Best Energy Providers
Energy Locals 🏆 2026
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Beware! Energy Locals use scare tactics to lure new residents to sign up with them. Recently, they started sending Disconnection Warning Letters… Read more
(attached) every week to several residents in our Strata Community here in NSW. No one had ever signed up with them, neither they had any contract with any of us. We already have our energy supplied by another Retailer. If you really want to market yourself and get new customers, do it professionally and legally. Using "Disconnection Warning threats" full of lies as marketing is called SCAM and is illegal. No! It's not sent as a mistake, we all residents know that. Shame on you.
Origin Energy
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They've listened and worked with me to sort out a plan that works for me. Sam was great Show details
GloBird Energy 🏆 2026
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Putting prices up by another 10%. Not sure if this is just me or for everyone but I’ll be leaving Show details
CovaU 🏆 2026
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I spoke with Rochelle and it was easy enough to arrange a discount on my current gas account for here in South Australia. The proof will be on the next invoice, I'll know if it went through ok then. Show details
1st Energy
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Anica was really helpful & polite. She was knowledgeable & not pushy. Set up process was easy as I changed providers & also arranged paper billing Show details
Kleenheat
The Kleenheat employee was very thorough, patient and explained options. They also identified different methods of payment that might be suitable for our situation. Very happy with the service. Show details
Arc Energy Group
I called for assistance regarding billing and lovely Ms Angelica did not disappoint, so grateful for she’s always ready to help. Show details
Amber Electric
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We've been with Amber for bout 5 years now and I wouldn't use anyone else. If I ever move out of South Gippsland and back towards Melbourne, I'm… Read more
taking Amber with me! Customer service is great, very responsive. Amber is always letting you know what's going on, so you're always informed about current prices and what's going on in the market. I love the Amber app too. I'm able to keep my electricity bills low because I know when the price spikes are coming!
Smart Energy
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Little to NO customer support. Changes to the LOG IN page have been made and as a result, my user name and password are not longer valid. Re-setting… Read more
the password leads to a page that does not accept my user name or new password. I have sent an email to the company and have received the 'standard' "we will get back to you soon." In the MEANTIME, Hours have passed, up to half a day now, and I am unable to access my account.
Hi Alain, Thanks for taking the time to write in. … Read more (+3 replies)
OVO Energy
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They offer great deals and then just p*ss in your face, there is no customer service, they will not listen, no one will help and they will steal your… Read more
money, they make up bills every time and promise bills nothing that never comes and then will lump you with an outrage and actually impossible bill to have happened and you leave...they don't bill smooth, they keep that outrageous amount there and won't fix it then with zero communication will send debt collectors after you ,mean while you're waiting for the finalised bill, blind sighted by the zero communication and now debt collectors , every single one of you offering a good review will learn the hard way
Energy Locals Retail
Check your account closely false $3,000 disconnection notice on a fully paid account: I'm sharing this mainly to advise other Energy Locals customers… Read more
to monitor their accounts closely, because what happened to us could happen to anyone relying on the portal to reflect their true balance. In late May / June 2026 we received a disconnection notice claiming we hadn't made a payment since February and that around $3,000 was overdue. Both claims were false. Every invoice had been paid including roughly $950 in March and just over $1,000 in May and when the account was properly reconciled, the actual balance was $8.36 (a credit-card fee), not $3,000. The cause appears to be that received payments weren't being allocated against the relevant invoices. Bills we'd paid months earlier going back to August 2025 were still shown on the portal as "overdue by 89 / 179 / 273 days," and the disconnection process fired off those un-reconciled figures rather than the real net balance. Disproving a $3,000 "debt" that didn't exist took several hours of cross-checking bank statements, emails and the portal. For a regulated essential service, a disconnection threat generated from the company's own un-reconciled data isn't acceptable a wrongful disconnection notice is genuinely stressful. In fairness, the support staff were responsive and courteous: they confirmed the $0 balance, waived the fee as a goodwill gesture, and fixed our contact details. The matter is now largely resolved, with one question still pending from Energy Locals to fully close it out an explanation of how a disconnection notice came to state false arrears on a paid account, and confirmation it was issued in error. My advice to other customers: don't assume the portal reflects your real position. Check that your payments are being allocated to your invoices, keep records of every payment, and query any "overdue" flag immediately it may simply be unallocated rather than genuinely owed.
