Octopus vs E.ON Next (November 2026): Tariffs, Prices and Which to Choose

Last updated: Friday 13 November 2026
By: Switch Editorial Team, Switch Squid Ltd

Octopus or E.ON Next: which should you choose? On the cheapest deal in Energy Review’s comparison, updated 9 November 2026, E.ON Next is slightly ahead on price: Next Pledge Tracker 12m is about £1,622 a year for a representative East Midlands home, £42 less than Flexible Octopus at about £1,664. Pledge is a 12-month tracker with a £50 exit fee, while Flexible Octopus has no fixed term and no exit fee. On a like-for-like variable tariff, Flexible Octopus is about £8 a year cheaper than Next Flex. Citizens Advice ranked E.ON Next third for April to June 2026 (3.71 out of 5) and Octopus fifth (3.67), so the official service scores are close; Octopus leads on Trustpilot and Which? scores in the same comparison.

This SwitchSquid guide compares the two suppliers for a typical household on gas and electricity, including fixed deals, electric-car tariffs and who each one suits. Figures are regional estimates from Energy Review’s Octopus Energy vs E.ON Next comparison (updated 9 November 2026, for an East Midlands home paying by monthly Direct Debit), Citizens Advice’s customer service table for April to June 2026, and Ofgem’s price cap for 1 October to 31 December 2026. Your own price depends on your region, meter and usage. If you use the comparison boxes on this page, we may earn a commission through MoneySuperMarket. It does not change the price you pay.

Octopus vs E.ON Next at a glance (November 2026)

*Energy Review estimates for a representative East Midlands three-bed home on dual fuel paying by monthly Direct Debit, from its Octopus Energy vs E.ON Next comparison (prices from 1 November 2026, page updated 9 November 2026). Service scores are from Citizens Advice for April to June 2026. Intelligent Octopus Go rates are for London, paying by Direct Debit, from Octopus’s published prices on 9 November 2026. E.ON Next’s Next Drive and Next Drive Smart rates are described as correct at 28 October 2026.

The £1,723 price cap, and why both start from it

From 1 October to 31 December 2026, Ofgem’s price cap sets a typical dual-fuel bill at £1,723 a year for a home paying by Direct Debit. That figure is an average at typical use, not a bill for every home: unit rates and standing charges vary by region. Electricity is 0% VAT until 31 March 2027, which is already built into the cap.

Flexible Octopus and Next Flex are both held to that cap. In Energy Review’s East Midlands example, Flexible Octopus came out at about £1,664 a year and Next Flex at about £1,672, so both sit a little below the typical cap figure, mainly because standing charges differ by region and tariff. Neither has an exit fee, so you can move to a fix or another supplier without a charge.

Ofgem is due to announce the 1 January to 31 March 2027 cap by 25 November 2026. Published forecasts still vary: Cornwall Insight has published £1,999 a year, and uSwitch’s average of supplier predictions around 11 November was about £2,182, a rise of roughly 27% on the current £1,723 cap (1 October to 31 December 2026). A tracker or a standard variable tariff will move with the cap. A fix will not, which is why the January announcement matters if you are deciding whether to lock a rate now. Our price cap date guide sets out every date.

Variable and tracker tariffs

E.ON Next’s cheapest option in that comparison is Next Pledge, a 12-month tracker whose rates stay below the cap. Energy Review puts it at about £1,622 a year, £42 less than Flexible Octopus, or about £4 a month. The catch is the commitment: it runs for 12 months, charges a £50 exit fee if you leave early (£25 per fuel), needs Direct Debit, and asks for a smart meter where possible. When the cap rises in January, Pledge’s rates rise with it; you just start from a lower point than the cap.

Flexible Octopus was about £1,664 a year in the same example and has no exit fee. That flexibility is the point: if a sharper fix appears after 25 November, you can take it without a leaving charge. If you want a no-tie-in tariff from E.ON Next, Next Flex is the closer match, at about £1,672 a year, which is about £8 more than Flexible Octopus in that regional example.

So is E.ON Next cheaper than Octopus? On the cheapest deal in Energy Review’s 9 November figures, yes, by about £42 a year, if you are happy with a 12-month tracker and a £50 exit fee. If you want to be free to leave at any time, Octopus is slightly cheaper, and the gap is small enough that your own postcode and usage can flip the result. Always compare the quote for your home, not a national average.

