Which is the best Octopus tariff to be on?
There is no single Octopus tariff that is cheapest for every household.
The best choice depends on what equipment you own, when you use electricity and how much effort you want to put into moving demand into cheaper periods.
As a starting point:
| Your household | Octopus tariff to consider |
|---|---|
| Compatible EV or charger | Intelligent Octopus Go |
| EV without smart integration | Octopus Go |
| Flexible household without an EV | Agile Octopus |
| Heat pump | Cosy Octopus, Agile or a suitable fixed tariff |
| Solar panels and home battery | Flux, Intelligent Octopus Flux or another import and export combination |
| Wants simple, predictable prices | Octopus fixed tariff |
| Wants prices linked more closely to wholesale energy | Octopus Tracker |
| Does not want to monitor prices | Fixed or Flexible Octopus |
That is only a starting point.
A tariff with the cheapest headline rate can still be expensive if most of your electricity is used during its higher-priced periods.
If you have compared the options and decided Octopus suits your household, you can use my referral link below:
Join Octopus and receive £50 account credit
The new customer and I currently receive £50 account credit after a qualifying switch.
Which Octopus tariff is best for me?
The easiest way to narrow down the choice is to answer a few questions.
Do you have an electric vehicle?
Start by looking at Intelligent Octopus Go or Octopus Go.
Intelligent Octopus Go is usually the stronger option where your vehicle or charger is compatible and you are happy for Octopus to schedule charging.
Octopus Go is a simpler alternative that works with any EV and charger and provides a fixed five-hour cheap period overnight.
Do you have a heat pump?
Compare Cosy Octopus, Agile, fixed tariffs and any EV tariff you may also qualify for.
Do not assume that a heat-pump tariff is automatically best simply because you own a heat pump.
The result depends on:
- Heat-pump efficiency
- Daytime electricity use
- Cheap-rate periods
- Peak rates
- Hot-water timing
- Home battery capacity
- Whether the house can coast through expensive periods
- Comfort requirements
Do you have solar panels and a battery?
Compare the import and export rates together.
Flux and Intelligent Octopus Flux are designed around charging a battery when electricity is cheaper and exporting during the more expensive evening period.
However, a separate import tariff and Outgoing Octopus export tariff may produce a better result for some homes.
Can you avoid electricity use from 4pm to 7pm?
Agile may be worth considering.
Agile electricity prices change every half hour and follow wholesale market conditions. Prices can be cheap or occasionally negative, but expensive periods often occur during high national demand.
Do you prefer predictable bills?
A fixed tariff may be the better choice.
It may not have the lowest possible price, but it removes the need to monitor daily or half-hourly rates.
What is the cheapest Octopus tariff?
There is no permanent answer.
Different Octopus tariffs can claim the cheapest rate in different ways:
- Intelligent Octopus Go may have the cheapest fixed EV charging period.
- Agile can produce extremely cheap half-hour slots.
- Tracker can become attractive when wholesale prices fall.
- Cosy provides several discounted periods for electric heating.
- Flux can reward battery export during peak hours.
- A fixed tariff can be cheaper overall for someone who cannot avoid expensive smart-tariff periods.
The cheapest individual rate is not the same as the cheapest annual tariff.
To compare properly, include:
- Cheap unit rate
- Standard or peak unit rate
- Number of cheap hours
- Standing charge
- Percentage of electricity you can shift
- Gas rate, where relevant
- Export income
- Battery losses
- Referral credit
- Any equipment or compatibility requirements
Do not choose a tariff from one headline price.
Which Octopus tariff is best for an electric vehicle?
For most compatible EV households, Intelligent Octopus Go is the first tariff to examine.
Octopus schedules the car or charger automatically and applies the off-peak rate to qualifying smart charging.
The tariff currently provides up to six hours of off-peak smart charging per day, with a core overnight period for the whole home. Charging outside the permitted smart schedule or using a manual bump charge can be billed at the normal daytime rate.
It is most likely to suit households that:
- Have a compatible vehicle or charger
- Charge regularly at home
- Can use appliances overnight
- Have a home battery
- Accept Octopus scheduling the EV charge
- Understand the daily smart-charging allowance
You can read the full guide and see regional rates here:
Intelligent Octopus Go tariff guide
What if my car or charger is not compatible?
Octopus Go may be the simpler option.
It works with any EV and charger and provides five hours of cheaper electricity from 00:30 to 05:30 each night.
The trade-off is that it does not provide the wider automated smart-charging system available through Intelligent Octopus Go.
Is an EV tariff cheapest for the whole house?
Not always.
An EV tariff can be excellent for charging the car but less attractive if the household uses large amounts of electricity during the daytime rate.
Calculate the whole-home cost, not just the cost of driving.
Which Octopus tariff is best for a heat pump?
Cosy Octopus is designed specifically for heat-pump and electric-boiler households.
It provides eight discounted hours spread across three periods each day. It also has a higher-priced peak period, so the result depends on how much electricity you use in each window.
