Outgoing Octopus review (August 2026)
A flat rate for every unit you export, whenever you export it.
Updated for August 2026
Tariff snapshot
The important details in one place
- Current tariff issue
- Outgoing Octopus
- OUTGOING-VAR-24-10-26
- Price changes
- One unit rate
- The price does not change during the day
- Export rate today
- Choose a location
- Average of the published export rates for today
- Estimated annual earnings
- Choose a location
- Shown after an electricity region is selected
Key tariff facts
- The price does not change during the day
- Variable-rate tariff
- Compatible smart meter required
- Electricity tariff
- Pays for electricity exported to the grid
The short answer
Who Outgoing Octopus is most likely to work for
A flat export rate pays the same for every unit you send back, whenever you send it. It is the simplest thing to hold beside solar: no timing, no battery, no attention.
The flat rate can be below what a time-varying export tariff pays at peak. If you have storage, compare actual timed earnings; if you do not, the simple flat payment may be the better fit.
Outgoing Octopus pays the same rate for every unit you export, whatever the time of day. The figures on this page are payments to you rather than costs.
It is the simple option for a solar home. Because it does not vary by time, it does not reward having a battery — which is exactly why it suits households that do not have one.
In its favour
- Same rate whenever you export
- Nothing to time or schedule
- Works without a battery
- Earnings are simpler to estimate while the published flat rate remains in force
Against it
- Well below peak variable export rates
- No reward for holding generation back
- Requires an export MPAN
- May require import from the same supplier
How it works
How Outgoing Octopus sets its prices
Every unit your meter records as exported is paid at one flat variable rate. Octopus can change it with notice, but it does not change by time of day.
This sits within the Smart Export Guarantee, the scheme that obliges larger suppliers to pay something for exported electricity. Octopus offers its own rates on top of the statutory minimum.
Because the rate never changes, there is no advantage to timing your export and no reason to hold generation back.
Things to watch
The main trade-offs
Using your own generation is usually worth more than exporting it, because import rates are higher than export rates.
A flat rate cannot capture the peak, so a household with a battery will normally do better on a time-varying export tariff.
Export payments are smaller than most people expect relative to their bill.
Live tariff data
Outgoing Octopus export rates for your area
Electricity rates and standing charges differ by distribution region. Enter your postcode or choose your electricity region before local figures are shown.
Household fit
Who Outgoing Octopus might be good for
The right answer depends on your equipment, routine and tolerance for changing prices—not just how much electricity you use.
Likely to suit
- Solar homes without a battery
- Anyone who wants a predictable export rate with nothing to manage
- Households that export most of what they generate during the day
Less likely to suit
- Homes with a battery, which can earn more on a time-varying export tariff
- Households that consume nearly all of what they generate
- Anyone without an export meter arrangement in place
Before switching
Check the requirements and what will affect the result
What you need
- Generation, usually solar, with an export meter arrangement (MPAN) in place
- A smart meter capable of recording export
- An Octopus Energy account and one of the import tariffs currently compatible with Outgoing
What drives what you earn
- How much you generate beyond what you use yourself
- The flat rate currently offered, which Octopus can change with notice
- The season, as summer generation is far higher than winter
- How much of your own generation you consume rather than export
Match the tariff to your home
Solar, a battery and your import tariff change the answer
Export income is only one side of the decision. Electricity used at home avoids an import purchase, while storing and exporting later loses some energy in the battery.
Solar without a battery
Compare the rate paid when your panels naturally export, usually through the middle of the day. A high evening rate is less useful if you cannot move generation into it.
Solar with a battery
A battery can move export into a valuable band, but the headline spread is not profit. Allow for round-trip losses, degradation and the import cost or self-consumption value of the electricity stored.
Choose import and export together
Check whether the export tariff restricts the import tariff you can hold. Even where it does not, the best export rate can be outweighed by a poor import fit for the same home.
Alternatives
Other smart tariffs from Octopus and EDF to compare
These are other smart-tariff comparisons from the two suppliers, not a claim that every option suits the same household.
Agile Outgoing Octopus
Agile Outgoing follows day-ahead prices half-hourly, so it can pay more if you time export and less if you cannot. Without a battery, the flat rate here is usually the simpler comparison.
Review Agile Outgoing OctopusOctopus Flux
Flux pairs export with a matching import tariff and pays most at the evening peak, which only works with storage. Flat Outgoing is the simpler no-battery alternative.
Review Octopus FluxThe statutory Smart Export Guarantee minimum
Every large supplier must offer something under SEG, but the rates vary widely. Octopus has generally paid above the floor, though it is worth comparing directly rather than assuming.
Other Octopus Energy tariff reviews
Browse every other Octopus Energy tariff covered on Energy Review. Availability, eligibility and price structure are explained on each review.
Regional comparison
How prices differ across Great Britain
Outgoing Octopus unit rate and standing charge by region
The current unit rate and daily standing charge in each distribution region, including VAT.
Hover a region for its figure, or select one to load its prices.
Tap a region to load its prices.
Same displayed rate in every region with a figure: 12.00p
| Region | Per kWh | Standing charge per day |
|---|---|---|
| Eastern England | 12.00p | 0.0p |
| East Midlands | 12.00p | 0.0p |
| London | 12.00p | 0.0p |
| Merseyside and North Wales | 12.00p | 0.0p |
| West Midlands | 12.00p | 0.0p |
| North East England | 12.00p | 0.0p |
| North West England | 12.00p | 0.0p |
| Southern England | 12.00p | 0.0p |
| South East England | 12.00p | 0.0p |
| South Wales | 12.00p | 0.0p |
| South West England | 12.00p | 0.0p |
| Yorkshire | 12.00p | 0.0p |
| Southern Scotland | 12.00p | 0.0p |
| Northern Scotland | 12.00p | 0.0p |
Northern Ireland has a separate electricity market and is not covered by these regions.
How to switch
Moving to Outgoing Octopus
- 1
You need generation with an export meter arrangement (an export MPAN) in place, and a smart meter able to record export.
- 2
You must buy import from Octopus and use one of the import tariffs it currently allows alongside Outgoing.
- 3
Nothing needs timing, but the export MPAN, smart-meter connection and compatible import arrangement must all be in place.
Frequently asked questions
Are these figures payments or charges?
Payments. This is an export tariff, so the rate shown is what you are paid per kWh exported.
Do I need a battery?
No, and that is the point of it. A flat rate pays the same whenever you export, so there is nothing to time. If you do have a battery, a time-varying export tariff will usually pay more.
What is the Smart Export Guarantee?
A scheme obliging larger suppliers to pay for electricity exported by small generators. It sets a floor, not a rate, so tariffs under it differ considerably between suppliers.
Is exporting better than using my own electricity?
Usually not. Import rates are higher than export rates, so using your own generation avoids more than exporting it earns. Exporting is what you do with the surplus.