Last updated: 28th October 2023
Octopus Energy offer £50 credit if you sign up through a referral link.
If you would like to join Octopus (or at least get a quote) then use the button below to get £50 credit when you sign up.
Octopus Energy Review Summary
Who are Octopus Energy?
Octopus Energy was started by Greg Jackson in August 2015 with the mission of making energy better. They now have over 5.5 million energy customers. In part, they have achieved this rapid growth through taking over a number of their competitors or smaller gas and electricity companies when they have gone into administration including Avro Energy.
They concentrate on supplying greener energy. This includes the generation of renewable energy via wind, solar and anaerobic digestion and are approved by Friends of the Earth.
As well as supplying energy to their own clients, they also supply energy to the customers of Marks & Spencer and the Co-op through energy supply partnerships.
Octopus Energy has won a number of awards, including the Uswitch Energy Supplier of the Year 2023 award, and the 2023 Which? Recommended Provider Award. They offer some of the best customer service, competitive prices and a lot of innovation, as you’ll see in our Octopus Review.
Who owns Octopus Energy?
Octopus Energy is part of the Octopus Group and has been since its launch. This is a privately held holding company that was founded in 2000 and as well as energy operates in investment management, venture capital and real estate. Octopus Group have a majority holding with a 20% stake held by Origin Energy. 5% of Octopus Energy is also owned by its employees.
What energy tariffs do Octopus Energy offer?
Octopus Energy offers a range of energy tariffs. With 2 traditional tariff types for both gas and electricity, 1 fixed and 1 variable:
- Octopus 12-month fixed: This is a 12-month fixed rate tariff (currently only available for existing customers). It comes with 100% renewable electricity and exit fees of £75 per fuel.
- Flexible Octopus: This is a variable rate tariff with 100% green electricity. No exit fees but the unit price could change over time.
These two tariffs are similar to what you would find with most suppliers. However, Octopus also have a range of innovative tariffs which we have explained briefly below:
Outgoing Octopus
Octopus Energy are a mandatory FiT provider too, so you can switch an existing ‘feed-in’ tariff to them. If you have solar panels, battery storage or a similar way of sharing energy back to the grid, then Outgoing Octopus is for you. With this tariff you can either opt for either fixed or agile. Fixed guarantees 5.5p for every kWh you export, whereas agile matches your half-hourly prices with day-ahead wholesale rates. This is currently in Beta, so is not yet a fully fledged product and may have some niggles.
Octopus Go
They also offer a specific tariff aimed at electric vehicle owners called Octopus Go. This gives Octopus Energy customers cheaper electricity to charge their electric vehicles between 00:30 – 04:30 every night. They claim this tariff is on average 50% cheaper than average Economy7 night time and mean you can keep your electric vehicle fuel costs to around 1p per mile.
Agile Octopus
A further tariff available through Octopus is Agile Octopus. This is aimed at anyone that can shift their energy usage outside of key times. With this tariff you get 1/2 hour energy prices (updated every 24 hours) based on the wholesale energy market, so when energy prices drop, your prices do too. This means shifting your energy usage outside of key times could save you some money. You can even get paid for energy usage if supply outstrips demand, which has happened before!
Octopus claim that the average family could have saved £210 using Agile Octopus over the last 12 months (compared to a Big Six variable tariff) and an additional £120 by moving energy usage outside of key times. Find out more about Agile Octopus here. This is another beta product and you will need a SMETS2 or a “Secure” branded SMETS1 meter to join.
Octopus Tracker
Similar to the Agile Octopus tariff, this tracks wholesale energy prices. It only updates once per day however although is available for both gas and electricity. You can read our Octopus Tracker tariff review here.
Do Octopus tariffs have exit fees?
None of the smart Octopus tariffs have exit fees. If you are on a fixed tariff, however, there will be an exit fee to leave. This is currently
Are Octopus cheap or expensive?
As you can see from our reviews, picking your energy company shouldn’t only be about price. Octopus are currently one of the cheapest energy providers for standard variable and fixed-rate tariffs.
