Octopus Energy vs E.ON Next (2023 Comparison)

Lasted Updated: 20th October 2023

Two of the biggest energy suppliers right now are Octopus Energy and E.ON Next. In this article we will compare the two, looking at which one is better when it comes to areas such as tariffs, prices, customer service and reviews.

You can use the links below to skip to a particular section or just scroll down to read our in-depth comparison in full.

Who is E.ON Next?

E.ON Next is the latest part of the EON group. Their primary focus is to supply renewable energy to customers across the UK.

Essentially E.ON Next was E.ON’s answer when the energy market saw several new suppliers using technology and other resources in order to drive down prices.

E.ON Next was created in 2020 and took on previous Npower customers, which E.ON brought out in 2019.

Who are Octopus Energy?

Octopus Energy is an energy provider that supplies renewable energy. Established in 2016 and part of the wider Octopus Group of companies, they are the largest investor in the UK solar industry.

In addition, Octopus Energy also invests in wind generation, energy through the anaerobic digestion of plants, and rapid response gas generation.

Octopus now has over two million customers across the UK and has won several awards, including the Uswitch Supplier of the Year and the Which? Energy Supplier of the year 2021.

Octopus has also taken on customers from recently collapsed suppliers, including Bulb and Avro Energy.

What’s the difference in tariff options?

E.ON Next

E.ON Next currently offers 1 variable tariff and 2 fixed tariffs:

Octopus

Currently, Octopus Energy is only offering two tariffs to new customers:

Octopus vs E.ON Next: What’s the difference in price?

We ran a like-for-like comparison directly on each supplier’s website to see what prices they offered for the tariffs mentioned above. We used the following details:

• Dual Fuel supply
• Standard Meter
• Medium usage (3-bedroom house with four occupants)
• 2,900 kWh of electricity and 12,000 kWh of gas
• Postcode in the East Midlands

It is important to note that your actual quote is likely to be different, as changing each aspect of the above criteria will result in a different amount quoted.

Let us look at how they compared:

E.ON Next

On E.ON Next’s website, we were offered these prices:

Octopus

We also looked at the Octopus Energy website to get a quote based on the same details above:

The tracker tariff is only available to existing customers, but you can sign up on the flexible tariff above and then switch straight to the tracker. You can find out more in our Tracker Tariff article here.

Who offers the greenest energy?

Renewable energy and sustainability are at the heart of both of these suppliers’ offerings.

Let’s take a look to see how they compare in this area:

E.ON Next

E.ON next advertise heavily that 100% of the electricity they generate is from renewable sources. This means that the electricity their customers use is sourced from; Their own renewable energy generation plants, supply agreements with independent renewable energy wind and solar plants and purchase renewable electricity certificates.

On their website E.ON Next states, that they generate enough electricity at their biomass plant to supply 100,000 homes across the UK. While green gas is not mentioned at all on the one tariff on offer, we understand that E.ON Next has invested in green gas certificates for their greenest tariffs (not currently on offer).

Octopus

Just like E.ON Next, Octopus put their green energy credentials at the forefront of its offering. They offer 100% renewable electricity on all tariffs as standard. Much of this they generate at their own plants, and they invest heavily in the production of renewable electricity and green gas from biomass plants.

Octopus’s Supergreen customers also receive a carbon-neutral gas supply which is offset by Octopus’s partnership with Renewable World.

Octopus vs E.ON Next: Who has better customer reviews?

Trustpilot is the most reliable website to compare 1,000’s of genuine customer reviews. Here is our comparison based on the information available:

• E.ON Next scored 4.2 out of 5 based on over 59,000 reviews (source)
• Octopus scored 4.8 out of 5 based on over 180,000 reviews (source)

We have to assume the low number of E.ON Next reviews is due to them only being around since 2020 as there is a significant difference.

Overall, 73% of E.ON Next customers rate them as ‘Excellent’. At the other end of the scale, 15% rated them as bad, and the additional 13% fell somewhere in between.

In the case of Octopus, 89% of their customers rate them as excellent, and just 3% rated them as bad. Leaving just 8% of customers somewhere between.

Both companies respond to customer reviews, both good and bad.

Both companies receive a high number of positive reviews. However, in the case of E.ON Next, when customers feel let down is the time it takes to answer the phone. Some customers state they have had to resort to messaging on Twitter to get a reply. It’s also clear that their customer service agents are a credit to them, with many of them being personally thanked on Trustpilot.

Similarly, Octopus customers more often state that the agent they spoke to was helpful and resolved their queries. There are also comments about switching is easy and that they are always clear and efficient when it comes to communications.

Who has the better website and app?

We tried out both E.ON Next and Octopus’s websites. Both are really well laid out, and we had no trouble finding our way around. It’s possible to view tariffs, bills, input meter readings and update any personal details.

You can download apps for both E.ON Next and Octopus Energy onto a smartphone or tablet. These apps have been designed for easy account management where you can check your usage, bills and tariffs.

In Octopus’s case, over 71,000 customers rank their app well at 4.8 out of 5 stars. Mainly due to the functionality and reliability of the app.

The E.ON Next App is similarly popular and is also rated 4.8 out of 5, proving that they too have developed a well-functioning and user-friendly app.

Who has the better customer service?

We checked data on the Citizens Advice website to compare information on the customer service offered by each supplier. We believe they offer the most unbiased view based purely on facts obtained from Ofgem and the suppliers directly.

Please note in this case, E.ON Next are not listed separately from E.ON, so we have used E.ON’s stats here for comparison:

Which supplier has fewer complaints?

We looked at the complaint data each energy provider openly provides. To make sure we cover the same period for both, we will look at Q4 for 2022.

We have summarised the data in the below table:

What are the main differences between the two?

These two suppliers have offerings that are similar to each other. They both focus on green energy generation, offer similar tariffs and similar performance in customer service. There are some important differences between the two, however.

Here is a recap of how they measured up in each area:

Is Octopus Energy better than E.ON Next?

This head-to-head comparison was close, but Octopus won the battle coming out in front in five categories with E.ON Next only winning one.