Octopus Agile vs Tracker

Backlit5584

Hi - sorry I'm sure these tariffs are driving knowledgeable people on the forum mad recently. I've tried reading the existing threads but it's made me more uncertain about what's more likely to be best. I'm happy that I have low essential usage at this time of year.

I'm with Octopus and have been on Agile for about 3 months. Agile has been working well for me - I've paid maybe 2/3 Flexible cost for my usage so a good saving. I live by myself, work from home full-time and have a standard home setup, no EV or solar or anything special going on. I've got nothing that makes use of overnight rates if they're cheap but do also notice rates across the day are often as good and I can set off laundry/dishwasher at good times while wfh. Minimising 4-7 usage has been fine for me lifestyle wise - sometimes a little annoying if I'm going out in the evening and need a pricy electric shower but that's about it.

I've been on waiting list for Tracker and have just been offered today. I have until 6th to decide or I'll need to go back on a waiting list again.

I'm struggling to find a proper comparison of how these would work out for me. I use OctopusCompare on my phone to monitor Agile pricing vs Flexible but am really struggling to see Tracker in the list to add into the comparison unless I'm being blind - is there an app I can use to look at a comparison with my real data?

I've read that Tracker has been mostly better than Agile over past months with tracker rate similar to the low points on Agile most days but don't know whether this is accurate to current available calculation methods for the tariffs. I'm a bit confused about the impact of the change to Price Guarantee effective today - I think it means my higher rates might get a bit higher with a reduced discount? Not sure how this would impact Tracker.

I'm not sure if it's best to switch to Tracker while I have the option available or whether Agile is a good hedge as there's likely to be some times of day where electricity is available at reasonable price even if rates hike up. I'd really appreciate any thoughts people had - don't worry I do understand it's my decision and that managing a variable tariff can be a risk. 

I'm not so stressed about gas as my usage is very low over summer with an electric shower and oven. I probably will switch as I think standing charge is lower and it will keep my options open for when usage rises in the autumn.

t0rt0ise

You can see tracker prices at http://mysmartenergy.uk/Tracker/London choose your region from the dropdown.

QrizB

Backlit5584 said:

I've been on waiting list for Tracker and have just been offered today. I have until 6th to decide or I'll need to go back on a waiting list again.

Don't make any quick decisions  

For the next couple of days, Agile is going to be really cheap for a good part of the day. At some times they'll pay you quite a lot to use electricity.

I suspect that, periods like the current one aside, you'll be better off on Tracker. It's definitely less effort to make the most of Tracker when  compared to Agile. Might you save a few a little bit of money on Agile, overall, with effort? And is it really worth it to you?

masonic

The waiting list is being removed when the registration page reopens. Regarding the EPG, it will not affect Tracker as prices have not been high enough in the recent past. However, Agile has benefited during peak periods, so those would have been 10p or so higher on an expensive day. If you are avoiding usage during the 4-7pm peak, then that may not be an issue.

scobie

Both this site and Facebook have been full today of these questions.  Which makes me wonder: why on Earth are people signing up to Tracker if they don’t know the basics of how it works?

CSI_Yorkshire

scobie said:

Both this site and Facebook have been full today of these questions.  Which makes me wonder: why on Earth are people signing up to Tracker if they don’t know the basics of how it works?

Just wait for all the complaints - "Octopus are charging me more than the price cap, can they do this?"

ChaunceyGardiner

scobie said:

Both this site and Facebook have been full today of these questions.  Which makes me wonder: why on Earth are people signing up to Tracker if they don’t know the basics of how it works?

I moderate a FB energy group, and it's been non-stop Agile questions all day, from people who barely understand how to read their meter, the price cap etc, never mind smart tariffs.

mmmmikey

I can see Octopus getting their fingers burnt with this. I'm starting to wonder if they are failing in their duty of care by not spelling out the risks more forcefully. There seems to be a bandwagon that's gathering pace and a lot of people are jumping on it with very little understanding of what they are signing up to. It's not that I think that Tracker and Agile are bad tariffs or unduly risky if you know what you're doing - in fact I think they can be an excellent option in some situations. My concern is that it's clear from some of the questions that are being asked that some of the folks don't know what they are signing up for. That's not to say that people are stupid or incapable of understanding - by and large I get the impression that people haven't been sufficiently engaged to develop a good understanding and they are getting caught up on a tide of enthusiasm. 

(Perhaps I should add "doomed, we're all doomed" )

Chrysalis

At the bottom of this page, there is a comparison graph for all the smart tariffs, and you can also look at tracker and agile historical data.

https://energy-stats.uk/octopus-agile-east-midlands/

My summary is something like this.

Agile as an average cost wins out when the wholesale rates are really low (like this weekend), (by average I mean the average 30 minute unit rate per day, of course if that actually represents an average cost depends on your usage pattern).

At not so low unit rates, like the recent week days, tracker is favourable on average daily unit rate cost.  Most of the past few months tracker has enjoyed a 1-2p unit rate per day advantage.

As unit rates get more expensive, the advantage for tracker grows, this is because it has a lower multiplier on its formula vs wholesale rates.   Agile is better when cheaper because it only has a fixed cost premium during peak hours, whilst tracker has it for the entire day.  Agile can also hit negative pricing where you get paid to use electric.

The other thing to consider is that tracker is an all day rate, in that regard its similar to legacy tariffs, so it doesnt matter what time of day you use the energy, it will be the same cost.  Whilst agile the unit rate changes at 30 minute intervals, and as such it has peak and off peak periods much more granular and volatile than typical time of day tariffs.  The advantage for Agile here is that you can load shift to save some serious money, e.g. if you able to charge batteries and run off them during the day.  Also good if e.g. you are a night owl.  However Agile can work against you if e.g. you have children using lots of electric when they come home from school.

So its not a one answer fits all, it depends on the customer's household patterns and market conditions.

--

For me personally because I tend to have steady usage during the day, my typical cost on Agile was close to what would be on tracker, probably slightly higher most days, (but on days like this weekend would be cheaper).  But this is just me, it will be different for others as I said above.

Chrysalis

ChaunceyGardiner said:

scobie said:

Both this site and Facebook have been full today of these questions.  Which makes me wonder: why on Earth are people signing up to Tracker if they don’t know the basics of how it works?

I moderate a FB energy group, and it's been non-stop Agile questions all day, from people who barely understand how to read their meter, the price cap etc, never mind smart tariffs.

Sadly the problem of under education on understanding bills, energy bills in particular.  Sadly feels like is no effort from the regulator to address this, this is going to get even harder for you as ofgem recently changed their average use metrics making their typical annual cost figures even more nonsensical.

Chrysalis

mmmmikey said:

I can see Octopus getting their fingers burnt with this. I'm starting to wonder if they are failing in their duty of care by not spelling out the risks more forcefully. There seems to be a bandwagon that's gathering pace and a lot of people are jumping on it with very little understanding of what they are signing up to. It's not that I think that Tracker and Agile are bad tariffs or unduly risky if you know what you're doing - in fact I think they can be an excellent option in some situations. My concern is that it's clear from some of the questions that are being asked that some of the folks don't know what they are signing up for. That's not to say that people are stupid or incapable of understanding - by and large I get the impression that people haven't been sufficiently engaged to develop a good understanding and they are getting caught up on a tide of enthusiasm. 

(Perhaps I should add "doomed, we're all doomed" )

Potentially yeah, but they making a big effort to warn people up front.

Our market does need modernising, the billing based on hedged prices at a standard rate for the entire day regardless of wholesale demand is a very dated system, our market does need moving forward.