How to cut your gas and electricity bill

Last updated: 17 July 2026

Energy prices went up again this summer. But most households can still knock money off their bill — often without spending a penny.

Here’s the short version. Check whether a fixed deal would cost you less than the price cap. Make sure your direct debit matches what you actually use. Claim any help you’re entitled to. Then cut waste at home.

This guide walks you through each step. It also explains your rights, because suppliers get bills wrong more often than you might think.

What the price cap actually is

The energy price cap is set by Ofgem, the energy regulator for Great Britain. It limits what suppliers can charge you if you’re on a standard variable tariff — the default deal you land on when you haven’t chosen a fixed deal, or when a fix ends.

Here’s the catch most people miss: the cap is not a limit on your total bill. It caps the price of each unit of energy, plus the standing charge. Use more, pay more.

A quick translation. The standing charge is a fixed daily fee you pay just for being connected to gas and electricity — you pay it even if you use nothing at all. The unit rate is the price for each unit of energy you actually use, measured in kilowatt hours (kWh).

The cap changes every three months. So any figure you read comes with a date attached. Check the date before you trust a number — including ours.

What you pay right now (July to September 2026)

Under the cap for 1 July to 30 September 2026, a household on a standard variable tariff paying by direct debit pays, on average across Great Britain (including VAT):

Ofgem says this works out at about £1,663 a year for a typical household. Your bill will differ, because you don’t use exactly “typical” amounts.

Prices rose about 13% for a typical household compared with April to June 2026. Gas jumped around 24%. Electricity rose around 5%. Ofgem says the rise was driven by higher wholesale gas prices — the price suppliers pay — linked to the conflict in the Middle East.

Now for a confusing wrinkle, because we promised to be honest about catches. You may see the “old” cap quoted as £1,641 and think prices barely moved. They didn’t barely move. From July, Ofgem lowered its estimate of what a “typical household” uses (now 2,500 kWh of electricity and 9,500 kWh of gas a year). Less assumed usage means a smaller-looking headline number. Compare like with like — on the old usage assumptions, the cap went from £1,641 to £1,862. The unit prices you actually pay went up. Don’t let the headline fool you either way.

One more thing: the standing charges above add up to about £315 a year before you use any energy at all. You can’t avoid standing charges by using less. You can only change them by changing tariff or supplier.

Should you fix your tariff?

A fixed deal locks your unit rates and standing charges for a set time, usually 12 or 24 months. The cap doesn’t apply to fixed deals — you’re choosing to step outside it.

Here are the facts as of mid-July 2026:

• Ofgem itself has pointed out that customers may pay less by shopping around, and that around 40% of energy accounts are already on fixed deals, so they weren’t hit by the July rise.
• At the time of writing, several suppliers were offering fixed deals priced below the July–September cap. Comparison sites were listing the cheapest fixes at roughly 15% less than the cap for a typical household.
• The next cap (for October to December 2026) hadn’t been announced yet. Nobody knows it for certain — forecasts are educated guesses, not promises.

We won’t tell you which supplier or tariff to pick — that’s your call, and prices change weekly. But here’s how to judge any fix fairly:

1. Compare unit rates and standing charges, not headline yearly figures. Headline figures assume “typical” usage, which probably isn’t yours.
2. Check the exit fee. Some fixes charge £25–£75 per fuel to leave early. If prices fall and you’re locked in, that’s the cost of getting out.
3. Remember a fix is insurance, not a bet you’re guaranteed to win. You’re buying certainty. If wholesale prices drop sharply, the cap could fall below your fix.

If you do nothing, you stay on the capped variable rate. That’s not automatically wrong — it just means your price moves every three months.

Check your direct debit isn’t too high

Most people pay a flat monthly direct debit. The supplier estimates your yearly cost and splits it into twelve. Estimates can be wrong — sometimes badly.

You have real rights here, and Citizens Advice sets them out clearly:

• Your supplier must tell you before increasing your payments.
• If you challenge an increase, they must explain clearly how they reached the figure and show you the meter readings they used.
• If the readings are estimates, send a real meter reading and ask them to recalculate.
• If you’ve built up a large credit balance — money they’re holding that’s yours — you can ask for it back.

A sensible rule of thumb: some credit in summer is normal, because you use less energy but pay the same each month. That credit should drain over winter. But if you’re sitting on several hundred pounds of credit in July and your payments still went up, ask questions.

