Average Cost of Electricity per kWh in the UK (2024)

According to official figures, the average electricity bill in the UK as determined by the energy price cap will be £1,690 per year for the typical household from 1 April, but this does not mean your energy bills are capped at £1,690! The cap is not actually a cap on the total figure one pays—the cap is per kWh (unit cost). So the £1,690 'cap' refers only to households with typical usage. Those using more energy will pay more than £1,690 per year. (And those using less energy will pay less than £1,690.)

What does this price cap mean on a per kWh basis? The new price cap was just announced for Q2 2024—the great news is that prices are coming down, at least a bit! For the three months from 1 April - 30 June 2024, the per unit direct debit costs will be capped at 24.5p/kWh for electricity and 6.0p/kWh for gas, inclusive of VAT—but standing rates rise a touch, to 60.1p/day for electricity and 31.4p/day for gas. This all means that the per kWh cost for electricity will drop 14% from April.

In this article

• Current electricity prices UK
• Comparing Current Energy Deals by Company
• NEW Custom Energy Report. Ever wonder how your energy bills compare to your neighbour's?
• Current and Historical Energy Prices in the UK
• Unit Cost of Electricity per kWh, by UK Region
• Future Electricity Prices

This article will explain what we know about current unit costs for electricity in the rapidly changing market. We'll also discuss historical electricity cost data so you can see just how much prices have risen, as well as see differences by region, household consumption and depending on how you pay: credit, direct debit or prepayment. But be aware that energy comparison providers across the board have paused their energy comparison so all you can do now is sign up to get an alert when deals are back (sign up to our newsletter below and we will send you an alert).

Electricity prices UK

The current price of electricity in the UK is 24.5p/kWh (variable cost) plus 60.1p/day (daily standing charge). These figures reflect the current Energy Price Cap (EPC) that runs from 1 April 2024 through 30 June 2024.

Comparing Energy Costs by Company

Most companies currently charge practically identical unit costs and standing charges right now—these tariffs are essentially the same because they're based on the EPC (£1,928 from 1 January to 31 March 2024).

So does it make any sense to switch—is there any way to save?

Maybe.

The majority of households are now on a variable tariff. But we know that prices have risen, and if this continues in 2024, then those on a variable tariff will pay even more—leading to rising energy bills AND the stress of that uncertainty.

In this case, one way to potentially save money and reduce uncertainly is to switch to a fixed tariff now. Fixed tariffs are hard to find, but we have just run some tests and found that while So Energy was offering the best fixed tariff, then British Gas, now it seems EDF has fixed tariffs for rates for cheaper than the EPC. Here's what they offered us for a sample postcode for the British Gas Price Promise May25 tariff—as you can see, the variable electricity tariff of 23.74p/kWh is nearly 5p/kWh cheaper than the current EPC (28.6p/kWh) and a touch cheaper than the EPC from 1 April (24.5p/kWh):

EDF Essentials 1Yr Mar25v6 sample tariff

Depending on details like your location and usage, you will get a different offer. The point is, they have a fixed tariff that can help you so you know exactly how much you'll pay per day and per kWh for the next year. It provides that security. And right now it is cheaper than variable!

Ever wonder how your energy bills compare to your neighbours'?

Get Your Personal Energy Report here! (See what it looks like here.)

Our energy calculator compares your gas and electricity bills to other households in your postcode. It also highlights ways you specifically could save money—e.g. perhaps your standing charge is higher than your neighbors are paying, so you could compare plans with more competitive standing charges.

Using official data, your customised report breaks down the average usage, price and standing charges where you live, and shows whether you're paying above or below the odds. All you need to do is enter a few details found on your utility bill and we'll do the rest. Get started below.

Unit Cost of Electricity per kWh, by UK Region

Did you know that electricity prices vary by region? The table below displays unit prices by UK area, with figures for 2021, 2022 and estimates by area since then for 2023 and 2024 according to the EPG and EPC.

Please note, these regional price estimates in the last three columns (based on EPC/EPG) are without VAT, which is charged at 5%. If you want the price including VAT for your area, multiply by 1.05. Prices reflect direct debit payment options.

1 April 2024 Unit and Standing Gas & Electric Costs (by region)

Below, we've consolidated the figures for gas and electric—both variable per kWh costs and daily standing charges—by region. The figures exclude VAT (charged at 5%) and are for a standard, single meter on direct debit for payments. Rates will vary by payment method and meter (e.g. direct debit is typically cheapest). For example, gas standing rates are on average 28p/day for direct debit, 33p/day for standard credit and 39p/day for prepayment meter.

Please note that these figures are a rough estimate; please use for educational purposes only as a guide—the actual per kWh charges will differ. We'll update this page when the actual figures are announced for each region.

