Energy · Ofgem

Energy

The Ofgem price cap, what it actually caps, and why your neighbour two counties over pays £90 a year more in standing charges.

Ofgem price cap, 1 Oct to 31 Dec 2026

£1,723/yr

Dual fuel, direct debit, at typical consumption. Announced 07:00 on 26 August 2026.

Change

+£60 (+4%)

Source: Ofgem

Standard credit

£1,861

+4%

Prepayment

£1,678

+4%

Economy 7, electricity only

£1,046

+1%

On fixed tariffs, unaffected

35%

Ofgem also cites 11m, on a different count

Two numbers make up your bill. The standing charge is a fixed daily fee you pay whether or not you use anything, about 55p a day for electricity, so roughly £200 a year before you switch a light on. The unit rate is what you pay for each unit you actually use, about 26p for electricity and 8p for gas. The price cap limits both of those. It does not cap your total bill, so if you use more than average you will pay more than the headline figure. More words explained →

Is yours normal?

Put in your total annual gas and electricity spend. It is worked out in your browser and sent nowhere.

I pay £ a year for total annual gas and electricity spend

The cap figure is what a typical household pays. If you use more than typical you will be above it, and that is arithmetic rather than a fault.

What you pay here depends on where you live. Put your postcode in and we will show your area's figure rather than the national one.

The next price cap

1 January to 31 March 2027. The three dates that matter, counting down live.

84days 18 November 2026

The observation window shuts. After this the wholesale cost is fixed and the number is effectively known. expected, on Ofgem's quarterly pattern

91days 25 November 2026

Ofgem announces. Usually about a week after the window shuts, at 07:00. expected, on Ofgem's quarterly pattern

128days 1 January 2027

It reaches your bill. This date is certain.

Why a live gas price would not help you

Ofgem does not set the cap from today's gas price. It uses an observation window that closes about two months before the period starts, so the wholesale price this week lands on bills in roughly three to six months, not now. That is why a live wholesale ticker tells you almost nothing about your next bill, and why the date the window shuts is the date worth watching.

What actually moves it

Wholesale gas, which is the largest single component but a shrinking share of the bill
Network charges, which are rising and are set separately
Policy levies, including the nuclear regulated asset base charge
The zero rate of VAT on electricity, which ends on 31 March 2027 and is worth about £45 a year

Forecast for this periodNone published yetNobody credible has forecast this period. When somebody does, it appears here with a date and a name against it.

How much a forecast is worth, by the way

For the October 2026 cap, Cornwall Insight's final forecast was £1,729.31. Ofgem set £1,723. £6 out, about a third of one percent.

Forecasts are unreliable early and accurate late, because they firm up as the observation window fills. Anything published today about January is a guess. The final forecast lands the day the window shuts.

Cheapest tariffs where you live

42 electricity tariffs from 1 supplier, ranked by what a year actually costs, not by the unit rate alone. A low unit rate with a high standing charge is a worse deal and this ordering catches that.

Fetched 2026-08-26 19:20 UTC · octopus

Not the whole market yet

Only Octopus Energy publishes tariff data we can fetch for free, so this is one supplier and not the whole market. We would rather show you one supplier honestly than imply we have checked everybody.

Why these are not lined up against the cap figures above

These are the prices you would pay today, with VAT at 5%. On 1 October two things happen at once: a new price cap starts, and VAT on household electricity drops to 0%. The cap table higher up this page is already on the new footing, these tariffs are not, so putting the two side by side would flatter one of them. We would rather show you the ranking, which is sound, and tell you plainly why the comparison is missing.

Show me or find my region from my postcode →

Estimated annual cost is the standing charge for a year plus 2,500 kWh of electricity at the unit rate, which is Ofgem's typical consumption. Electricity only, and your own use decides your bill.