Update (12 June 2026): Energy Locals has since confirmed in writing that the 1 June disconnection notice was issued in error and apologised. Account remains at $0. Crediting them for acknowledging and resolving it the review stands as a heads-up on the billing-allocation issue that caused it
Sumo Energy
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Think twice about a smart meter with sumo. Was wired incorrectly, resulted in no hot water. Then at my expensive had to get an electrician to do rewiring. Rang Sumo, they had nothing to say! Show details
Diamond Energy
Great Green Energy Supplier. Customer Service always brilliant in finding the right solution. Show details
Dodo Power & Gas
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I would give a no star or -1 star after my experience with Dodo. I had signed up for all 3 services, and at first all went well. But then problems… Read more
started arising, first with no way of accessing my energy account. Dodo also never ONCE sent me an invoice for my electricity account, although I requested it over and over again. Then I couldn't access any of my services and was flying blind. Which also meant, they would just deduct money without transparency. My attempts at solving this problem lead me to hours on the phone to rude and hard to understand representatives, which was infuriating me to no end. It took more than 6 months for them to sort out my account.... And still never any access to the electricity account. So I changed, and was expecting a bill from them. It never came, I couldn't access my account online. So I emailed them, please send me the bill. They didn't. I contacted them again, please send me the bill, you've sent me an overdue notice, but no bill attached. Please send the bill i don't know how much I owe you. Yesterday I got an email from a debt collector!!!!!! Dodo you are the worst service provider ever!!!! STAY AWAY
Bill Hero
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It sounds great in theory but they then add an automatic annual renewal for those poor people who forget and make it impossible to cancel the… Read more
subscription. It’s unethical. There must be a way to cancel but I can’t work it out which means it’s not simple and that’s unethical.
Pacific Hydro
No on time gimicks games – I am with Pacific Hydro with last one year. Straight forward electricity price. You no need to calculator for discount rates (one time pay), no… Read more
discount movie tickets-ETC. i am very happy with them. s.chitaranjan victoria
Arcline by RACV
Received a competitve quote from Arcline by RACV and asked them in writing to proceed. I have never heard back and that was nearly 12 months ago. Don't provide quotes if you are not prepared to honour them!!! Show details
Red Energy
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Very happy with my time with you never have tried to extort me and always been so helpful with any queries Show details
Nectr
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Awful experience trying to sign up with nectr. Their system is so old that authorisation texts won’t go through then they denied me an account due to their poorly constructed credit scheme despite having good credit! Avoid. Show details
WinConnect
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Technician walked right past us and disconnected our power then never answered when we wanted to connect. Show details
Locality Planning Energy
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Outrageous pricing and horrible customer service. Had to get the ombudsmen involved. Worst electricity supplier I’ve ever been with. Show details
Powershop Australia
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Better than competition also easy to manage payments. Reliable for gas usage too. Show details
ZEN Energy
Zen is the way to go – Highly recommend Zen. Great people to deal with, very professional. Now have a 16 panel system and my last monthly bill was $4.77. Total generation for the month of January 2024 was 1017kwh Show details
Altogether
Very prompt and full response my query on gas account. Show details
Aurora Energy
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The Aurora+ app is a joke! When we moved into our house we noticed unusually high bills, we connected with Time of use tarriff. The bill prompted us… Read more
to change tarriffs to a flat rate, then after a lot of watching the app power trends we identified our meter tarriffs were backwards. This was rectified by the meter contractor. We then put a solar panel installation on to lower the bills and new heat pump and hot water timer, yet the bills seem to be growing. We are always in credit within the app and yet the amount deducted daily and usage daily aren't lining up, now that they've increased price per kwh and lowered feed in tarriff its time to look for someone else to provide power. The customer service agents must have a prerequisite to not read enquiries as they respond with emails that dont answer simple questions. There is no way via the app to accurately work out the funds in and out.