Cosy is worth considering where:
- The heat pump can preheat during cheaper periods
- The home retains heat reasonably well
- Hot water can be scheduled cheaply
- Peak use can be reduced without harming comfort
- The heat pump maintains good efficiency while following the schedule
It may be less attractive where:
- The house cools quickly
- Heating demand is high during the peak period
- Recovery requires a higher flow temperature
- The heat pump is switched off for too long
- The standard rate is expensive relative to alternatives
Octopus says its Cosy heat-pump customers have achieved average annual performance close to an SPF of 3.8, although individual homes vary.
Could Agile be better for a heat pump?
Yes.
Agile can work well where the home has:
- A well-performing heat pump
- A battery
- Good thermal storage
- Flexible hot-water timing
- Automated controls
- The ability to avoid expensive half-hour periods
But Agile prices are unpredictable. A cold day combined with expensive wholesale electricity can produce high heating costs.
Could Intelligent Octopus Go be better?
Possibly, where the household also owns an EV.
A home with an EV, heat pump and battery may make good use of the overnight off-peak period.
However, most space heating happens outside those hours. You must include the daytime rate and any additional electricity bought during cold weather.
My heat-pump tariff view
A tariff cannot compensate for a poorly designed heat-pump system.
The first priorities are:
- Correct heat-loss calculation
- Appropriate heat-pump sizing
- Low flow temperatures
- Correctly sized radiators
- Sensible controls
- Good seasonal efficiency
Only then should tariff optimisation be used to reduce costs further.
You can compare the main options here:
Best electricity tariffs for heat pumps
Looking for a heat pump installer?
If you are still choosing a heat pump installer, my Trusted Heat Pump Installers website includes a hand-picked mix of national and independent companies.
Browse Trusted Heat Pump Installers
Octopus Energy is included as one national option.
The dedicated Octopus page explains its current customer offer, installation approach and the main questions to ask before accepting a quote:
Octopus Energy heat pump referral and installer details
A good tariff matters, but the installer and system design will have a much larger effect on long-term heat-pump performance.
Which Octopus tariff is best for solar panels?
Solar panels alone do not determine the best import tariff.
The answer also depends on:
- Whether you have a battery
- How much solar you use directly
- How much you export
- Whether you can move demand into daylight hours
- Your export tariff
- Your winter electricity use
- Whether you own an EV or heat pump
A solar household without a battery may benefit from:
- A competitive standard or smart import tariff
- An export tariff such as Outgoing Octopus
- Moving washing, dishwashing and hot water into sunny periods
Octopus describes Outgoing Octopus as its straightforward export option, paying a fixed amount for exported electricity. Current rates and compatible import tariffs can change.
The best solar result increasingly comes from balancing import cost, export income and self-consumption rather than chasing the highest export rate alone.
Which Octopus tariff is best for a home battery?
A battery gives you more options because it can move electricity between cheap and expensive periods.
Possible choices include:
- Intelligent Octopus Go
- Agile
- Flux
- Intelligent Octopus Flux
- Cosy
- A fixed time-of-use tariff
Flux
Flux combines import and export pricing.
It provides a cheaper battery-charging period and a higher evening import and export period. It can suit households willing to schedule the battery themselves.
Intelligent Octopus Flux
Intelligent Flux allows Octopus to manage a compatible battery.
Octopus charges and exports the battery according to its tariff and grid requirements. It is only available with supported battery systems.
Intelligent Octopus Go
This may work well where the household has both an EV and battery.
The battery can charge during the cheaper overnight period and reduce daytime imports.
Check the battery’s round-trip efficiency before assuming that every cheap unit can be sold or used later at a profit.
Which Octopus tariff is best without an EV, solar or battery?
A standard fixed tariff, Flexible Octopus, Tracker or Agile may be more relevant.
Fixed tariff
Best for someone who wants known unit rates for an agreed period.
The main questions are:
- How the fix compares with the current variable tariff
- Expected Energy Price Cap changes
- Exit fees
- Contract duration
- Whether prices are likely to fall
Flexible Octopus
This is Octopus’s standard variable tariff.
Rates can change, generally in response to the Energy Price Cap.
It is straightforward but may not be the cheapest available choice.
Tracker
Tracker follows wholesale electricity and gas prices using daily rates.
It can respond more quickly when wholesale costs fall, but customers are also exposed more quickly when markets rise.
Agile
Agile may suit a household without specialist equipment if it can still avoid expensive periods and move appliances into cheaper half hours.
It requires more attention than a conventional tariff.
Agile vs Tracker: which is better?
Agile and Tracker both follow wholesale markets, but they behave differently.
| Feature | Agile | Tracker |
| Price changes | Every half hour | Daily |
| Main opportunity | Move use into cheap slots | Benefit from lower daily wholesale prices |
| Main risk | Expensive peak half hours | Expensive whole days |
| Best suited to | Highly flexible electricity users | People wanting wholesale-linked prices without half-hour scheduling |
| Automation helpful | Yes | Less important |
Agile gives more opportunity to optimise, but also needs more work.
Tracker is simpler, but you cannot avoid a high daily electricity rate by waiting until later that same day.