#	Supplier and tariff	Unit rate	Standing	Estimated year	What kind of tariff
1	Octopus Energy Octopus 18M Fixed New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	23.58p per kWh	50.31p per day	£773 a year, typical use	Cheapest here Fixed price
2	Octopus Energy Flexible Octopus	26.49p per kWh	50.31p per day	£846 a year, typical use	Variable, moves with the cap
3	Octopus Energy Octopus 12M Fixed Low Standing Charge New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	29.22p per kWh	32.51p per day	£849 a year, typical use	Fixed price
1	Octopus Energy Octopus 18M Fixed New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	24.73p per kWh	50.66p per day	£803 a year, typical use	Cheapest here Fixed price
2	Octopus Energy Octopus 12M Fixed Low Standing Charge New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	30.44p per kWh	32.85p per day	£881 a year, typical use	Fixed price
3	Octopus Energy Flexible Octopus	27.85p per kWh	50.66p per day	£881 a year, typical use	Variable, moves with the cap
1	Octopus Energy Octopus 18M Fixed New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	24.28p per kWh	41.50p per day	£758 a year, typical use	Cheapest here Fixed price
2	Octopus Energy Octopus 12M Fixed Low Standing Charge New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	29.90p per kWh	23.69p per day	£834 a year, typical use	Fixed price
3	Octopus Energy Flexible Octopus	27.81p per kWh	41.50p per day	£847 a year, typical use	Variable, moves with the cap
1	Octopus Energy Octopus 18M Fixed New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	26.08p per kWh	67.47p per day	£898 a year, typical use	Cheapest here Fixed price
2	Octopus Energy Octopus 12M Fixed Low Standing Charge New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	32.01p per kWh	49.66p per day	£982 a year, typical use	Fixed price
3	Octopus Energy Flexible Octopus	29.20p per kWh	76.20p per day	£1,008 a year, typical use	Variable, moves with the cap
1	Octopus Energy Octopus 18M Fixed New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	23.87p per kWh	61.00p per day	£819 a year, typical use	Cheapest here Fixed price
2	Octopus Energy Flexible Octopus	26.63p per kWh	61.00p per day	£888 a year, typical use	Variable, moves with the cap
3	Octopus Energy Octopus 12M Fixed Low Standing Charge New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	29.61p per kWh	43.19p per day	£898 a year, typical use	Fixed price
1	Octopus Energy Octopus 18M Fixed New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	25.27p per kWh	44.32p per day	£794 a year, typical use	Cheapest here Fixed price
2	Octopus Energy Flexible Octopus	27.58p per kWh	44.32p per day	£851 a year, typical use	Variable, moves with the cap
3	Octopus Energy Octopus 12M Fixed Low Standing Charge New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	30.96p per kWh	26.51p per day	£871 a year, typical use	Fixed price
1	Octopus Energy Octopus 18M Fixed New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	25.09p per kWh	54.26p per day	£825 a year, typical use	Cheapest here Fixed price
2	Octopus Energy Octopus 12M Fixed Low Standing Charge New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	30.84p per kWh	36.45p per day	£904 a year, typical use	Fixed price
3	Octopus Energy Flexible Octopus	27.89p per kWh	62.50p per day	£925 a year, typical use	Variable, moves with the cap
1	Octopus Energy Octopus 18M Fixed New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	25.09p per kWh	51.16p per day	£814 a year, typical use	Cheapest here Fixed price
2	Octopus Energy Flexible Octopus	28.15p per kWh	51.16p per day	£890 a year, typical use	Variable, moves with the cap
3	Octopus Energy Octopus 12M Fixed Low Standing Charge New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	30.83p per kWh	33.35p per day	£892 a year, typical use	Fixed price
1	Octopus Energy Octopus 18M Fixed New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	24.95p per kWh	54.55p per day	£823 a year, typical use	Cheapest here Fixed price
2	Octopus Energy Flexible Octopus	27.80p per kWh	54.55p per day	£894 a year, typical use	Variable, moves with the cap
3	Octopus Energy Octopus 12M Fixed Low Standing Charge New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	30.70p per kWh	36.75p per day	£902 a year, typical use	Fixed price
1	Octopus Energy Octopus 18M Fixed New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	25.23p per kWh	54.60p per day	£830 a year, typical use	Cheapest here Fixed price
2	Octopus Energy Octopus 12M Fixed Low Standing Charge New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	31.00p per kWh	36.80p per day	£909 a year, typical use	Fixed price
3	Octopus Energy Flexible Octopus	27.86p per kWh	63.44p per day	£928 a year, typical use	Variable, moves with the cap
1	Octopus Energy Octopus 18M Fixed New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	24.73p per kWh	46.41p per day	£788 a year, typical use	Cheapest here Fixed price
2	Octopus Energy Octopus 12M Fixed Low Standing Charge New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	30.40p per kWh	28.61p per day	£864 a year, typical use	Fixed price
3	Octopus Energy Flexible Octopus	27.89p per kWh	46.41p per day	£867 a year, typical use	Variable, moves with the cap
1	Octopus Energy Octopus 18M Fixed New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	24.55p per kWh	60.89p per day	£836 a year, typical use	Cheapest here Fixed price
2	Octopus Energy Octopus 12M Fixed Low Standing Charge New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	30.34p per kWh	43.08p per day	£916 a year, typical use	Fixed price
3	Octopus Energy Flexible Octopus	27.29p per kWh	69.35p per day	£935 a year, typical use	Variable, moves with the cap
1	Octopus Energy Octopus 18M Fixed New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	23.84p per kWh	56.42p per day	£802 a year, typical use	Cheapest here Fixed price
2	Octopus Energy Octopus 12M Fixed Low Standing Charge New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	29.54p per kWh	38.62p per day	£879 a year, typical use	Fixed price
3	Octopus Energy Flexible Octopus	26.74p per kWh	64.95p per day	£906 a year, typical use	Variable, moves with the cap
1	Octopus Energy Octopus 18M Fixed New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	23.81p per kWh	61.09p per day	£818 a year, typical use	Cheapest here Fixed price
2	Octopus Energy Octopus 12M Fixed Low Standing Charge New sign ups close 27 Aug 26	29.55p per kWh	43.28p per day	£897 a year, typical use	Fixed price
3	Octopus Energy Flexible Octopus	26.72p per kWh	69.86p per day	£923 a year, typical use	Variable, moves with the cap