Although for a number of years, Yorkshire has been home to the cheapest unit electricity rates; residents paid around 4% less than the average electricity cost per kWh in 2021 but we don't know yet how this compared in 2022.

If you want to see how much your monthly or annual energy bills might be, check out our new energy cost calculator—you can adjust the usage and per unit costs to customise for you, or see how different per unit prices will affect your bills.

1 January 2024 Unit and Standing Gas & Electric Costs (by region)

Here are the figures for the first quarter of 2024, based on the new EPC:

Current and Historical Energy Prices in the UK

From 1 April 2024, default energy tariffs for those paying by direct direct will cost £0.245 per kWh on average across the UK for electricity. This is a drop from the high of 34p/kWh back in 1 October 2022 - 30 March 2023.

Gas prices rose from 4p/kWh to 7p/kWh to 10p/kWh last year, but will be down to 6p/kWh from 1 April 2024.

While it's hard to miss the recent energy price explosion, in fact, energy prices have been rising for the past few years. For example, average unit costs had already risen a remarkable 67% from 2017 to 2021. This historical average unit cost data is based on total bills as produced by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy. We've used these figures which are based on fixed consumption rates to look at how unit electricity prices have changed over time, but since they are based on a fixed consumption rate you'll notice they differ from the figures shown in the region-by-region analysis.

These historical figures represent the average across all payment methods.

^The actual figures for 2023 will differ and can only be known after the time has passed; the estimate is for a direct debit payment method based on the EPC.

NEW POLL: How are recent energy price rises affecting you?

Please tell us how you're being affected by rising energy prices. Are you turning down the thermostat? Are you more careful of other household budget items like food? Or are you able to absorb the increased rates without having to make sacrifices to other areas of your budget or your comfort? We would like to know.

Energy Market Prices

The data above is historical, but in the current environment most of us want to know what's happening with energy prices now—and where they'll be in the future. A good tool for that is checking futures prices. Futures prices tell you where the market is pricing something in the future. (Read more about futures contracts at the end of the article, if you're interested.)

Let's consider the futures prices for UK natural gas. (Why natural gas? Electricity generation in the UK comes from many sources, such as natural gas, coal and renewables. Natural gas is the largest contributor to UK electricity generation, so natural gas prices have a big impact on electricity prices.)

For example, we could look at the December 2024 natural gas futures to get an idea of what prices are expected to be for next winter—if they're expected to be as bad as they have been, or any cheaper.

The chart below shows futures prices as of February 2024 in purple what the futures prices were back in August and November 2022 (light teal and orange, respectively) as well as August 2023 (bright blue). We've also included the historical close prices in gold (these are essentially the actual, historical wholesale costs at a given time). As you can see, the futures prices indicate that expectations for natural gas prices increased dramatically in August 2022 (light teal), but have dropped since. While it looks as though it could take many years to return to previous prices, wholesale prices seem to be at levels seen at various points in the 2010s.

Another reason that energy prices still feel very high right now is that we'd gotten used to lower electricity bills during the pandemic (as you can see via the futures price drop in 2020 in the chart above). With demand lower, prices dropped. Now, the rising prices feel even more shocking coming off of such low rates.

Why are energy prices so high right now?

Energy prices are high around the globe. It's not just the UK suffering from higher energy prices. There are a number of factors at play in addition to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Here's a quick overview:

However, rates vary according to how you pay. While Northern Ireland tops the charts for highest prices for direct debit options, those living in Merseyside & the South West paid the highest prices for electricity bills that work on credit (i.e. you pay when you receive your bill, typically every three months) and prepayment.

NEW POLL: Do you think the government should help?

How would you feel about the government subsidising energy bills above a certain point?

Standing (Fixed) Charges for Electricity in the UK

Below are electricity standing charges by region from 1 April 2024. The most expensive region has changed, from North Wales and Merseyside to the Northern area, where residents will pay an average of £247.5 per year for their standing electricity charge, according to the latest EPC announcement. This is 18% more than the UK average. A standing charge is like the line charge on your telephone—it's a fixed cost you'll pay regardless of how much energy you use.

The 2nd highest standing charges are in Yorkshire (£234.4) and the Southern Western area (£233.6).

Northern Ireland is the only area in the UK where you don't pay a standing charge on standard electricity contracts (however, time-of-use contracts like Economy 7 may have a standing charge in NI).

Interestingly, while London has the cheapest standing charge for electricity, capital residents pay the highest standing rates for gas (30.5p/day compared to 29.9p/day on average, pre-VAT).