If your supplier won’t budge and you think they’re wrong, make a formal complaint. If it’s not resolved after eight weeks (or you get a “deadlock” letter), you can take it to the Energy Ombudsman for free.

And if you genuinely can’t afford your payments, tell your supplier. They must discuss a payment plan you can manage. Don’t just cancel the direct debit — that usually makes things worse.

The 12-month back-billing rule

This one surprises people, and it can be worth hundreds of pounds.

If your supplier has been billing you wrongly — or not billing you at all — they cannot usually charge you for energy used more than 12 months ago. That’s the back-billing rule, and it applies even if the mistake means you genuinely used the energy.

There are exceptions. The protection doesn’t apply if they billed you correctly and you simply didn’t pay. It also doesn’t apply if you behaved unreasonably — for example, blocking meter readings without a good reason, or tampering with the meter.

If a shock “catch-up” bill lands covering more than a year, don’t panic and don’t pay it straight away. Write to your supplier, mention the back-billing rules, and ask them to remove the older charges. Citizens Advice has a template letter for exactly this. If they refuse, complain formally, then go to the Energy Ombudsman.

Help you might be missing

The Warm Home Discount — £150

The Warm Home Discount is a £150 discount off your electricity bill each winter. It’s not cash — it comes off your bill (or as credit on a prepayment meter).

The scheme for winter 2026/27 reopens in October 2026. Broadly, you qualify if you get the Guarantee Credit part of Pension Credit, or you’re on a low income and meet the scheme’s criteria — the rules differ slightly between England and Wales, and Scotland. Northern Ireland has a separate scheme.

Most eligible people get it automatically — you only need to apply if you’re on a low income in Scotland, where you contact your supplier. Check the GOV.UK page (linked below) rather than paying anyone who offers to “claim it for you”. It’s free.

The Priority Services Register — free extra support

The Priority Services Register (PSR) is a free service for people who may need extra help. You can join if, for example, you’ve reached State Pension age, you’re pregnant or have young children, you have a disability or long-term health condition, or you’re going through a hard patch such as bereavement or job loss.

It won’t cut your bill directly, but it gets you priority support in a power cut, advance notice of planned outages, regular meter readings, bills in accessible formats, and more. Contact your supplier to join — and note you’ll need to register with your gas and electricity suppliers separately if they’re different, and re-register if you switch.

Check how you pay

How you pay changes what you pay. Ofgem noted that moving from standard credit (paying each bill when it arrives) to direct debit saves a typical household around £143 a year, because direct debit unit rates are cheaper. If you can manage a monthly direct debit, it’s usually the cheapest way to pay.

Use less without feeling it

Switching and rights sort the price. Usage is the other half of the bill. Some quick wins that cost nothing:

• Send regular meter readings (or get a smart meter fitted free) so you only ever pay for what you use.
• Turn your combi boiler’s flow temperature down to around 60°C — most are set hotter than needed, and lowering it cuts gas use without making your home colder.
• Wash clothes at 30°C and skip the tumble dryer when you can — heating water and air is where the money goes.
• Deal with standby and idle devices. It’s not a fortune, but it’s free money.
• Bleed radiators and clear obstructions so the heating you pay for actually reaches the room.

If you have a smart meter, some suppliers also offer tariffs with cheaper electricity at off-peak times. These suit people who can shift usage — charging a car overnight, running the washing machine at the weekend. Check the peak rate too, because it’s usually higher than standard.

What happens next

Ofgem will announce the cap for 1 October to 31 December 2026 on 26 August 2026. We’ll update this guide when the new figures land — check the “updated” date at the top.

Between now and then, the smart move is simple. Read your meter. Question a direct debit that doesn’t match your usage. Compare a fix against the cap using unit rates. And claim the help you’re entitled to.

Where to get help

• Citizens Advice offers free help with energy problems, including bill disputes and affordability — online, by phone, or in person.
• The Energy Ombudsman resolves disputes with suppliers for free, once you’ve complained to the supplier first.
• Your supplier must help if you’re struggling to pay — ask about payment plans and hardship support before debt builds up.

This guide is information, not financial advice. Figures are correct for the price cap period 1 July to 30 September 2026 and were checked on 17 July 2026.

Just so you know: this guide is information and journalism, not financial advice, and we don't recommend specific financial products. Your circumstances are your own — if you need personal advice, speak to a suitably qualified adviser. Information was correct at the "last updated" date above but things change; always check the linked primary sources.

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