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Finding the best deal for you and the environment

How to compare green energy suppliers

There is a growing understanding amongst people all over the world that they need to do their part to reduce their impact on the environment. Many individuals are also campaigning for businesses to take action against climate change by reducing their carbon footprints, leading to entire industries answering the consumers’ call and changing the way they do things.

Chris Richards
One such sector is the energy industry, which traditionally used non-renewable energy sources. However, a combination of technological innovation, the influence of taxes and relief schemes, and increasing demand from environmentally conscious consumers have prompted energy firms to offer a wide variety of green energy tariffs with minimal impact on the environment. These renewable energy tariffs are growing in popularity.

Whilst green energy was previously seen as a more expensive option, using renewable energy is no longer a luxury that comes at a premium. The increasing numbers of energy firms now offering environmentally friendlier energy contracts have opened up green energy offerings at competitive prices.

You can compare renewable energy deals in much the same way you would look for other gas and electricity tariffs, using Utility Saving Expert’s free online energy comparison tool to help you find the cheapest deals. Comparing and switching to a green energy supply could save you money and do your part to save the environment too.

What green energy means

Referring to the energy that is collected from renewable resources, green energy is another term for renewable energy or clean energy. For a source to be classed as renewable, it must be naturally replenished, and this must happen on a human timescale.

Renewable energy comes from natural sources, and these often relate to the weather, such as energy that is powered by the sun and the wind.

When energy companies provide green tariffs, these are environmentally friendlier than other gas and electricity options. The energy that is supplied can be up to 100% renewable, and your supplier might voluntarily undertake internal audits to confirm that their service is environmentally friendly.

Some suppliers will have official certification through Ofgem, the UK’s energy regulatory body, authenticating their green tariffs through the Green Energy Certification Scheme.

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What green energy costs

Historically, renewable tariffs have been slightly more expensive than standard tariffs because the cost of producing green energy was higher.

Advancements in technology mean that green energy deals are now much more affordable, and are becoming highly sought after by energy consumers who want cleaner energy powering and heating their homes.

Whilst progress has been made to level the playing field between renewable energy contracts and standard deals, generally, the cheapest available gas and electricity deals are still not green tariffs. Even so, green energy companies are the highest-rated for customer service in the UK, proving that going green can have more benefits than may be presented at face value.

Find the cheapest deals when you compare energy contracts using our free online tool, and you’ll see exactly how much you could save by switching to a green energy tariff.

How to find the cheapest green energy deals

Green energy deals that offer you great value for money are within reach. To compare and switch to a cheap green energy contract, all you need is:

  1. your postcode, because energy suppliers charge different amounts of money depending on the region where you live, and some renewable energy suppliers will only cover specific areas.
  2. some information about your current energy tariff and your household energy usage. This allows our comparison technology to generate appropriate deals and show estimates of how much money you can save for each deal with reliability and accuracy.

Once you’ve input those details, we’ll instantly generate the best green energy tariffs available to you. The information will be displayed in a clear, way that is easy to understand, clearly showing the cheapest deals at the top.

The results will also include important context about each energy company, plus a provider rating to give you some insight into their reputation with customers, helping you make your decision.

Switching to a renewable energy deal

When you have chosen your preferred deal, confirm you’d like to make the switch and add some personal and payment details for your new supplier. After that, you can sit back and relax. You won’t even need to inform your old supplier of the switch, everything will be handled for you.

There will be a two-week cooling-off period, where you are free to change your mind about the switch, and there will be no problems or penalties if this happens.

After one more week, the switch will be made complete and you’ll be asked to share your meter readings to check your final bill with your past supplier is correct. There will be just 21 days between confirming you’d like to switch and starting your new journey as a green energy customer.