Both tariffs can respond quickly to volatile wholesale markets. Octopus highlighted this risk during wholesale price rises in March 2026.
Is Agile Octopus worth it?
Agile is worth considering if you can:
- Avoid the evening peak
- Schedule appliances
- Charge a battery cheaply
- Delay EV charging
- Heat water during low-price periods
- Monitor half-hourly prices
- Accept that prices vary
It may not suit you if:
- Most use occurs between 4pm and 7pm
- You want predictable bills
- You do not have a working smart meter
- You cannot move heating or cooking
- Price monitoring would become a burden
Agile can be excellent in the right home and expensive in the wrong one.
See Agile Octopus prices and history
Is Octopus Tracker worth it?
Tracker can suit someone who:
- Wants prices linked to wholesale markets
- Does not want to manage half-hourly slots
- Accepts daily price changes
- Checks regularly whether the tariff remains competitive
- Understands that previous savings may not continue
Do not join Tracker based on historical prices alone.
Wholesale-linked tariffs can change direction quickly.
See the Octopus Tracker tariff guide
Which Octopus tariff is best for existing customers?
Existing customers should review their tariff whenever:
- A fixed tariff ends
- Octopus launches a new product
- Their equipment changes
- They buy an EV
- They install solar or a battery
- They install a heat pump
- Export rates change
- Wholesale prices rise or fall
- Their household usage pattern changes
Octopus says customers can normally compare and change available tariffs through the online account.
Do not assume the tariff that was best last year remains the best today.
Can I switch between Octopus tariffs?
Usually, yes, subject to eligibility and tariff availability.
Some smart tariffs require:
- A working smart meter
- Half-hourly meter readings
- A compatible EV
- A compatible charger
- A supported battery
- A heat pump
- Successful device integration
- Consent for Octopus to control or schedule equipment
Dynamic and smart tariffs may also have specific joining rules or waiting periods.
Check the current tariff terms before switching.
Do Octopus tariffs have exit fees?
Exit-fee rules vary by tariff and contract.
Many smart tariffs have no exit fee, but fixed tariffs can have their own conditions.
Check the tariff summary before joining rather than relying on a general statement about Octopus.
How should I compare Octopus tariffs?
Use your own annual energy figures where possible.
For each tariff, calculate:
Electricity import cost
Multiply consumption in each time period by the relevant rate.
Gas cost
Include gas use, gas unit rate and standing charge where applicable.
Standing charges
Add the full annual standing charge.
Export income
Estimate how much solar energy you genuinely export.
Battery losses
Allow for electricity lost when charging and discharging.
Device limits
Account for smart-charging caps, compatibility restrictions and failed schedules.
Behaviour
Be realistic about how much energy your household will move.
A tariff is not cheaper if the calculation assumes a routine your household will not follow.
My own Octopus tariff experience
I have used and tested several Octopus tariffs alongside:
- Two electric vehicles
- Solar panels
- A home battery
- A heat pump
- Smart controls
- Detailed electricity monitoring
No tariff has remained the obvious winner forever.
The economics change when:
- Unit rates change
- Export rates change
- Smart-charging rules change
- Wholesale prices change
- Equipment is added
- Household use changes
- Battery arbitrage becomes more or less attractive
My approach is to choose the tariff that fits the equipment and usage I have now, rather than remaining loyal to one tariff indefinitely.
Should I switch to Octopus Energy?
Octopus is worth considering if you want access to a wide range of smart tariffs.
It is particularly relevant for households with:
- EVs
- Solar panels
- Batteries
- Heat pumps
- Flexible electricity use
- An interest in wholesale-linked pricing
But you should still compare the exact tariff against alternatives from other suppliers.
A £50 referral credit is useful, but it should not persuade you to choose a tariff that costs more over the year.
Join Octopus with £50 account credit
If you have compared the options and decided Octopus suits your household, you can join through my referral link:
Join Octopus and receive £50 account credit
Octopus currently gives the new customer and referrer £50 account credit after the new customer has switched and made their first successful Direct Debit payment.
Check that the referral offer is displayed when you begin the switch.
Final answer: which Octopus tariff is best?
For most households:
- EV: Intelligent Octopus Go
- EV without compatible smart charging: Octopus Go
- Heat pump: Compare Cosy, Agile and suitable fixed tariffs
- Solar and battery: Compare Flux, Intelligent Flux and separate import/export combinations
- Flexible household: Agile
- Wholesale-linked but simpler: Tracker
- Predictable pricing: Fixed tariff
- No specialist equipment: Compare fixed, Flexible, Tracker and Agile using your own consumption
The best tariff is the one that produces the lowest realistic annual cost for your home.
It is not necessarily the one with the cheapest advertised rate.
Referral disclosure
If you join Octopus Energy through my referral link, you receive the advertised account credit and I receive a referral reward.
You will not pay more for using the link.
The referral income supports Energy Stats UK, my independent tariff data and the Energy Unwrapped videos.
Tariff prices, conditions, compatibility and referral rewards can change. Check the current Octopus terms and regional rates before switching.