For example, for their ‘Loyal Octopus 12M Fixed September 2023 v1’ tariff, in the south of England, the rates are currently:
| Electricity | Rate |
|---|---|
| Unit rate | 26.76 p/kWh |
| Standing charge | 48.66 p/day |
| Gas | Rate |
|---|---|
| Unit rate | 6.76 p/kWh |
| Standing charge | 27.47 p/day |
If you take their smart tariffs into account too, like their Tracker tariff mentioned above, then it is very difficult to find a cheaper energy supplier.
What is Octopus Energy’s cheapest tariff?
Currently, both the standard variable tariff and the 1-year fixed tariff from Octopus are priced the same. The main difference is that the fixed tariff locks your price per unit in for a year, the downside of this being that you will have to pay an exit fee of £75 per fuel if you leave early.
Alongside the standard tariffs mentioned above, Octopus also offer a range of more innovative tariffs, giving you 6 different options in total.
Our Octopus Energy review also found that their referral bonus was incredibly popular with customers with them offering £50 credit for both parties after a successful referral. If you can combine the £50 credit with the cheapest tariff available, then (if an average household), your annual bill is likely to be very competitive. If you are on a standard variable tariff, then you are very likely to save.
Prices will vary depending on your area and do change over time but with it taking less than 5 minutes to get a quote, it’s worth seeing if you could save.
What do other Octopus Energy reviews say? Is Octopus Energy any good?
Octopus Energy scores an impressive 4.8 out of 5 stars at TrustPilot (from over 193,000 Octopus Energy reviews), with 89% of the reviewers rating them as excellent. Only 3% of the reviewers rated them poor or bad.
| Rating | Percentage of reviews |
|---|---|
| Excellent | 89% |
| Great | 6% |
| Average | 1% |
| Poor | <1% |
| Bad | 3% |
Which? has given Octopus Energy their Which? Recommended Provider award and puts them in 1st place out of 21 energy suppliers with an overall score of 82%.
In the latest uSwitch awards, Octopus won ‘Energy Supplier of the Year’ for the 4th time. This is based on the over 17,000 responses to the uSwitch survey.
Citizens Advice puts Octopus Energy in 4th place out of 19 energy suppliers, scoring them 3.3 out of 5 stars. Response times dragged their score down.
Get £50 when you join Octopus Energy by clicking here
How green is Octopus Energy?
Octopus Energy’s electricity comes from 100% renewable energy sources across all their tariffs
| Fuel source | % of supply |
|---|---|
| Natural Gas | 0% |
| Nuclear | 0% |
| Renewables | 100% |
| Coal | 0% |
| Other Fuels | 0% |
They don’t just supply renewable energy. They generate it as well. Through a subsidiary of their parent company, Octopus Renewables are Europe’s largest investor in green energy. They own over 200 solar farms and are also involved in wind generation and anaerobic digestion plants.
What is Octopus Energy’s customer service like?
Octopus Energy prefer electronic communication, including communication via social media, but they don’t have a live chat feature on their website. They can be contacted electronically between 8 am and 10 pm, seven days a week.
Octopus Energy also have a freephone number for customers who prefer to call, although the phone lines are only manned between 9 am and 5 pm, Monday to Thursday, and 9 am to 4 pm on Friday.
They answer emails in an average of 20 hours, which isn’t the fastest response time in the market, but by the same token, many energy suppliers take considerably longer. Similarly, their one-minute 27-second average phone response time isn’t the fastest in the market, but it’s a respectable response time nevertheless.
Octopus Energy receives fewer than 13 complaints per 10,000 customers. However, according to Which? they only manage to resolve around half of those by the next working day.
Overall, though, Octopus Energy’s customer service is among the best in the market. They have received multiple ‘Supplier of the Year’ awards.
What is Octopus Energy’s website/app like?