Ranked on annual cost, never on what anyone pays us. We take no commission on energy at all. The order you see is the order the arithmetic produces.

What you might be owed

Routinely unclaimed. We do not administer any of these and take nothing for pointing at them.

Warm Home Discount

£150 off your electricity bill as a credit, or a voucher on prepayment

On a means tested benefit, with your name on the electricity bill, on the qualifying date of 23 August 2026. Reopens October 2026. Not available in Northern Ireland.

Winter Fuel Payment

£100 to £300 depending on age band and household

State Pension age. Qualifying week 21 to 27 September 2026. Clawed back through tax above £35,000 income.

Cold Weather Payment

£25 per seven day period at 0°C or below

On certain benefits. The 2026/27 dates have not yet been published.

If you cannot pay

Knowing what a bill should cost is no use if you cannot afford it. None of this costs anything and none of it goes through us.

Tell your supplier before you miss a payment

They are obliged to work with you. Ask for an affordable repayment plan, a review of your direct debit, or Fuel Direct, where payments come straight from your benefits. They cannot refuse to discuss it.

Get on the Priority Services Register

Free, from your supplier and your network operator. Gets you advance warning of interruptions, priority in a power cut, help reading your meter, and protection from disconnection if you are of pension age or have a long term illness. You do not have to be on benefits.

You cannot be disconnected in winter if you are vulnerable

Suppliers signed up to a commitment not to knowingly disconnect households with children under 16 or a pensioner between 1 October and 31 March.

Ask your council about the Household Support Fund

Money distributed by councils for food, energy and essentials. Every council runs it differently and most people have never heard of it.

Escalate to the Energy Ombudsman

Free. If your supplier has not resolved a complaint in eight weeks, or has issued a deadlock letter, the Ombudsman can order it to put things right.

Free debt advice, from people who are not selling anything. Citizens Advice, StepChange and National Debtline are all free, confidential and independent. Never pay a company for debt advice you can get from any of these for nothing.

What you need to know

The things that stop the headline figure being misread.

The cap limits unit rates and standing charges on default tariffs. It does not cap your bill. Use more, pay more.
£1,723 is an illustration at typical consumption, not a maximum. Ofgem cut its typical consumption assumption on 1 July 2026 to 2,500 kWh electricity and 9,500 kWh gas, down from 2,700 and 11,500.
That change is a trap in the numbers. April to June was £1,641 on the old assumption. You cannot read £1,641 to £1,663 to £1,723 as a cash series, because the middle figure is measured differently.
Gas bills rise about 8% this period. Electricity is broadly flat because VAT on domestic electricity was cut from 5% to 0%.
The cap covers England, Scotland and Wales. Northern Ireland has no Ofgem cap and is regulated separately by the Utility Regulator.
Where the money goes on a direct debit bill: wholesale 47%, networks 24%, operating and debt costs 17%, policy 6%, supplier profit 2.7%. The remaining 3.3% is VAT on gas, headroom and levelisation.
Suppliers must now offer at least one lower standing charge tariff. Ofgem itself warns this is unlikely to cut bills, because the unit rate goes up instead.

