Octopus review

Updated September 30, 2026 · TariffCue Editorial Team · Facts checked September 30, 2026

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Our verdict

Octopus suits households with an electric car or a smart meter that can move their usage to the cheapest windows. It scores 8.7 overall, spreads across variable, fixed and tracker, and charges an exit fee of £50 on its smart plans.

Key facts

Best for
EV owners with a smart meter who want cheap off peak charging.
Fixed terms
12 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Exit fee
£50 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Renewable share
86.4% (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Renewable basis
Ppa (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
EV off-peak rate
£0.080 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Export rate
£0.12 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Smart meter required
Yes (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Markets
GB, DE, ES, FR, IT, JP, NZ, US (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Legal entity
Octopus Energy Ltd (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Headquarters
United Kingdom (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Founded
2016 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Support channels
Email, Phone, Help-centre (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Tariff types
Variable, Fixed, Tracker, Ev, Time of use, Dynamic, Green
Fuels
Electricity, Gas
Official website
octopus.energy

EV charging

Mobile app
Yes (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Markets
GB, DE, ES, FR, IT, JP, NZ, US (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Legal entity
Octopus Energy Ltd (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Headquarters
United Kingdom (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Founded
2016 (Source, checked September 30, 2026)
Support channels
Email, Phone, Help-centre (Source, checked September 30, 2026)

Apps and profiles

Get the app
Google Play
Elsewhere
TrustpilotLinkedInXinstagram.com

Pros and cons

Pros

  • The off peak rate of £0.08 on Intelligent Octopus Go is the single number that pulls EV owners across, and the export rate of £0.12 rewards households with panels or a battery.
  • Tariff choice runs wide with variable, fixed and tracker sold under one roof, so you can move between pricing shapes without changing supplier.
  • A power purchase agreement is the basis for the green tariffs, with 86.4% of the electricity matched to renewable generation.
  • Support runs on email, phone and help centre, and a mobile app is available, so a billing question rarely depends on a single route.
  • Trading as Octopus Energy Ltd and founded in 2016, the brand has an established record rather than a recent launch.

Cons

  • The exit fee of £50 ranks Octopus 22 of 29 on the brands compared, so leaving early is not cheap.
  • A smart meter is required, so the smart tariffs only suit homes already set up for one and the installation has to come first.
  • The Outgoing plan runs a fixed term of 12 months, so the export side of the deal carries a commitment with it.
  • Prepay is not among its variable, fixed and tracker, while electricity-ratings lists fixed, ev and time of use and includes that option.
Octopus

Ready to try Octopus?

Scored 8.7 / 10 by TariffCue.

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Who it suits

  • EV drivers with a smart meter who can charge overnight rather than during working hours.
  • Households ready to run washing, heating and the car on the cheaper windows of a smart tariff.
  • Readers who want electricity and gas from one supplier; Octopus covers electricity and gas.

Who should look elsewhere

  • Readers who want a shorter tariff choice to weigh: Powerpeers lists dynamic, fixed and variable.
  • Households that pay by prepay, since electricity-ratings lists fixed, ev and time of use and includes that option.
  • Anyone after a compact set of plans: Endesa lists fixed, time of use and ev and stops there.

Core features

Octopus backs its green tariffs with contracted generation rather than certificates bought afterwards, with 86.4% of its electricity matched under a power purchase agreement. If your home sends power back to the network, the export rate of £0.12 is the number that matters, because it sets what you are paid for each unit you push out. Metering does the rest of the work, so a smart meter is required before the smart plans will run. Without one, a fixed or tracker tariff is the more practical place to start, and you can revisit the smart options once a meter is in place.

Plans and prices

The standout number on the smart side is the off peak rate of £0.08 on Intelligent Octopus Go, which is why most electric car owners look here first. The cost sits on the other side of the same ledger: leaving that plan early means an exit fee of £50. If your usage pattern is settled and your car is parked overnight, the cheaper window is worth more than the fee. If you may move house, change car or change routine, the fee matters more than the rate, and the trade-off is worth weighing before you move the supply across.

The company behind it

Octopus Energy Ltd is the legal name behind the brand, headquartered in the United Kingdom and founded in 2016. That length of trading record counts in a market where suppliers arrive and disappear, because billing, switching and smart meter data all have to keep working through years of customer churn. Support is reachable on email, phone and help centre: a written record by email, a conversation by phone, and self service through the help centre. There is a mobile app as well for usage and tariff settings.

