Compare Electricity & Gas To Find A Good Deal On Your Energy Plan

There’s a bunch of different reasons why electricity in Australia can cost a fair packet, even in places where prices are regulated. How much it costs to generate, transmit, distribute, and sell the energy all make up the overall electricity price.²

Surprising no-one, inflation is also a big culprit. It’s made the building costs for transmission and distribution systems more expensive, and it’s made the operational costs for retailers bigger too.³

The energy market works a bit differently depending on which state or territory you live in. Some locations have private companies that generate the electricity which Energy Retailers then sell to customers as part of the national electricity market (also known as the NEM). This is the case if you live in Victoria, Queensland, New South Wales, the Australian Capital Territory, South Australia or Tasmania.⁴

However, if you’re living your best in the West, things are a bit different. The majority of residents in WA will be dealing with state-owned companies Synergy and Horizon Power, which generate, distribute and sell electricity.⁵ If you live in the area that the South West Interconnected System (SWIS) operates, you’ll get your power from Synergy.⁶ Alternatively, if you’re outside the SWIS, you can technically choose your Electricity Retailer. The catch though is that Horizon Power is often the only option available.⁷

The energy market is different again in the Northern Territory. Electricity is predominantly generated by Territory Generation.⁸ Power and Water then distributes this electricity,⁹ which is sold through Energy Retailers, where applicable.¹⁰

If you know how your location’s electricity market works you might be able to better manage your expectations when looking for the cheapest electricity available. For instance, if you live in an area where it’s handled by the state government, you may not be able to access a wide range of Electricity Plans. On the flipside, with lots of retailers there’s lots of competition, which can mean cheaper plans.

This really depends on where you live. It’s not just about states and territories — electricity can be priced differently between regions as well as offer types. As a consumer, there’s pros and cons to pricing being more closely controlled, like more stability in prices, or for pricing to be more competitive, like bigger price differences and discounts between retailers. It comes down to what works for you.

To get the most out of our quick state-by-state breakdown of how prices on the electricity market are regulated or controlled, you’ll need to know if you’re after a standing offer contract or a market offer contract. Essentially, market offers are the ones you see advertised with discounts and deals, while standing offers are the alternative.¹¹

• Victoria

Electricity Retailers in Victoria purchase electricity through the NEM with prices changing depending on supply and demand. As there are more than 100 participants in the market, things can get competitive.¹² For consumers, this is good news — Electricity Retailers want your business, so they may offer lower prices, discounts, and other incentives. If you try out our comparison tool,* you may see what we mean.

Additionally, Victoria also has the Victorian Default Offer set by the Essential Services Commission. This helps to manage standing offer prices with a capping point,¹³ as well as provide a reference for you to test market offer prices against. It isn’t guaranteed to be the cheapest price out there, but it is a fair deal when taking into consideration the costs Electricity Retailers need to recoup.¹⁴

• New South Wales

In New South Wales, the Electricity Retail Code holds sway over pricing to an extent. For instance, it specifies that standing offer contracts can’t be more than the Default Market Offer (DMO). This is a price set by the Australian Energy Regulator annually that takes into account the costs of supplying energy and balances them with consumers' needs.

For market offer contracts, retailers have more freedom in what they can set, which can mean really good deals for you. However, they need to use the DMO as a reference price to compare their plans against. You’ll see this as a comparison percentage. The idea behind this is to make it easy for you to compare multiple plans from any retailers.¹⁵ If you haven’t got a head for numbers or you’re short on time, it’s a lifesaver.

• South Australia

Electricity Plan pricing was deregulated back in February 2013 for South Australia.¹⁶ But, like NSW, Electricity Retailers need to keep the DMO in mind when setting prices. Standing offers also have to be capped at the DMO, and market offer contracts need to have that handy comparison percentage based off of the reference price.¹⁷

• Australian Capital Territory

The ACT is a slightly different kettle of fish. The government sets and regulates electricity prices. This means you can be upfront and ask for a contract with that regulated electricity price.¹⁸ However, if you want to shop around, you can check out market offers from a range of Electrical Retailers. Just as with NSW and SA, you can use the regulated price as a comparison point to help you decide on a competitive plan.¹⁹

• Queensland

Queensland is a big state — it’s more than twice the size of Texas after all. The sheer scale of the state plays a role in electricity pricing, even if prices have been deregulated since July 2016 for those in the great South East.²⁰ In Brisbane and the surrounding area, Electricity Retailers need to follow the same rules as SA and NSW. Namely, cap standing offer contracts at the DMO price and provide that comparison percentage based on the DMO for market offer contracts.²¹

If you live elsewhere in the Sunshine State, your electricity prices are still regulated.²² The whole process then works similarly to the ACT with you getting to choose your Electricity Retailer and pick from their market offers or asking them for the regulated pricing.²³ FYI: you might also see it referred to as ‘notified’ pricing when you’re looking over plans.

• Northern Territory

Things are a bit simpler if you’re up North. The NT Government regulates electricity pricing through the Electricity Reform Act 2000.²⁴ This includes fixed daily charges and time-of-use tariffs.²⁵ As a result, you aren’t likely to find a great deal of difference between Electricity Retailers, beyond who can supply your home or if there are bundles with other services included. 