Fixed deals: Octopus is cheaper for a longer term

The price order flips when you look at fixes. In the same Energy Review comparison, Octopus 18M Fixed October 2026 v7 costs about £1,848 a year for 18 months, with a £150 exit fee. E.ON Next’s Next Fixed 12m v164 costs about £1,884 a year for 12 months, with a £100 exit fee. The Octopus fix is about £36 a year cheaper, but you commit for six months longer and face a higher leaving charge.

If you only want a year, E.ON Next’s 12-month fix is about £15 a year cheaper than Octopus’s 12-month fix (about £1,884 against about £1,899). E.ON Next also sells a 24-month fix at about £1,895 a year with a £200 exit fee, which is only a little more than its 12-month price for twice the term. None of these fixes is as cheap as Pledge or Flexible Octopus in Energy Review’s 9 November figures, because you are paying for protection if the January cap jumps towards the forecasts above £2,000.

Exclusive fixes sold only through a particular comparison site can undercut these published figures, so the cheapest Octopus or E.ON Next price for your home may be one you only see when you compare. Exit fees of £100 to £200 apply if you leave a fix early, so factor that in if you might move house or want the option to switch again in the spring.

EV and off-peak tariffs: midnight vs 11:30pm

This is where the two suppliers differ most, and it is why “octopus vs eon” often comes up for drivers. Both offer cheap overnight electricity for the whole home, not just the car, but the hours and the rates are not the same, and some versions need a compatible car or charger.

E.ON Next Drive starts cheap electricity at midnight and runs to 6am, six hours every night, and the 8.5p rate is fixed for a year with no exit fee. Next Drive Smart matches Intelligent Octopus Go Max on the 6.5p off-peak rate, also from midnight to 6am, and E.ON Next says that if the app schedules a daytime charge, the whole home gets 6.5p in those slots too. You need a supported car or charger and a smart meter with half-hourly reads. Boosting at peak times is billed at 34.322p per kWh.

Octopus’s cheap window on Intelligent Go starts half an hour earlier, at 23:30, which helps if you plug in as soon as you get home. The Max version’s 6.5p variable rate can change, unlike Next Drive Smart’s 12-month fixed 6.5p. Classic Octopus Go is simpler, with a five-hour window from 00:30, and does not need a compatible vehicle. Daytime unit rates and standing charges still vary by region on every one of these tariffs, so a cheap night rate is only a win if most of your charging (and, ideally, some household use) sits in those hours. Read our Octopus Go guide if you want the regional detail.

Customer service: a close official score, a wider gap elsewhere

Citizens Advice scored E.ON Next 3.71 out of 5 and ranked it third of the large suppliers for April to June 2026. Octopus scored 3.67 and ranked fifth. On that official table, there is almost nothing between them. Energy Review’s other service scores still favour Octopus: a Which? total score of 74% against 66%, and a Trustpilot rating of 4.8 from more than 900,000 reviews against 4.5 from about 244,000. Both iPhone apps are rated 4.8; E.ON Next is slightly ahead on Google Play (4.4 against 4.3).

Octopus has been a Which? Recommended Provider for years, and it is the larger of the two household brands. E.ON Next is still a major supplier, and E.ON completed its takeover of OVO on 8 October 2026, so the wider E.ON group is now a similar size to Octopus. OVO and E.ON Next still sell separate tariffs for now; our OVO vs E.ON Next guide covers what that takeover means for OVO customers. If you already like the Octopus app, or you want Octopus’s tracker, Agile or Cosy heat-pump tariffs, that is a reason to stay or to switch to Octopus that a 0.04 Citizens Advice gap will not outweigh.

Which should you choose?

• Choose E.ON Next Pledge if you want the lowest published yearly cost in that 9 November comparison and you are comfortable with a 12-month tracker, a £50 exit fee and a rate that will still move with the January cap.

• Choose Flexible Octopus if you want a slightly lower no-tie-in variable tariff than Next Flex, no exit fee, and the option to fix later without a leaving charge.

• Choose an Octopus 18-month fix if you want to lock a rate before January and you are happy to commit for a year and a half. It was the cheaper published fix in that comparison.

• Choose E.ON Next Drive or Drive Smart if you charge an electric car and a midnight to 6am window (with a 12-month fixed off-peak rate) suits you better than Octopus’s 23:30 start.