Octopus have a very modern, and smooth website. There is not too much in the account section that makes things confusing, so it is easy to see your energy usage, find your latest bills or submit a meter reading. You can also make adjustments to your direct debit or make a one-off payment even, if you need to pay off a bill.
For those who prefer to use their mobile to manage their energy, Octopus has an app for both iPhone and Android.
Both have very positive reviews, with the iPhone app scoring 4.8/5 from over 73,000 reviews and the app for Android rated 4.6/5 from over 13,000 reviews. The app offers very similar functionality to that of the online portal but makes it easier to use on a mobile.
What billing options are available?
Octopus Energy prefers its customers to pay by direct debit, although there is no discount for payment by this method. Neither is there a discount for online billing.
If you pay by direct debit the payments are taken monthly, with the first payment being taken on the day that Octopus Energy start supplying your energy. You can change the amount that is taken each month if your meter readings show that you are using more or less energy than estimated.
Do Octopus Energy offer a recommend a friend referral scheme?
Yes, Octopus Energy offer a referral scheme. The existing customer gets £50 credit and the new customer also gets £50 credit and there is no limit to the number of people you can refer. This can be a great way to reduce your gas and/or electricity bills as it is added to your account. You can find out more about using an Octopus Referral Code here.
Are Octopus taking on new customers?
Yes, Octopus Energy are taking on new customers. You can get a quote quickly online or over the phone.
Get £50 when you join Octopus Energy by clicking here
Frequently Asked Questions
Below are a few quick questions you may need answers to along with our Octopus Energy review:
How do I get a free cuddly toy from Octopus?
You may have seen these on social media. Once you are a customer of Octopus Energy, you can request a cute cuddly toy Octopus called Constantine. You can find out more about the Octopus cuddly toy in our post here.
Do they work with pre-payment/pay-as-you-go meters?
Yes, Octopus Energy accept pre-payment meters.
Do they accept Economy 7?
Yes, Octopus Energy do accept Economy 7 meters.
Do they accept Economy 10?
Yes, they do accept economy 10 meters although will likely apply economy 7 rates.
Do they supply gas and electricity?
Octopus Energy will supply either electricity on its own or gas and electricity together. They currently do not offer a tariff for gas only. With one of their tariffs you can have your gas carbon offset, meaning although your gas is not from a renewable source, you are contributing to environmental causes.
Do they install solar panels?
No, Octopus will not fit solar panels for you. If you already have existing solar panels, however, they do offer a tariff especially for you.
Do they provide heat pumps?
Yes, they do provide heat pumps. You can find out how to get a heat pump from Octopus here.
Are they signed up to the Warm Home Discount?
Octopus Energy have been signed up to the Warm Home Discount since 2019.
Are they signed up to the Energy Switch Guarantee?
Octopus Energy are signed up to the Energy Switch Guarantee. If you’re switching to Octopus, according to Citizen’s Advice 98.3% of switches are completed within 15 working days.
Do they mention about the Priority Services Register?
Octopus Energy operate a Priority Services Register. Customers are asked whether they would like to be added to it when they become an Octopus Energy customer. Existing customers can add themselves to it online.
Do they offer a ‘Dual Fuel’ discount?
Octopus Energy say that they do not think that it is fair to penalise ‘Single Fuel’ customers and so they do not offer a ‘Dual Fuel’ discount.
Do they have an iOS and Android app?
Yes, there is an official app on the iOS app store. You can find their Android app here.
Do they have UK call centres?
Yes, they do. If you do phone up to speak to Octopus customer support you will be speaking to someone based in the UK.
What happens if you move home whilst with them?
If you move home while you are an Octopus Energy customer, you need to let them know via their website. You can choose whether to close your Octopus Energy account or move it to your new home.
If you tell Octopus Energy 17 days before your move, they can start supplying your new home on the day that you move in.
What is Octoplus?
Octoplus is a new reward scheme that has recently been launched. You can find out all about Octoplus here.
How do Octopus Energy compare?
