Octopus Energy vs So Energy (2024 Comparison)

Last updated: 8th March 2023

In this article, we will compare energy suppliers Octopus Energy and So Energy to see which could be the best supplier for you to switch to.

We look at customer reviews, their tariffs, their prices and much more to see how they compare against each other.

Who is So Energy?

So Energy started in 2015 and is one of the smaller energy suppliers in the UK. Despite the energy crisis in 2021, which caused many companies of its size to fail, So Energy is still going strong. It even teamed up with what used to be ESB Energy. Right now, the supplier has about 300,000 customers.

Its focus is on green energy and customer service, wanting to help people lessen their impact on the environment.

An interesting thing about So Energy is that customers can choose where their green energy comes from through voting. This is something special that we haven’t seen with any other company.

Who are Octopus Energy?

Octopus Energy, although not the biggest energy company in the UK, has managed to gain about 5 million customers since starting in 2016.

It invests heavily in green energy and claims to try to give its customers renewable energy at a good price.

Octopus has also helped out by taking in customers from other energy companies that have shut down recently, like Bulb and Avro Energy.

Octopus Energy vs So Energy: What’s the difference in price?

We compared Octopus Energy and So Energy with a head-to-head comparison to see which offers the best value for money across all tariffs.

For each comparison, 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 East Midlands

Let’s see if Octopus Energy is cheaper than So Energy or vice versa.

So Energy

So Energy offered us two tariffs on its website, one fixed tariff and one variable:

Octopus

We used the same details to get a price from Octopus Energy.

Here are the prices it offers:

What’s the difference in tariff options?

Here we compare the tariffs which Octopus and So Energy offer their new customers.

Firstly, let us look at So Energy’s options:

So Energy

Octopus

At this time, Octopus is offering three tariffs:

Who has better customer reviews?

We checked out customer reviews for Octopus Energy and So Energy on Trustpilot to see how these energy companies compare in terms of service and how they treat their customers.

We chose Trustpilot for our comparison because it has the most reviews for each that are written by real customers.

Here is what we found:

• So Energy scores 4.0 out of 5 based on over 16,000 reviews (source)
• Octopus score 4.8 out of 5 based on over 245,000 reviews (source)

14% of So Energy customers gave them a 1-star rating on Trustpilot, and 73% of reviewers gave them a 5-star rating.

Octopus come off much better when being reviewed by their customers. With 89% of their customers giving them a 5-star excellent rating. Most customers state they always receive friendly service, and their queries are quickly resolved.

Who has the better app?

Here we normally compare both suppliers’ apps to see if one is better than the other. So Energy does not have an app on either iOS or Android, so it is not possible to review their app!

Octopus Energy offers an app for both iOS and Google Play, and it has received widespread acclaim from users on both platforms. The iOS app boasts an impressive rating of 4.8 out of 5 from more than 88,000 reviews, while the Android version has a strong rating of 4.5 out of 5 from over 17,000 reviews.

These apps enable users to fully manage their accounts, including bill payments, usage monitoring, and submitting meter readings for those without smart meters.

A unique feature of the app is its support for ‘Savings Sessions.‘ Users can get notifications about when these sessions are set to occur, register to participate, and even track the amount of energy they save through the app.

Octopus vs So Energy: Who has the better customer service?

On the Citizens Advice website, you can see how energy suppliers perform in key areas when it comes to customer service. These stats are updated by Citizens Advice every quarter.

Below, we have picked out the key stats for these two suppliers:

What are the main differences between the two?

We’ve looked in detail at how each supplier performs in the key areas you need to know when switching suppliers. Below is a summary of our findings:

Is Octopus Energy better than So Energy?

In our opinion, Octopus Energy is likely to be the better option for most people looking to switch energy suppliers. It offers better tariff options and cheaper prices, has an app and has better customer reviews and customer service.