Is Agile cheaper than the price cap?
What a typical home in each region would have paid for its electricity on Octopus Agile, compared with the Ofgem price cap, using real half-hourly prices and real household usage patterns.
The last 30 days, by region
2026-09-16 to 2026-10-15, electricity used, standing charges not included
| Region | Typical home on Agile | At the price cap | Agile was | With an electric car |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern England | £58.23 | £54.45 | £3.78 dearer | £22.82 cheaper |
| East Midlands | £55.57 | £51.83 | £3.74 dearer | £21.91 cheaper |
| London | £54.89 | £54.39 | £0.50 dearer | £27.77 cheaper |
| Merseyside and North Wales | £61.37 | £57.04 | £4.33 dearer | £23.20 cheaper |
| West Midlands | £58.01 | £52.33 | £5.68 dearer | £18.76 cheaper |
| North East England | £58.19 | £52.07 | £6.12 dearer | £18.05 cheaper |
| North West England | £58.16 | £54.06 | £4.10 dearer | £22.11 cheaper |
| Southern England | £57.80 | £54.33 | £3.47 dearer | £23.02 cheaper |
| South East England | £60.99 | £55.01 | £5.98 dearer | £19.47 cheaper |
| South Wales | £60.80 | £54.34 | £6.46 dearer | £18.30 cheaper |
| South West England | £63.93 | £54.42 | £9.51 dearer | £13.62 cheaper |
| Yorkshire | £55.60 | £52.30 | £3.30 dearer | £22.83 cheaper |
| South Scotland | £58.54 | £53.38 | £5.16 dearer | £20.35 cheaper |
| North Scotland | £66.45 | £54.21 | £12.24 dearer | £8.94 cheaper |
Month by month in West Midlands
typical home, electricity used. tap a region in the table above to switch
| Month | Agile | Price cap | Agile was | With an electric car |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 2026 | £59.19 | £52.05 | £7.14 dearer | £17.92 cheaper |
| August 2026 | £57.73 | £53.79 | £3.94 dearer | £14.56 cheaper |
| July 2026 | £47.46 | £53.79 | £6.33 cheaper | £35.65 cheaper |
| June 2026 | £42.88 | £49.10 | £6.22 cheaper | £34.68 cheaper |
| May 2026 | £45.80 | £50.73 | £4.93 cheaper | £24.00 cheaper |
| April 2026 | £34.72 | £49.10 | £14.38 cheaper | £52.14 cheaper |
Standing charges today
pence per day, paid whatever you use
| Region | Agile | Price cap | Difference a year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eastern England | 46.46p | 51.84p | £19.60 cheaper |
| East Midlands | 52.24p | 51.45p | £2.86 dearer |
| London | 37.65p | 42.92p | £19.21 cheaper |
| Merseyside and North Wales | 62.70p | 67.66p | £18.09 cheaper |
| West Midlands | 58.63p | 57.23p | £5.11 dearer |
| North East England | 66.71p | 61.58p | £18.72 dearer |
| North West England | 47.60p | 45.68p | £7.03 dearer |
| Southern England | 59.26p | 47.81p | £41.80 dearer |
| South East England | 53.13p | 52.32p | £2.96 dearer |
| South Wales | 59.11p | 55.41p | £13.51 dearer |
| South West England | 62.92p | 55.58p | £26.79 dearer |
| Yorkshire | 63.11p | 61.67p | £5.25 dearer |
| South Scotland | 59.16p | 61.41p | £8.20 cheaper |
| North Scotland | 57.07p | 55.14p | £7.07 dearer |
Agile standing charges from Octopus Energy's public API. Price cap from Ofgem for 2026-10-01 to 2026-12-31, Direct Debit, including VAT.
How to read this
"Cheaper" means a typical home would have paid less for its electricity on Agile than at the price cap's unit rate over the same days, without changing its habits. Moving the dishwasher, washing and car charging out of the 4pm to 7pm peak improves on the typical figure; heavy early-evening use makes it worse. See the cheapest times today to plan.
Usage pattern: Elexon Load Shaping Service, domestic import by region. Contains BMRS data © Elexon Limited copyright and database right 2026. Prices: Octopus Energy public API and Ofgem price cap tables. UK Electricity is independent and not affiliated with Octopus Energy.
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Common questions
Is Octopus Agile cheaper than the price cap?
It depends on the month and on when you use power. When wholesale prices are low, a typical home pays less on Agile than at the price cap unit rate, even without changing anything. When wholesale prices are high, a typical home can pay more. Homes that shift use away from 4pm to 7pm, or charge an electric car overnight, usually do much better than typical.
How do you work out the typical home?
We take Elexon's measured half-hourly usage pattern for homes with smart meters in each region, scale it to Ofgem's typical use of 2,500 kWh a year, and price every half-hour at that region's Agile rate. The same use is priced at the price cap unit rate in force on each day.
What about the electric car figures?
We add 7 kWh a night, about 2,500 kWh a year or 7,000 to 9,000 miles, charged in the cheapest hour of each day on Agile, and at the flat price cap rate for comparison. Smart-charging tariffs such as Intelligent Octopus Go are not modelled here.
Are standing charges included?
The monthly figures compare the cost of the electricity itself. Standing charges are a fixed amount per day and are shown separately, using today's rates, because they do not depend on when you use power.
Is this financial advice?
No. It is a like-for-like comparison of past prices for a typical home. Your own result depends on how much electricity you use and when. Past prices do not guarantee future ones.