Octopus Agile Tariff | Prices Today, Tomorrow and History

Octopus Agile Tariff – How Today’s and Tomorrow’s Prices Work

Octopus Agile is a time-of-use electricity tariff from Octopus Energy. Prices update every half hour, with today’s and tomorrow’s rates published daily after 4 pm.

It sits alongside Octopus Tracker, Octopus Cosy and Intelligent Octopus Go, each one designed for a different type of energy use.

Agile Octopus (its official name) directly tracks the wholesale market, passing prices through to customers every 30 minutes. It was the UK’s first mainstream tariff to do this, with a £1 / kWh cap to protect against price spikes.

Today’s and tomorrow’s prices

This page updates every evening after 4 pm with today’s and tomorrow’s Agile rates for all 14 UK regions. You can also look back through the full price history to see how rates have changed over time.

Because prices change every 30 minutes, Agile rewards anyone who can shift usage to cheaper periods, avoid the evening peak, or take advantage of those rare negative-pricing events when Octopus actually pays you to use electricity.

Octopus Agile At a glance

• Half-hourly prices update daily after 4 pm

• Tomorrow’s rates published each evening

• Price cap of £1 / kWh

• Negative pricing means you can sometimes get paid to use power

To join, you’ll need a SMETS2 or upgraded SMETS1 smart meter and an active Octopus Energy account.

Table of Contents

This article about the Agile Tariff is a comprehensive read, drawing on both data and hands-on testing.  Page updated December 2025.

Use the Table of Contents below to jump straight to the questions that matter most or scroll through at your own pace.

Why Live Agile Prices Matter – Half-hourly Updates & £1/kWh Cap

One of the biggest differences between Agile and a normal tariff is how often the prices change. Rates are set every half hour, following the wholesale market in real time. That means when grid demand drops or renewable output is high, prices can fall sharply, and sometimes even go negative.

The system rewards anyone who can shift their usage into those cheaper slots, whether that’s charging an EV overnight or running appliances during the day when wind output is high.

There’s also a safety net: a £1 per kWh cap that limits what you pay during price spikes. It’s rare to hit that level, but it keeps Agile predictable even in volatile markets.

How the Agile Tariff Works

• Half-hourly pricing: Every 30-minute slot has its own unit rate.

• Daily updates: Tomorrow’s rates are published after 4 PM.

• Dynamic pricing: Rates follow wholesale market changes, reflecting supply and demand.

• Plunge pricing: When renewable generation is high, rates can go negative – meaning you’re paid to use electricity.

• Price cap:  The tariff has a maximum rate (currently capped at £1/kWh under version AGILE-24-10-01).

In simple terms, Agile rates are calculated using the formula min(D × wholesale price + P, cap) — where D is your region’s cost multiplier, P is the 4–7 pm peak uplift, and the final rate is capped at £1/kWh including VAT.

This safeguard is called Price Cap Protect, ensuring you’ll never pay more than the capped unit rate.

The Agile tariff is ideal for:

• Solar PV owners

• EV drivers

• Homes with heat pumps or storage heaters

• Anyone who can shift usage away from the 4 PM – 7 PM peak

Agile and the Wholesale Market

Agile Octopus runs on half-hourly settlement, meaning your unit rates follow the wholesale cost of electricity in near real time. Each slot reflects the market price of generation, plus network charges (DUoS, TNUoS), balancing costs (BSUoS), and policy levies.

Because prices are tied directly to wholesale, Agile can deliver very low rates when renewables are abundant, and occasionally even negative prices (“plunge pricing”), while a built-in price cap safeguard protects against extreme spikes.

If you’d like to see how the math works, we’ve written a step-by-step guide showing how wholesale prices can be derived from Agile rates.  You can read the wholesale pricing explainer here.

Before You Switch to Octopus Agile: What You Need to Know

Take caution though as the wholesale market can be volatile with wild price swings, so please carefully read the warnings on the Octopus Energy website regarding this tariff.

There are a number of pre-configured graphs on this page to help show current and historical half-hourly rates. You can see looking back over the past year how the price can change.

Agile is not a “fire and forget” tariff. You really need to be heavily invested in monitoring the prices unless you have considerable automations in place.

If you do decide to change your supplier to Octopus Energy, then you can claim £50 of FREE credit when switching using my referral link.  Thank you if you decide to do that.