How Octopus compares

Where Octopus is available

Available
France, Germany, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Spain, United Kingdom, United States

Countries from the brand (Source, checked September 30, 2026)

Frequently asked questions

What does it cost to leave an Octopus smart tariff?+

Leaving early on the smart plans costs an exit fee of £50, ranking Octopus 22 of 29 on exit fees among the brands compared. That is neither the cheapest way out nor the priciest. If you may move home during the term, add the fee to the cost of switching before you commit to the plan.

How cheap is off peak charging on an Octopus electric vehicle tariff?+

Intelligent Octopus Go charges £0.08 for off peak electricity. That is the figure that decides whether a smart electric vehicle tariff is worth it: if the car can sit on the drive overnight, the lower window compounds month after month, and charging in the busier hours works against the saving.

Do I need a smart meter to use Octopus tariffs?+

A smart meter is required for the smart plans, including the ones that deliver £0.08 off peak or £0.12 for power you send back to the network. If the home does not have one yet, that installation has to come first. Households on a fixed or tracker tariff are not affected by it.

What kinds of tariff does Octopus sell?+

Octopus sells electricity and gas alongside a broad set of tariffs: variable, fixed and tracker. That spread matters if you want to move between a variable, fixed or dynamic plan over time rather than settle on one pricing shape. It is wider than the fixed, time of use and ev listed by Endesa.

How long is the term on the export tariff?+

The Outgoing plan, which pays £0.12 for exported power, runs a fixed term of 12 months. So the export side of the offer is a commitment rather than a rolling arrangement, and the exit fee of £50 applies if you want out before the term ends.

Where does Octopus operate?+

The brand is headquartered in the United Kingdom and its market list runs to GB, DE and ES. Most of the public tariff detail sits with the UK operation, so anyone elsewhere on that list would want to confirm local terms, currency and fuels before switching. Availability is the first thing to check, then price.

Who is behind Octopus Energy and how long have they been trading?+

The legal entity is Octopus Energy Ltd, based in the United Kingdom and founded in 2016. A supplier that has traded for that long has usually run its billing and switching systems through real customer churn. That record is worth weighing beside any headline rate, since the price is one part of a long relationship.

How renewable is the electricity supply?+

86.4% of the electricity is matched to renewable generation, and the basis is a power purchase agreement, listed as ppa. Under that basis the renewable volume is agreed with a generator up front rather than covered with certificates afterwards. If green supply is the deciding factor, check the current figure when you sign up.

How do I get help from Octopus?+

Support runs on email, phone and help centre, so a billing question can go by email for a written record, by phone if you would rather talk it through, or through the help centre on your own. There is a mobile app too, which is where usage and tariff settings sit. More than one route helps on a smart plan where usage moves through the day.

Sources

  • octopus.energy checked September 30, 2026

    Backs: Fuels, Headquarters, Legal entity, Markets, Tariff types

    “Britain's fairest energy tariff for electricity, gas or both”

  • octopus.energy/about-us checked September 30, 2026

    Backs: Founded

    “In 2016, we were a tiny British energy supplier”

  • octopus.energy/contact-us checked September 30, 2026

    Backs: Support channels

    “Email us, Call us, Search our Faqs”

  • octopus.energy/green checked September 30, 2026

    Backs: Renewable basis, Renewable share

    “via contracts called Power Purchase Agreements, or PPAs”

  • octopus.energy/help-and-support checked September 30, 2026

    Backs: Mobile app

    “apps.apple.com/gb/app/octopus-energy/id1093452209”

  • octopus.energy/smart/intelligent-octopus-go checked September 30, 2026

    Backs: EV off-peak rate, Exit fee

    “from only 8p/kWh (8.4p/kWh until 1st Oct)”

  • octopus.energy/smart/outgoing checked September 30, 2026

    Backs: Export rate, Fixed terms, Smart meter required

    “12p per kWh for every unit you export”

Compiled from 7 source pages, checked September 30, 2026. We did not open an account.

Octopus

Octopus

EV owners with a smart meter who want cheap off peak charging.

8.7/10See alternatives

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