Here's How Your Electricity Costs Change with Payment Type

How you pay for electricity (i.e., credit, direct debit or prepayment) will affect both your variable unit charges and your standing charges.

What's the cheapest way to pay for electricity?

Paying with a regular direct debit has historically been the cheapest way to buy electricity in the UK for quite a while; that is, direct debit contracts have the lowest variable unit prices on average.

Prepayment meters have historically had the highest standing (fixed) charges, costing households an additional £25 per year vs. paying via direct debit on average. But now standing charges are the same for direct debit and prepayment—with standard credit customers paying around 10% more for the per day charge (equivalent to around an extra £20 per year). But variable charges are a different story, where from 1 April 2024 PPM is 3.3% cheaper per kWh than direct debit (and 8.7% cheaper than standard credit).

If you're looking to save money on your electricity bills, avoid paying via credit as this is now the most expensive payment method in terms of both variable and fixed costs. Those wanting to save can switch tariff or supplier. To learn more, see our guide on Energy Switching.

Are Standard or Economy 7 Electricity Rates Cheaper?

Please note: the figures in this section reflect provisional 2022 data.

Economy 7 tariffs have cheaper night rates by 33% vs. a normal, single rate Standard tariff, but the Economy 7 standing charges are 2% higher and the day rates are 17% higher (on average across all payment methods).

Can you actually save money with an Economy 7 tariff? Using the figures above, if you could manage so that half of your electricity usage occurred during the 7 off-peak hours, you'd pay an average on 27.5 p/kWh for electricity on an Economy 7 tariff, which is in fact 8% cheaper than the Standard rate of 30 p/kWh on average. But keep in mind that while you might be able to run your dishwasher and dryer during the "night" hours which vary but typically run from 11pm to 6 am, your fridge runs all day and you're most likely to use lights, your oven, your kettle and other high-energy appliances during the "day" hours.

How do futures contracts work?

Futures contracts can be confusing, so here's a quick overview. A futures contract is an agreement to buy or sell something (e.g. a commodity or stock) at a predetermined price at a specified time in the future. A futures contract will be for a certain month and year (e.g. March 2022) and the price of that contract indicates what the market thinks the underlying will be trading at in that future month. For example, there'll be a contract for March 2022, one for April, 2022, one for May 2022, and so on. The market trades each of these up until the last trading day of the month before, when the contract expires. So, for example, the March 2022 contract will be traded until the end of February 2022.

If you pick a far-out contract, the price for that contract today tells you where the market anticipates the price will be during the month of that contract. If you pick a nearby contract, the futures price essentially gives you more of a current market price. The futures price converges towards the current price, the closer you get to the contract month—this is because there's less guess work involved the closer you get.

And we can use historical futures prices to see what energy prices have been doing up until the current date. For example, we can look back to July 2021 futures prices to see what natural gas was essentially trading at in July 2021. (Futures prices essentially become current prices once you pass the expiration date of the contract.) This is useful for seeing, for instance, how much prices popped up in November/December 2021 compared to prices over the past couple of years.

Note: The ICE UK natural gas futures contracts used in this article reflect the GBP contract price for 1,000 therms of natural gas per day (1 therm = 29.3071 kilowatt hours) per delivery period (e.g. month).

In the current market, if you're on a default rate which is set by the government’s energy price cap then you theoretically may find better value tariffs. If you're thinking of switching read our Energy Switching Guide.

Energy Price Cap (EPC) vs Energy Price Guarantee (EPG)

It's just been announced that the Energy Price Cap (EPC) will be £1,690/year for a typical household from 1 April 2024 (down from £1,928 for January to March 2024). That means a typical household will see their energy prices drop by approximately £238 per year or £20 per month.

The EPC is lower than the Energy Price Guarantee (EPG), which is currently £3,000, because wholesale energy costs are coming down. The EPG is still around until the end of March 2024, but is not needed. Right now with the EPC lower than the EPG, we simply don't need the EPG.

Remember, these EPC and EPG figures represent annual costs for a household with typical use—in fact the EPC and EPG figures are really fixed on a £ per kWh basis, so those with higher usage will pay more and those with lower usage would pay less than the annualised figures.

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What if I'm being charged more than the EPC?

The max you'll be charged actually depends on where you live, how you pay/your meter, and your tariff—and may vary from the overall stated EPC. The EPC is for a typical consumer who pays by direct debit and is on a standard variable tariff (aka default tariff). If you pay by credit or PPM, your rates are likely to be higher; if you're on a different tariff your rate will also vary. And your region certainly is a factor, too. For instance, the South West has the highest electricity standing charges in England and London has the highest variable charges (£/kWh)—read about the EPC caps on variable and standing charges by region for the current price cap.