What is changing, and when

Already dated. Nothing here is a forecast.

36days 1 October 2026 · Energy

The October price cap takes effect at £1,723, and VAT on domestic electricity drops from 5% to 0% across Great Britain.

36days 1 October 2026 · Energy

Warm Home Discount reopens for winter 2026/27 at £150.

128days 1 January 2027 · Energy

The January to March 2027 price cap takes effect. Ofgem has not published the announcement date.

217days 31 March 2027 · Energy

The zero rate of VAT on electricity ends and reverts to 5%. Worth about £45 a year, a built in April bill rise with nothing to do with wholesale prices.

The detail

The full published figures, for anyone who wants to check our working or find their own line.

Unit rates and standing charges, 1 Oct to 31 Dec 2026

GB average, VAT inclusive. Electricity VAT is 0% this period, gas remains at 5%. The direct debit row is published by Ofgem. The standard credit and prepayment rows are derived from Ofgem's statutory cap tables, averaged across the 14 regions; the method reproduces the published direct debit figures to the penny.

Scroll sideways to see every column

Payment method	Fuel	Unit rate	Standing charge	Source
Direct debit	Electricity	26.32p/kWh	54.83p/day	Published
Direct debit	Gas	7.97p/kWh	29.68p/day	Published
Standard credit	Electricity	27.80p/kWh	63.49p/day	Derived
Standard credit	Gas	8.39p/kWh	37.49p/day	Derived
Prepayment	Electricity	25.52p/kWh	54.83p/day	Derived
Prepayment	Gas	7.70p/kWh	29.68p/day	Derived

Electricity standing charge by region, direct debit

Pence per day, 1 Oct to 31 Dec 2026, VAT at 0%. Derived from Ofgem's cap tables. The spread between the cheapest and dearest region is 58%, or about £90 a year, for identical electricity.

Scroll sideways to see every column

Region	Standing charge	Unit rate
London	42.92p	26.60p
North Western England	45.68p	26.49p
Southern England	47.81p	26.47p
East Midlands	51.45p	25.36p
Eastern England	51.84p	26.61p
South Eastern England	52.32p	26.88p
Northern Scotland	55.14p	26.35p
Southern Wales	55.41p	26.55p
South Western England	55.58p	26.58p
West Midlands	57.23p	25.60p
Southern Scotland	61.41p	26.11p
North Eastern England	61.58p	25.46p
Yorkshire	61.67p	25.60p
Merseyside and Northern Wales	67.66p	27.86p

Recent changes

The whole log →

26 Aug 26Increase

EnergyOfgemEffective 1 Oct 26 Link

Energy price cap rises 4% to £1,723 from October

Announced at 07:00 this morning. The cap for 1 October to 31 December 2026 is £1,723 a year for a typical dual fuel direct debit household, up £60 from £1,663. Gas bills rise about 8%; electricity is broadly flat because VAT on domestic electricity is being cut from 5% to 0% at the same moment. Standard credit goes to £1,861 and prepayment to £1,678. About 35% of households are on fixed tariffs and are unaffected.

At least one tariff site is currently publishing £1,935 for this period. Ofgem's own press release and its summary of changes both say £1,723.

Source: Ofgem

Where this comes from, and where it could be wrong

Known limits of this page

The date Ofgem will announce the January to March 2027 cap is not published. The quarterly pattern suggests late November, but we will not state a date we cannot source.

The standard credit and prepayment unit rates on this page are derived from Ofgem's statutory tables rather than published directly in that form. The method reproduces every published figure exactly, but it is derived and labelled as such.

Sources

30 price changes logged. Every one had a date you could have known in advance.

Tell us which bills you care about and we will email you when one of them changes, with the figure, the date it starts and a link to the regulator that set it. Free, no account, one click to stop.

Email alerts are not running yet. We would rather say that than take your address and send you nothing. Until they are, the change log carries every dated change the day we find it, and you can bookmark it or follow it in a reader.

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Ranked on costNever on what a link pays us

SourcedEvery figure links to the body that set it