• Choose Intelligent Octopus Go if your car or charger is supported and you want cheap electricity from 23:30, or you already use Octopus’s app for solar, a battery or Saving Sessions.

Also see our EDF vs Octopus and OVO vs E.ON Next guides if you are comparing more than this pair, and the E.ON Next supplier page for a longer look at Pledge and Next Flex.

How to switch

Compare both suppliers for your postcode and annual kWh, including any exit fee on your current tariff. If you have an electric car, add a realistic overnight charging figure, not just the Ofgem typical use of 2,500kWh of electricity and 9,500kWh of gas. The new supplier arranges the switch, usually in a few weeks, and you do not need to contact your current supplier first unless you are in debt or on a prepayment meter with a special setup.

If you pick Pledge or a fix, read the term and the exit fee before you agree. If you pick Flexible Octopus or Next Flex, you can leave later without that charge. Keep a recent bill or a photo of your meter details to hand so the quote matches your home.

Sources

• Energy Review, “Octopus Energy vs E.ON Next (November 2026)” (updated 9 November 2026)

• Citizens Advice, compare domestic energy suppliers’ customer service (April to June 2026)

• Ofgem, energy price cap and Ofgem, changes to the cap between 1 October and 31 December 2026

• E.ON Next, Next Drive and Next Drive Smart (off-peak rates described as correct at 28 October 2026)

• Octopus Energy, Intelligent Octopus Go

• Cornwall Insight, January cap forecast

SwitchSquid is a comparison site, not Ofgem, Citizens Advice or an energy supplier, and nothing here is personal financial advice. Figures are regional estimates and can change.

FAQ

Is E.ON Next cheaper than Octopus?

In Energy Review’s comparison, updated 9 November 2026, E.ON Next’s Next Pledge tracker was about £1,622 a year for a representative East Midlands home, about £42 cheaper than Flexible Octopus at about £1,664. Pledge has a 12-month term and a £50 exit fee, while Flexible Octopus has none. On no-tie-in variable tariffs, Flexible Octopus was about £8 a year cheaper than Next Flex. Your own postcode can change the order, so compare a quote for your home.

Who has better customer service, Octopus or E.ON Next?

Citizens Advice ranked E.ON Next third with 3.71 out of 5 and Octopus fifth with 3.67 out of 5 for April to June 2026, so the official scores are close. Energy Review’s other scores favour Octopus on Which? (74% against 66%) and Trustpilot (4.8 against 4.5). Both iPhone apps are rated 4.8.

Does Next Pledge stay cheaper if the cap rises in January?

Pledge tracks the cap from a lower starting point, so if the January cap rises, Pledge’s rates rise with it. You still pay less than the cap while the “£50 below the cap” promise holds, but you do not keep the £1,622-a-year figure from 9 November. A fix holds its unit rates and standing charges for the term. Pledge also has a £50 exit fee if you leave during the 12-month term.

Which is better for an electric car?

E.ON Next Drive is 8.5p per kWh from midnight to 6am, fixed for one year with no exit fee. Next Drive Smart is 6.5p in the same hours for 12 months, but you need a compatible car or charger. Intelligent Octopus Go Max is also 6.5p, with cheap hours from 23:30 to 05:30 plus smart charging, on a variable tariff. The better fit depends on when you plug in and whether your car is supported.

Should you fix with Octopus or E.ON Next before January 2027?

Ofgem announces the January cap by 25 November 2026. In Energy Review’s 9 November figures, Octopus’s 18-month fix was about £1,848 a year and E.ON Next’s 12-month fix about £1,884, both above the current £1,723 cap and below some forecasts around £2,000. A fix makes sense if you want certainty; it will cost a little more than the cap until the end of December. Compare the term and the exit fee, and get a quote for your usage.

Are Octopus and E.ON Next the same company?

No. They are separate suppliers with different tariffs, apps and contracts. Octopus also licenses its Kraken platform to other energy companies, including E.ON, but that does not make the household brands the same. E.ON owns E.ON Next and, since 8 October 2026, OVO, which still sells its own tariffs.

How long does a switch take?

A standard switch usually takes a few weeks, and the new supplier handles the move. You should not have a gap in supply. If you are on a fix or on Pledge, an exit fee may apply if you leave before the term ends. Have your annual kWh, postcode and current tariff end date ready when you compare.