If you export electricity to the grid and you don't have a smart meter, you might have two meters installed instead: a generation and an export meter. This is most usual when you have a 

Still not sure? Have a look at the diagram below.

What is the difference between a generation and an export meter?

What is the difference between generation and export meters?

The technology that switches your meter from peak to off-peak price is coming to an end soon. After the Radio Teleswitch Service (RTS) ends, your meter’s timings might not work as expected and your heating and hot water supply could be affected. There’s a simple solution: we need to replace your meter with a smart meter.

Here's a message from our CEO and Founder, Greg Jackson, on everything you need to know about the Radio Teleswitch Service switch-off:

What is the Radio Teleswitch Service (RTS) and what’s it used for?

The Radio Teleswitch Service helps electricity suppliers switch between peak and off-peak times and controls when your heating and hot water turn on and off.

Do I have RTS equipment in my home or business?

If you use electricity for heating and hot water (using electric storage/panel heaters and/or immersion heaters), and you have tariffs that offer cheaper rates during off-peak periods, you may have RTS equipment in your home or business. Usually, there will be a large black box next to your meter. This is the RTS equipment. 

In this picture, the black box to the right of the meter is the radio teleswitch, which controls the off-peak hours.

If we believe you have an RTS meter, we’ll contact you to book a meter exchange. You can also 

register your interest in a smart meter installation

Your RTS meter receives updates through a radio signal which tells the meter when to switch between peak and off-peak electricity rates, allowing it to access different tariff rates based on the time of day.

From 30 June 2025, the RTS service will begin phasing out as it reaches the end of its operational life. The RTS signal will be phased out through a carefully managed and staggered approach, carried out by geographical area. If you live in an area that will experience the RTS signal shutdown, we will be in touch to arrange an appointment for you ahead of the shutdown date.

Why are you replacing RTS meters with smart ones?

Smart meters can be programmed to switch between peak and off-peak times making them the best technical replacement for your RTS meter. You’ll continue to get cheaper off-peak energy, and if your heating or hot water is switched on and off by your current meter, we’ll set it all up to work seamlessly with your new meter.

What if I don’t replace my RTS meter with a smart meter?

Should you decide not to upgrade your RTS meter before the service ends, your meter’s functionality may be affected. You may find that your heating and hot water are continually left on or off, or the charging-up happens at the wrong time of day. 

Without the service to tell your meter when to switch between peak and off-peak times, we won’t be able to confirm how much electricity you have used during your off-peak hours. This means your electricity costs could be much higher than before.

 in your Octopus account and we will contact you to book your appointment for a date and time that suits you.

Have you been contacted about a meter replacement but don’t believe you have an RTS meter?

 or give us a call at 0808 164 1088.  We may need you to send us a photo of your meter so we can get everything updated correctly.

Can I get a smart meter if I rent my property?

If the energy bill at your property is in your name, you can decide whether to get a smart meter installed, but we recommend letting your landlord know first. Smart Energy GB has provided an 

If the energy bill is in your landlord's name, it's their decision, but you can still ask.

What will happen to my off-peak hours when I have a smart meter installed?

About 80% of our customers’ hours will only differ by 15 minutes or less. For example, if your off-peak hours are 00:15 - 07:15, your off-peak hours will probably change to 00:30 - 07:30. Off-peak hours may differ slightly depending on the area you live in.

Do you have questions about your specific meter setup? Drop us an email at 

 or give us a call at 0808 164 1088 and we’ll be happy to help.

Why do I need to urgently replace my Radio Teleswitch Service (RTS) meter?

Your electricity meter, gas meter, and In-Home Display all communicate with each other via something called the 

Some properties where the distance between meters are far apart or there are thick walls between your meters might require additional equipment to extend the range of the HAN in order to connect all of the smart metering devices.

To boost the signal, we’re installing technology known as ‘

If you are interested in getting Alt HAN installed, you can 

These boosters speak to the HAN and extend its range to help your smart meters and In-Home Display talk to each other. Similar to a WiFi booster, a smart meter booster uses the wiring in your property to widen the reach of the HAN. This allows the reach to extend through thick walls or other physical barriers.

Once your smart metering devices are connected, we can take automatic readings, and you can see up-to-date and correct data on your In-Home Display.

It’s important that these devices remain plugged in; otherwise, your devices may stop communicating, and you’ll need to provide manual readings again.

Do I need to keep the devices plugged in?

Yes, for the devices to function properly, we need them to remain plugged in. 

Do I need to take my smart meter booster to my new property?

Nope. The smart meter booster will only work at the property where it was installed, so please leave it at the property if you move out.

Can I move the smart meter booster to another plug socket?

The booster can be moved, but we’d recommend keeping it plugged in at the original installation location. Moving the booster may affect the signal and disrupt the connection to the In Home Display and/or gas meter. 

What should I do if the smart meter booster becomes faulty?

If a permanent red light is present on the booster, email us at hello@octopus.energy and we can arrange for the booster to be replaced, if required.

What is a smart meter booster?

It can take up to 14 days for us to connect to your new smart meters and In-Home Display after your installation. You don’t need to get in touch with us about this – we’re already on it. During this time, we won't be able to take automatic readings from your meter, and your In-Home Display may not work.