The types of tariffs you can compare

Using our comparison tool, you can find energy deals with a range of sources and contract types, including:

Suppliers offering 100% renewable energy

Not all energy suppliers who offer green energy are offering 100% renewable energy. If you want to be sure your energy comes entirely from renewable sources, you can look out for energy deals from one of the following companies:

  • Bristol Energy,
  • Bulb,
  • Co-op Energy,
  • Economy 7 Energy,
  • Ecotricity,
  • Foxglove Energy,
  • Good Energy,
  • Green Network Energy,
  • Green Star Energy,
  • Gulf Gas & Power,
  • iSupplyEnergy,
  • Octopus Energy,
  • Outfox the Market,
  • Ovo Energy,
  • People’s Energy Company,
  • Pure Planet,
  • Robin Hood Energy,
  • So Energy,
  • Symbio Energy,
  • Tonik Energy,
  • Yorkshire Energy.

100% renewable energy is typically made up of:

  • electricity from renewables sources, and/or
  • carbon-neutral gas

Green electricity

Renewable electricity can be generated from:

  • solar panels,
  • wind turbines,
  • hydropower,
  • tidal power,
  • geothermal power stations.

Green gas

It’s more difficult to produce renewable gas, compared with generating renewable electricity. Biogas producers supply carbon-neutral fuel, but your green gas supply may not come entirely from biogas. To counter this, some energy suppliers use a percentage of non-green gas and will actively offset their carbon emissions by donating to environmental projects around the world.

Top-rated green energy suppliers

A recent summary of the best and worst UK energy suppliers by Which? revealed that smaller, newer firms were favoured by consumers, and the top three rated energy companies were all suppliers of renewable energy:
  1. Octopus Energy
  2. Robin Hood Energy
  3. So Energy

Octopus Energy

Consistently rated highly for customer service, Octopus Energy is a fast-growing business that recently topped the rankings as the best energy company in 2019. Offering clean tariffs with 100% renewable electricity and off-set gas, the company develops and invests in green technology. This not only impacts how the energy is generated but also impacts how it is distributed to customers’ homes.

Robin Hood Energy

Emerging as the first energy company owned by a local authority in the UK, Robin Hood Energy is a not-for-profit that was set up by Nottingham City Council. It only sells 100% renewable electricity and is committed to keeping prices low. From customer feedback, it received a glowing 5 stars for value for money. If you live within its distribution zone, Robin Hood Energy may offer you the cheapest quotes, competing with well-established energy firms such as the Big Six and showing that you can get clean energy at affordable prices.

So Energy

An award-winning energy supplier, So Energy encourages its customers to vote on the type of green energy it generates. Shaking things up by keeping things simple, this energy firm offers a single fixed-rate tariff to its customers at any one time. Collectively, the customers decide whether the energy comes from solar panels, wind farms, hydroelectric or tidal generators, or biomass.

Other top-rated green energy firms to look out for include:

Bulb

Similar to So Energy, Bulb prioritises simplicity by offering just one tariff. However, in contrast to So Energy’s fixed-rate tariff, Bulb offers a variable tariff so its customers may have their bills rise or fall unexpectedly. With 100% renewable energy, 10% green gas and a carbon offsetting programme, Bulb is a popular green energy supplier.

Tonik Energy

Known for exceptional customer service, reasonable prices, and highly rated for bill accuracy and clarity, Tonik Energy keeps its customers feeling happy with its service and informed about what they are paying for. Early adopters of the Tesla Powerwall home battery system, all of the electricity provided by Tonik Energy is renewable, along with 10% green gas, mostly generated through animal and vegetable waste.

Looking to create a positive impact on the environment in the long-term, the company also encourages its customers to start producing their own green energy.

Green Energy UK

Holding super green credentials, Green Energy UK is the only energy supplier in the UK that provides 100% renewable energy, including renewable electricity and 100% green gas. Exempt from Ofgem’s Energy Price Cap, Green Energy UK’s entirely clean energy tariffs do come at premium prices.

When you choose a new energy supplier, you need to consider a variety of factors, including what good value looks like for you, and how to balance the benefits of saving money with the guarantee of high-quality customer service.

Use our online comparison tool to compare green energy deals and switch to a new contract with a renewable energy supplier.

Switch supplier and save up to £450.42* on your gas and electricity bills