Agas National
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stated all day we would have gas delivered, told in first 4 deliveries, then told before end of AM, then told 2 more hours, then told in transit at 6pm. Show details
ReAmped Energy
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Just wanted to say to all the whingers complaining here...you weren't complaining when your electricity was the cheapest it's ever been, my bill was… Read more
HALVED, after joining Reamped. I was very sorry when they had to cease trading because of a volatile market, but I check every now and then to see if they are operating, and when they do, I will be signing up again, because who doesn't want to pay $500 LESS per quarter for their power?
Energy Cloud Australia
Poor Quality without warranty service – The panel is broken in three months after installation. They refuse to replace it and blame you broke the panel. My friend also chose this company,… Read more
they did not link to electrical grid. One year later, my friend found out after checking electrical bills. They also refuse to provide any compensation. NO product warranty and performance warranty from this company!
Alinta Energy
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They have just dropped my solar feed in rate from 4 cents to 2 cents making solar an absolute waste of time and money. All be hunting for new supplier and possibly disconnecting my solar system Show details
EnergyAustralia
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My bills with Origin were small as I have solar and battery. When I moved to Energy Australia my bills went through the roof! What a rip off! Show details
Should I switch energy providers?
There are a few reasons as to why you might want to switch energy providers. Sometimes, the value of deals deteriorates over time when the benefit period ends and costs increase.
Lots of customers are also swayed into an energy deal by ‘bait and switch’ tactics, which offer huge discounts when you sign up with a retailer, to only then have them raise prices without warning.
With energy prices rising, it could also be a good idea to reassess whether the plan you’re on is the most suited to your energy usage and budget.
Whether or not you switch energy providers is up to you, but it’s always a good idea to pay attention to your energy bill and see whether you’re getting a good deal.
How do I choose an energy provider?
Here’s what you should consider when you’re comparing gas and electricity providers.
Your usage
Make sure that the plan you’re going on is a good fit for your energy usage. A contract might, for example, offer discounts on off-peak energy use. While this may mean savings if you can realistically move activities to these times, it may increase your costs if you need to use energy at peak times.
Keep some of your previous bills with you when shopping around
Keeping copies of your last few energy bills handy while you shop around can help you easily see how much energy you use and how much you pay. This will make it simpler to compare deals across the market and find a better one.
Price
Your energy bill has two parts: a supply charge (also referred to as a service charge or fixed charge) and a usage charge.
The supply charge is how much it costs to connect electricity or gas to your home, and will appear on your bill as either cents per day or as a total amount for the billing period. You’ll be charged this even if you don’t use any electricity or gas.
The usage charge is the cost of the electricity or gas that you use.
- For electricity, you’ll be billed in cents per kilowatt hour (c/kWh).
- For natural gas, you’ll be billed cents per megajoule (c/MJ).
It’s important to look at the rate per kWh or MJ when comparing deals. Sometimes, your bill might show more than one usage charge, such as different usage charges depending on whether you used energy in peak, shoulder, or off-peak times.
Is it cheaper to buy gas and electricity together?
It isn’t necessarily cheaper to buy gas and electricity from the same retailer. In some cases, bundling both on a dual fuel plan may score you some discounts, but these could still be more expensive in the long run than paying for electricity from one provider and gas with another.
You should still compare base usage rates to make sure you’re getting a good deal. If a retailer offers a dual fuel discount but their underlying rates aren’t actually competitive, then it may not be worth it.
Although not necessarily cheaper, one advantage to consolidating gas and electricity under a single provider is that it can make paying bills and budgeting easier.
Type of contract
The tariff you’re charged will depend on what kind of contract you have with your provider, who may offer you either a standard retail contract or a market retail contract.
Standard retail contracts have set terms and conditions and cannot be changed by the provider. Under some of these contracts, the price you pay for energy is determined by the state or territory government. If you’ve never switched retailers, then you’ll likely be on this type of contract.
Market retail contracts have varied terms and conditions. They may cost less, offer renewable energy or discounts, and often have fixed terms where you’re charged an exit fee if you leave the contract early. In most cases, these types of offers will be cheaper in the long run and are more competitive out of the two.