While we're waiting for your meter to connect, you might receive an email asking for a meter reading. You don't need to do anything, because the engineer will have taken the final meter reading from your old meter during the installation. 

Once your meters are fully connected, you’ll see your smart meter data on your In-Home Display and in your app and online account under ‘your meters’. If they aren’t there yet, it means we’re still busy connecting. If it’s been longer than 14 days, 

more information about the installation process

How long will it take my smart meters to connect after installation?

If the noise seems to be a short recurring beep, make sure it's not a smoke alarm or carbon monoxide detector nearby that's running low on battery.

If the meter appears to be humming, check if there's anything leaning on the meter or nearby surfaces which might be causing a vibrating noise.

If none of the above seems to be the case, please do the following:

My meter is buzzing / making a noise right now

My meter is buzzing / making a noise

There are a few reasons why your meter might be blank and not playing ball. 

If the screen says "OFF", you'll need to reconnect the meter before you can use electricity or gas.

If you've tried the above and it still hasn't turned your power back on, or you're having trouble following the reconnection instructions,

get in touch and one of our team can help

Why is my meter screen blank?

 is one of our cutting edge beta smart tariffs. Built with fairness in mind, it features energy prices that change daily based on the wholesale cost of energy (i.e what we pay for it).

Whether you’re brand new to Octopus, or you’re already a customer of ours, head to our Octopus Tracker page below to sign up and get all the information you'll need. You'll need to have a smart meter to sign up.

What is Octopus Tracker, and how do I join?

Smart Export Guarantee is one of our export tariffs, reserved for customers who do not want their electricity supplied by Octopus Energy or who also want to benefit from any of our smart EV tariffs at the same time as being paid for their export electricity. If you want to sign up to Octopus SEG with no Octopus import tariff, you can sign up 

 for more information or browse all of our available export tariffs 

If you’re looking to export anything other than energy generated by solar PV, you should get in touch with 

 as you will likely not have an MCS certificate - which contains the details we would usually use to sign you up.

What is the Smart Export Guarantee Tariff, and how do I join?

 tariff enables you to get paid for any excess solar energy you don’t use and export to the grid. It’s perfect for homes with solar panels, battery storage or any other way of sharing energy back to the grid.

The tariff comes in two forms: variable and agile. On our variable tariff, Outgoing Octopus,  you’ll earn a flat rate of 15p/kWh for every unit you export. The rate we pay is variable, which means it can fluctuate with the wholesale market, but we’ll always give you notice of any changes.

On Outgoing Agile, your half-hourly rate changes as it’s matched with wholesale prices agreed the day before. 

Whether you’re brand new to Octopus, or you’re already a customer of ours, head to our Outgoing Octopus page below to sign up and get all the information you'll need.

If you don’t have a suitable smart meter yet, you can still sign up for an Outgoing tariff and we’ll get in contact with you to arrange a smart meter installation as soon as possible.

There may be times when we can’t install your smart meter right away. This is generally due to WAN coverage in your area or engineer availability. 

What is Outgoing Octopus, and how do I join?

 is one of our beta smart tariffs, specifically designed to help electric vehicle drivers charge up on greener, cheaper power overnight.

Octopus Go customers get super cheap electricity every night, so they can charge up their EV for a tenth of the price of a traditional car (and keep charging costs as low as 3p per mile!)

Whether you’re brand new to Octopus, or you’re already a customer of ours, head to our Octopus Go page below to sign up and get all the information you'll need:

What is Octopus Go, and how do I join?

An ‘Economy 7’ setup (also known as eco 7, two rate, or peak / offpeak tariff) has two different energy prices per day – a day rate, and a 7 hour long cheaper rate overnight. This means you pay less for any energy you use at night (usually between 12:00am and 7:00am) and more for energy used during the day (usually between 7:00am and 12:00am).

Originally designed to benefit homes with storage heaters that would heat up overnight, the tariff can also be useful for anyone who uses lots of power during the night.

Unsure how to read your meter? Try reading 

our comprehensive guide to taking readings

 from various types of electricity and gas meters here.

I’ve got an Economy 7 meter - how do I know which reading is which?

It’s important to get this right as mixing up day and night readings can lead to inaccurate bills. Older electricity meters usually have labels for each register. If your meter doesn’t then don’t worry: there’s a simple test to find out which reading is peak and off-peak.

Take a reading after 8.30am but before 11pm, then another reading 1 hour later. If you’re able, try to make sure you’re using electricity during this period; turn on some lights or boil the kettle a few times. When you look at the second reading, whichever register has recorded usage will be your peak reading.

If your readings have got mixed up at any point, don’t worry! As long as we can confirm which reading is which, we’ll be able to get everything fixed.

My meter only has one reading, why are you asking me for two?

 and you’re sure there’s no second reading, please do get in touch. We might have received incorrect info from the industry database used by energy companies and need to correct it.

The best thing to do is take a clear photo of your meter and 

. We’ll check what’s going on and get everything fixed.

What happens to my Economy Seven (E7) tariff when I have a smart meter installed?