• Western Australia

Like in the Top End, the Western Australian government regulates pricing across the state. But you won’t actually get to choose an Electricity Retailer unless you’re using more than 50MWh a year. Then it’s just a matter of where you live determining if you’ll be with Synergy or Horizon Power.²⁶ What’s nice though is that the Uniform Tariff Policy means that no matter where you lay your hat in the state, you’ll be charged the same rate, regardless of how much it actually costs to supply you with that power.²⁷

• Tasmania

In Tasmania, you can choose to go with a regulated standing offer or play the market with a selection of different retailers.²⁸ The regulated standing offer is a little like the DMO where it’s about paying a price that reflects the costs of supplying electricity, while still ensuring you aren’t paying through the nose. It gets a little more complicated when you dive into how this price is calculated though with the regulated offer retailer proposing the max price and the Tasmanian Economic Regulator rejecting or approving it.²⁹ Luckily, it’s a bit of a non-issue at the moment since Aurora Energy is the only current regulated offer retailer!³⁰

If you need a bit of a hand paying your electricity bills, you may be eligible for concessions or rebates. But these too vary depending on where you live. While the below list isn’t completely comprehensive, it gives you a general idea of what is out there as of September 2023. You can always do your own searching at energy.gov.au as well.

• Victoria
  Eligible Victorian households can get a one-off payment of $250 as part of the Energy Bill Relief Fund. To get it though, you’ll need to have the appropriate concession card or already receive certain payments from the government.³¹
  
  
• New South Wales
  If you live in NSW, you might be eligible for the Family Energy Rebate. This is a rebate you’ll need to apply for annually to ensure your circumstances still meet the eligible criteria. However, it’s well worth it as you can be credited up to $198 on your electricity bill.³²
  
  
• South Australia
  South Australian households on low or fixed incomes can apply for Energy Bill Concessions via the South Australian Government’s website.³³ With it you can get up to $263.15 off your energy bills.³⁴
  
  
• Australian Capital Territory
  People in the ACT can apply for the Energy Bill Relief Fund so long as they apply before the 30th of September 2024.³⁵ With this fund you can receive up to $175 off your electricity bill. Just bear in mind that it will be broken up into quarterly instalments.³⁶
  
  
• Queensland
  Exciting news if you’re a Queenslander: you’re eligible for the Cost of Living Rebate. All Queensland households will receive a one-off $550 rebate on their electricity bills. Plus, you don’t even need to apply for it.³⁷ However, it’s worth checking if you meet the vulnerable household criteria. You may be eligible to get $700 instead.³⁸
  
  
• Northern Territory
  Up North things are even better if you’re eligible for the NT Concession Scheme, which includes concessions on household electricity. You could get as much as $1,200 through this scheme.³⁹
  
  
• Western Australia
  WA’s Household Electricity Credit payment can be either $400 or $500 depending on your circumstances.⁴⁰ You need to meet a few different criteria though to be eligible,⁴¹ including getting that application in before the 30th of November 2023.⁴²
  
  
• Tasmania
  For folks in Tasmania, you may be able to get some bill relief with the Annual Electricity Concession. Provided you have one of the eligible concession cards, you can get a daily discount of 172.434 cents to help with your electricity bills.⁴³

New rebates and concessions can pop up as the old ones wind down, so while we try to stay up to date with all the latest developments, it’s a good idea to keep your eyes peeled as well.

Unfortunately, there’s no hard-and-fast rule on this one.

An Electricity Plan that doesn’t have a lock-in contract or exit fee gives you some flexibility if you think you may want to switch providers in the near future for any number of reasons. For instance, if you’re planning to move at some point and your current provider won’t be able to reconnect the electricity to your new address. This flexibility may come at a cost though with higher rates.

However, let’s say you sign up to a plan with cheap rates and a fixed term. If the plan works for you, the price remains competitive and nothing unexpected comes up, then it might be worth it. But ‘might’ is the operative word. Unless you can predict the future, it’s not a guarantee.

Ultimately, a good strategy is to balance price and flexibility to get the best of both worlds. You may find a number of competitively priced plans that don’t lock you into a prescribed term, while offering a decent array of options when it comes to tariff types. The trick is to go searching.

This comes down to what kind of plans and discounts an Energy Provider offers. Some might be willing to offer gas and electricity bundles at a reduced price, but this doesn’t mean that a bundle will always be cheaper. Heck, in some cases, getting gas and electricity from different providers might be the more cost-effective option while giving you plans that are better tailored to your specific needs. 

It’s all about comparing the different options on offer. How do different bundles stack up to separate Gas and Electricity Plans? Are they cheaper? More flexible? Better suited to how you use energy? Be meticulous, do your research and you’ll usually find something that works for you. 

There’s no point sugar-coating it. Rising electricity costs aren’t easy for anyone to deal with. But that’s just one more reason to check out plans from a range of different Electricity Providers. Doing so might help you find a great competitive option that’s better for your needs and your wallet. If you’re keen to see what you may be able to save on electricity, use our online tool to compare plans from a range of providers now.*