We’ve written some handy guides to see how Octopus compare to other major suppliers you may be considering:
How to contact Octopus Energy
You can contact Octopus Energy in a number of ways:
Address: 1 Upper James Street, Soho, London W1F 9DE
Email: hello@octopus.energy
Telephone: 0808 164 1088
Office Hours: Monday to Thursday, 9 am to 5 pm. Friday, 9 am to 4 pm. Closed weekends
How do I switch to Octopus Energy?
If you’re thinking of switching to Octopus Energy, the easiest way to switch to Octopus Energy is through our link here: Using this link will also get you £50 credited to your Octopus Energy account once you sign up.
Octopus Energy offer £50 credit if you sign up through a referral link. If you would like to join Octopus (or at least get a quote) then use the button below to get £50 credit when you sign up.
Hi,
I’ve recently signed up to Octopus, and immediately received £50 credit as did my friend for the referral. I then quickly swapped to the Agile tariff for electricity and Tracker for gas. All of this went very smoothly. I’d very recently moved to a smaller property and they calculated my usage. I chose to increase this to pay a bit more with the winter months coming and not having any credit built up. Again this was easy to do.
I downloaded the Octopus App and can see how much I am going to pay the following day Peru it every half hour. I have already saved about £20 last month ( October) it’s made me use the washing machine, tumble drier and dishwasher at different times.
As a retired person at home during the day I’ve found it easy to use most if my appliances during much cheaper times of the day. However it will be interesting to see how high the electricity goes for peak times like Christmas Day, and whether it then remains a cheaper option for me.
Iam very happy with octopus ! The only this I don’t like is having to read. My gas and electric meters every month. I am 77 and had both knees replaced and two collapsed vertebrae’s my electric meter is in a cupboard but I need to use steps to take readings as it is so high. The gas meter is outside but is so low to the ground I’m struggling to take readings .I have a British Gas smart meter but apparently is not compatible with octopus company !
I am very disappointed with Octopus Energy. My contact needed to be renewed. They upped my energy rate then a couple of months later, did it again. They recommended the package that I accepted in good faith. I have friends who have joined Octopus energy. Yet they still have raised my rate twice in a few months. I am very very disappointed with them. Be careful with the package to accept from them.
My Concern like many others is the current effect of gas prices and how they will impact on green gas.
Dear Sir/Madam,
I came to this site in the hope and expectation of seeing actual cost figures for i) £s/kWhr import ii) £s/day for standing charge iii) £s/kWhr for export.
Please, I beg you, where can I find these figures?
Yours sincerely,
E.H.Baldock
Having been with octopus energy for a year, I have had no problems
transferring over to them, or dealing with them regarding our bill, always
tell us when our d/d is being taken out, always e-mail when our meter reading is needed.
So far very pleased with their service.
I have received nothing but bad service and have been left with a large bill and smart meters that don’t work. When I have asked for help from octopus energy I was offered help and then left with nothing. I have been over charged and they seem to think if they don’t fix the meters I will not be able to prove they are over charging me. They are about as much help as a chocolate tea pot.
Octopus Energy’s very poor estimates of household energy consumption have left us in debit by almost half the original tariff, after a period of 2.5 years. It’s not acceptable to quote other companies out of customers and then not deliver on these estimates. Very bad experience.
What is tier unit price rate .electric only?
Hello
I have trouble experience with green energy, you can’t trust to give you bank details because happened to me twice the took big amount money from my account and this time I have to call my bank and waiting on the time to fix mistakes of the this company because the can’t make refund immediately
Hello,
Its a very good time to sign up to Octopus Energy during the lockdown as it will save you some money
I recently signed up to Octopus Energy. My son gave me a referral code and we both have received £50.00 credit. So it works!
I signed up because of his experience with Octopus, which has been very positive:
Great customer relations
One of the lowest tariffs for my postcode
Renewable energy
£50.00 referral code system
No exit fees
Smooth transition from my previous supplier
The online web site is very user friendly and if you need to phone I have found an agent was available quite quickly