption data, although some report loading issues on iPads. Utility Warehouse users point to the benefits of the cashback card feature, while others mention difficulties with the top-up function and bundled broadband speeds.
Customer service and support
Average wait: 1.6 min
Hours: Weekdays 9am–5pm, closed Saturday, closed Sunday
Average wait: 7.3 min
Hours: Weekdays 8:30am–5pm, open Saturday 9am–4:30pm, closed Sunday
Replies: 99% within 2 days
Hours: 24/7
Replies: 41% within 2 days
Hours: 24/7
Average response: ~7 min
Hours: Business hrs
OVO Energy achieves a higher position in the Citizens Advice rankings, scoring 3.3 out of 5 to place 8th overall. Utility Warehouse ranks 14th with a score of 2.45 out of 5. Both suppliers record a similar volume of complaints, with OVO Energy receiving 39.5 complaints per 10,000 customers and Utility Warehouse receiving 38.1.
OVO Energy records faster contact times across multiple channels. Its average call centre wait time is 1 minute 33 seconds, compared to 7 minutes 16 seconds for Utility Warehouse. Furthermore, OVO Energy replies to 98.5% of emails within two days, whereas Utility Warehouse achieves this for 40.5%. OVO Energy also logs an average social media response time of 6 minutes 53 seconds; Utility Warehouse does not currently publish this metric.
Both suppliers maintain formal vulnerability commitments registered with Citizens Advice. For general enquiries, OVO Energy operates on weekdays from 9am to 5pm and is closed on weekends. Utility Warehouse is available on weekdays from 8:30am to 5pm, and extends its support hours to Saturdays from 9am to 4:30pm.
| Metric | OVO Energy | Utility Warehouse |
|---|---|---|
| Average social media response time | 6 minutes 53 seconds | N/A |
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
According to Citizens Advice data, OVO Energy's electricity supply is largely fossil fuels, with some renewable and nuclear energy. The supplier has a True Net Zero target for 2035, and has cut its use of carbon offsets to a maximum of 10% to focus on direct ways to cut emissions. As part of its sustainability work, it runs tree-planting schemes and has planted 5 million trees in schools and communities. Customers can also choose a greener electricity add-on when they sign up for certain fixed deals.
Utility Warehouse
According to Citizens Advice data, Utility Warehouse's electricity supply is largely fossil fuels, with some nuclear energy. The company offers 100% renewable electricity on some of its tariffs, which is backed by Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin (REGO) certificates. It also plants a tree for every new customer who takes all of its services and supports the Smart Export Guarantee for customers who generate their own renewable electricity.[1]
Our verdict
| If you care most about | Choose |
|---|---|
| The lowest annual cost on our assumptions | Utility Warehouse |
| Overall customer service | OVO Energy |
| A greener fuel mix | OVO 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.
- Cheapest variable tariff at £1,611 / year
- 4.7 Trustpilot from 299,269 reviews
- iOS app rated 4.6 out of 5
- 99% of emails answered within 2 days
- 52% of Google Play ratings are negative
- Cheapest variable tariff at £1,511 / year
- 4.2 Trustpilot from 83,008 reviews
- iOS app rated 4.5 out of 5
- Cheapest overall tariff carries a £150 exit fee
- Only 41% of emails answered within 2 days
- 16% of Google Play ratings are negative
Frequently asked questions
Which is cheaper, OVO Energy or Utility Warehouse?
On the stored annual-cost assumptions, OVO Energy is £1,611 and Utility Warehouse is £1,511. Utility Warehouse is lower by about £100 a year.
Can OVO Energy and Utility Warehouse complaint rates be compared directly?
No direct complaint-rate winner is declared because OVO Energy and Utility Warehouse do not both have figures for the same stated reporting period.
Which supplier leads on customer service?
On the comparable customer-service measure used in the decision table, OVO 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?
On the comparable green-energy measure used in the decision table, OVO Energy leads. This row is based on published fuel-mix percentages.
Which is better overall, OVO Energy or Utility Warehouse?
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, Utility Warehouse's iOS sampled neutral reviews rose from 0 to 1, and Utility Warehouse's play store days since last update rose from 4 to 6. There were 21 other data changes this month — see the full changelog below for details.
Data changes this month (27)
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
Utility Warehouse
- Trustpilot reviews81,260 → 83,008
- iOS app days since last update4 → 5
- iOS sampled reviews avg stars2.67 → 2.5
- iOS sampled neutral reviews0 → 1
- Play Store rating4.186519 → 4.1761994
- Play Store ratings count11,150 → 11,195
- Play Store days since last update4 → 6
- Play Store positive ratings %79.1 → 78.9
- Play Store negative ratings %15.9 → 16
- Play Store net-positive %63.2 → 62.9
- Cheapest variable tariff£1,697.5 → £1,510.93
- Cheapest fixed tariff£1,806.26 → £1,595.22
- Cheapest tariff£1,697.5 → £1,510.93
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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.