Key Things to Remember About Agile

• Prices change every 30-minute settlement period, based on the day-ahead wholesale electricity market.

• You’ll need a SMETS2 smart meter (or an upgraded SMETS1) for half-hourly readings.

• Agile sits alongside Octopus’s other smart tariffs, such as Tracker, Cosy, and Intelligent Go, plus export options like Outgoing Agile under the Smart Export Guarantee (SEG).

• Standing charges still apply, and a peak-time uplift (typically 4–7 PM) can make those slots more expensive than the average rate.

• Agile works best if you have flexible usage, e.g. EV charging, home batteries, or smart home automations to shift demand.

• Many customers also use smart home automations to make Agile easier to manage, from scheduling EV chargers and home batteries to linking with apps like IFTTT, Home Assistant, or Octopus Watch to automatically shift demand when prices are low.

Ready to Switch to Agile?

Octopus Agile Rates Today

You can check today’s Agile rates in two main ways:

1. By region: Each of the UK’s 14 DNO regions has its own rate chart.
2. Daily posts: Rates are shared on Energy-Stats UK’s social media (Twitter/X, Bluesky, Mastodon) with a graph showing today’s Agile prices.

Here is the latest daily price graph that was sent out via social media.

Octopus Agile Rates Tomorrow – Plan Ahead for Cheaper Energy

Tomorrow’s Agile rates are released after 4 PM each day. This advance notice allows you to plan energy-intensive activities, such as EV charging or heating water in the cheapest half-hour slots.

Follow @energystatsuk on Twitter / X, Bluesky and Mastodon for daily tariff graphs and updates.

Octopus Agile Price History by Region – Full Data Back to 2018

Energy Stats UK provides detailed historical Agile pricing data:

• View historical rates for all 14 UK regions.

• Access 7-day charts showing recent price trends.

• Download complete datasets in CSV format for analysis. Perhaps create your own agile rates spreadsheet.

• Create your own graphs with different timeframes via the User Configurable Dashboard feature.

Historical records are valuable for spotting patterns, such as cheaper overnight rates or seasonal shifts and for identifying when plunge pricing events have occurred.

Octopus Agile Pricing by UK Region

Tariff unit rates vary by DNO (district network operator) region due to varying local network costs.

The pricing for each of the different 14 UK DNO regions can found via these individual pages on the website:

Eastern England
East Midlands
London
Merseyside and Northern Wales
North Eastern England
North Western England
Northern Scotland
Southern England
South Eastern England
Southern Wales
South Western England
Southern Scotland
West Midlands
Yorkshire

Download Historical Tariff Pricing (CSV)

Explore today’s tariff rates across all 14 UK DNO regions from the separate region pages on the website.

If you wish to explore Octopus Agile Rates with different timeframes wider than those on this page, be sure to check out Energy Stats Dashboard feature.

You can download raw pricing data in CSV format via the Download Historical Data section, perfect for comparing daily energy rates or creating your own analytics.

Agile Price History, Last 7 days (West Midlands)

As an example of what you can get from the site, here’s the last 7 days pricing data from the West Midlands region.

Negative Pricing / Plunge Pricing – Why It Happens & How to Benefit

One of the most exciting and unusual features of the Octopus Agile tariff is negative pricing, also known as plunge pricing. This occurs when wholesale electricity supply significantly exceeds demand, often during periods of high renewable energy generation.

Why Does Negative Pricing Happen?

• Excess Renewable Generation: During particularly windy or sunny periods, renewable sources like wind and solar may produce more electricity than is needed. Rather than reduce generation, the grid passes on the surplus to consumers.

• Low Demand Windows: Times such as late night, weekends, or bank holidays often see a dip in electricity use. When demand is low but generation remains high, prices can dip below zero.

• Grid Balancing Challenges: Shutting down certain power plants can be technically difficult or expensive. In such cases, the system may pay consumers to use power instead of cutting generation.

• Market Dynamics: Electricity trading is very reactive to supply and demand imbalances. When supply far outpaces demand, prices can plunge below zero in wholesale markets.

What it Means for You

Agile Octopus is designed to pass on these negative price events directly to customers, meaning sometimes you get paid to use electricity!

These are not just theoretical: there are real plunge events logged—such as several hours of negative pricing during especially green periods.

See Plunge Pricing in Action

Want to explore how often (and how deeply) prices have gone negative?