Fees
There may be some extra fees charged under your contract, including but not limited to:
- Late fee: this is charged if you fail to pay your bill on time.
- Credit card fee: a fee charged if you pay by credit card.
- Early termination fee: if you’re on a fixed term contract, you may be charged a fee if you switch before the contract has ended.
- Moving fee: some retailers charge this if you move home.
Payment method
Check billing and payment details, such as how and when you’re billed. Also see if the provider’s payment options are suited to you.
You should also check the provider’s hardship policy and what this entails, particularly if you’re working with a tighter budget. A hardship policy offers support and protection if you are struggling to pay your energy bill.
Discounts
You can sometimes get certain discounts for your energy bills, including:
- Pay on time: applies if you pay your bill on time. If you don’t manage to pay a bill on time, you may however be hit with a late fee.
- Email billing: sometimes offered if you choose to have your bills emailed instead of sent by mail. Conversely, some retailers will charge you a fee for a paper bill rather than offering this discount.
- Direct debit: offered when you let your retailer directly take what you owe from your bank account, rather than waiting for you to pay your bill manually.
Just remember to keep in mind that often discounts are temporary. They may be nice extras, but don’t rely on them for savings in the long term.
You should check whether discounts apply to the whole bill (that is, both supply charges and usage charges) or just usage, because this can make quite a difference to what you’re actually saving.
Going green
There are also providers that are more environmentally friendly than others, but it can be difficult to cut through the noise with so many retailers advertising themselves as “green”.
Consider the following questions when assessing a retailer’s environmental impact:
- Does the provider offer green energy products to let their customers support the renewable energy sector?
- Does the provider offer carbon offsetting?
- Does the provider support renewable energy industries? For example, do they support electric vehicles, or do they own assets like solar farms or wind farms?
GreenPower is renewable energy from companies across Australia that have been accredited by the government. If you’re interested in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and helping grow the renewable energy sector, then consider purchasing this. However, in some cases, you may be paying extra on top of your usage to offset your power.
Checklist before you switch
If you’ve found a plan that suits you and you’re ready to switch, go through the checklist below.
- Check with your current provider to see if they can offer you a better deal. Some power providers will match or do better.
- Know about your cooling-off rights. By law, when you enter a new energy contract, you have a cooling-off period of 10 business days, during which you can cancel the contract and not be charged an exit fee.
- Check leaving fees. See whether you have to pay a fee to leave your current energy plan.
- Check price changes. See whether prices can change on your new plan, and whether there are already any planned price changes.
- See if you can get a concession. Rebates and concessions are typically offered to pensioners, low-income earners, and those with certain medical conditions.
- Check the conditions of a contract. Ask what will happen at the end of your contract, including what you’ll need to do if you want to renew and what will happen if you want to switch providers.
Contact the new provider directly if you do decide to switch. The process of switching energy providers can take anywhere from 1 to 3 months to do, depending on your retailer and where you are in the payment cycle. Your energy supply won’t be interrupted if you choose to switch.
Look at the energy price fact sheet
Always read the energy price fact sheet of the electricity or gas plan you’re considering.
An energy retailer must provide a summary of a contract by law. This energy price fact sheet must include all costs and charges, payments and penalties for early termination, the contract date and duration, billing and payment details, as well as your rights and obligations.
The bottom line
It’s important to know the fine print of any power supplier and plan you’re considering switching over to. You could even ask a friend or family member to look over your new contract - a fresh set of eyes may pick up on even a minor detail that you’ve overlooked.
Cutting through the marketing and seeing an energy plan for what it is - including rates, fees, benefits, and more - is essential to helping you compare energy providers and find a good deal that means savings on your bills.
Disclaimer: The information on this website is for general information only. It should not be taken as constituting professional advice from the website owner - ProductReview.com.au. ProductReview.com.au is not a financial adviser. You should consider seeking independent legal, financial, taxation or other advice to check how the website information relates to your unique circumstances. ProductReview.com.au is not liable for any loss caused, whether due to negligence or otherwise arising from the use of, or reliance on, the information provided directly or indirectly, by use of this website.
Compare, switch and save all in one place
Hi John, I run Energy Locals so will look into… Read more