See the full plunge pricing history page, which records the number and timing of these events across the UK and over time.

Another bonus is that Agile pricing often aligns with times when the grid is greener. Octopus matches all Agile electricity with REGOs (Renewable Energy Guarantee of Origin certificates), so your usage is backed by 100% renewable energy.

You can also set up alerts or notifications via the Octopus API or third-party apps so you never miss a plunge pricing event.

Comparing Octopus Agile with Other Smart Tariffs

Choosing the right Octopus tariff isn’t just about today’s price, it’s about matching your energy habits to the tariff that works best for you. The Octopus Agile follows daily wholesale prices, , every 30 minutes, but other smart tariffs might suit you better depending on when and how you use electricity.

Here’s why researching is worth your time:

• Maximise savings by aligning your usage with cheaper time periods.

• Reduce bill volatility if you prefer predictable rates over daily changes.

• Match your lifestyle, EV drivers, home workers, and heat pump owners often have different “best fit” tariffs.

Other Octopus smart tariffs to consider:

• Octopus Tracker – A single day rate that follows the wholesale market, ideal if you want less hands on management compared to Agile.

• Octopus Cosy – Designed for heat pump users with three low-cost periods each day.

• Octopus Intelligent Go – Perfect for EV owners, offering cheap overnight charging rates.

For a deep dive into how each of these tariffs works, and how to decide which one is best for you, check out our dedicated guide:
👉 Time of Use / Smart Tariffs – Compare All Options

By comparing side-by-side, you can find the tariff that balances cost, predictability, and convenience, making sure your energy plan works for you, not the other way around.

Comparison to EDF FreePhase Tariff

In late 2025 EDF brought out a new tariff called FreePhase.

This tariff works like Agile in that it’s driven by the same day ahead auction wholesale pricing, but rather than breaking the day down into 48 separate slots like Agile, there are just 4 times slots and 3 price bands on FreePhase.

See more detail over on the dedicated EDF FreePhase page.

FAQ: Agile Octopus Tariff & Rates

What are Octopus Agile rates today?

Octopus Agile prices change every 30 minutes across 14 UK regions. You can see today’s half-hourly rates right here on Energy Stats UK or in the Octopus Energy app.

What is the Octopus Agile kWh cost today?

Today’s Agile rates vary by region and time of day. Each 30-minute slot has its own price in pence per kWh, reflecting the wholesale electricity cost.

When are tomorrow’s Octopus Agile tariff prices published?

Tomorrow’s Agile prices are published daily after 4 pm. That gives you time to plan your usage around the cheapest periods.

Where can I view Octopus Agile price history by region?

You can browse the full price history for all 14 UK regions on Energy Stats UK. Charts, CSV downloads and data on negative pricing events are all available.

Can Octopus Agile tariff prices go negative?

Yes. When renewable output is high and demand is low, Agile prices can dip below zero — meaning Octopus pays you to use electricity.

What is the Octopus Agile price cap per kWh?

Agile prices are capped at £1 per kWh, so you’ll never pay more than that during spikes. Earlier versions of the tariff had lower caps, so check your contract if you joined before 2022.

How does Octopus Agile link to the wholesale market?

Prices are based directly on the day-ahead wholesale electricity market, with network charges, balancing costs and policy levies added on top.

Why do Octopus Agile prices vary between UK regions?

Regional differences come from network and transmission costs. Each of the 14 distribution areas has its own adjustment factor that slightly alters the price.

How is the Octopus Agile price calculated?

Agile prices follow the wholesale market with regional adjustments and a higher rate between 4 pm and 7 pm. The final value is always limited by the £1 per kWh cap.

Do I need a smart meter for Octopus Agile?

Yes. You’ll need a SMETS2 or upgraded SMETS1 smart meter so Octopus can record half-hourly readings. Without that, Agile isn’t available.

What export tariffs can I combine with Agile Import?

You can pair Agile Import with Agile Export, Outgoing Fixed or SEG export tariffs from other suppliers. Choose a fixed rate for simplicity or a dynamic one if you want wholesale-linked export prices.

Can I switch away from Octopus Agile if prices rise?

Yes, there are no exit fees. You can move to another Octopus smart tariff or a standard plan whenever you like, although the 30-day smart tariff rule applies.

Latest Agile Tariff Version & Pricing Updates