Your smart meter will have a fixed off-peak 7 hour period from 00:30 to 07:30. This time period takes place according to Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), so during British Summer Time (BST) the 7 hour period will take place between 01:30 and 08:30. This may differ from your existing off-peak period on your current non-smart meter.

What is an Economy 7 meter and tariff?

 is one of our beta smart tariffs, offering customers electricity prices that change every half an hour, based on the wholesale price of energy.

Why? Outside of daily energy ‘rush hours’ (usually between 4pm and 7pm, when everyone’s generally using a lot of power, i.e. dinner time) 

wholesale energy tends to be a lot cheaper

 (and greener – a much higher % coming from renewable sources).

On Agile, if you can shift when you use power outside of these busy times, you can access cheap ‘off-peak’ prices and potentially save some cash, while using the greenest electrons available and reducing strain on the energy grid.

Agile is perfect for people with electric cars, heat pumps, home batteries and any other big energy-intensive appliances.

We wrote this report when we first released Agile Octopus, so the cap, rates and standing charges mentioned have now been updated to reflect market changes.

Whether you’re brand new to Octopus, or you’re already a customer of ours, head to our Agile Octopus page below to sign up and get all the information you need:

You’ll first need a smart meter we can get half-hourly meter readings from (either a second generation ‘SMETS2’ meter or a first generation ‘SMETS1’ meter made by Secure). 

Here’s how to work out what type of meter you have.

If you don’t have a suitable smart meter yet, you can still sign up for Agile and we’ll get in contact with you to arrange a smart meter installation as soon as possible.

Please note, there may be times when we can’t install your smart meter right away. This is generally due to local Covid restrictions, WAN coverage in your area, and engineer availability. To find out more, we've written a blog explaining 

why we can’t always give an exact timeframe for your smart meter installation

 What is Agile Octopus, and how do I join?

We can connect to any SMETS2 smart meter and some SMETS1 smart meters (such as those made by the brand Secure™). We will automatically try to connect after you've switched, but may still ask you to send your first set of meter readings manually.

If we are unable to connect to your SMETS1 meter, it will lose it's smart powers and work like a normal meter, so you'll need to give us manual meter readings. 

Across the industry, we're upgrading SMETS1 first-generation smart meters by enrolling them in the Data Communications Company (DCC) network so they keep their smart functionality. SMETS1 meters that can't be successfully enrolled will be replaced with SMETS2 meters at no additional cost.

SMETS2 are the new generation of smart meters; they will stay smart if you switch supplier and offer increased functionality and flexibility to be future-ready for developments in smart tariffs and smart home tech.

Do you have a SMETS1 meter that needs to be upgraded? No worries, we'll be in touch shortly to book you in for your meter upgrade as soon as we have engineers available in your area.

What happens if I have a smart meter?

Yes! We currently support both smart and traditional prepayment meters for electricity and gas.

Do you support prepayment meters?

We'll send someone to collect a reading from your meters if you're unable to take your own meter readings, or you haven't given us one in several months.

Even if you give regular reads - or have a smart meter - we may still send someone round occasionally to check everything's good.

The people who'll come round to collect your readings are from two independent meter engineers called 

If you joined us from Bulb or Shell, meter readers will be from 

We only send meter readers around because it's really important to keep your energy account in good health 

- ensuring you're not overpaying for your energy, or underpaying and building up a surprise debt. The best way you can make sure you're paying the right monthly amount to cover your energy bill is to take regular meter readings.

We remind you each month about readings, but if you haven't given us any for a while - and we mean, a while - we might send a meter reader around to take them. We need at the very least one valid meter reading every year.

Do you send meter readers around?

We like to make sure your bills are as accurate as possible – so you're only ever getting billed for the energy you're really using. That's why we send email reminders to take meter readings every month, unless you have a smart meter we're able to read automatically.

If you have a smart meter, there are a few reasons we might've still asked for a meter reading:

No matter what type of meter you've got, we do need you to submit your very first reading manually. After that, we can connect to your smart meter remotely to take automatic readings if it's a second generation (SMETS2), or a first generation (SMETS1) Secure meter (i.e. says "Secure" on the front). Here's a 

video guide for reading your Secure smart meter

, and a written step-by-step guides for reading your Secure 

2. Your smart meter isn't one we can connect to

If your smart meter is a first generation (SMETS1) that Secure didn't make, then we won't be able to link up to it automatically after you switch. The meter will be absolutely fine, but it'll lose it's ‘smart' benefits. It'll behave like a traditional meter, so your in-home display monitor might not work, and you'll need to give us meter readings manually for the time being. Here's 

how to take readings from your non-Secure smart meter

Across the industry, we're upgrading eligible SMETS1 first-generation smart meters by enrolling them in the Data Communications Company (DCC) network so they keep their smart functionality.

SMETS1 meters that can't be successfully enrolled

 will be replaced with SMETS2 meters at no additional cost.

SMETS2 are the new generation of smart meters; they will stay smart if you switch supplier and offer increased functionality and flexibility to be future-ready for developments in smart tariffs and smart home tech. 

Do you have a SMETS1 meter that needs to be replaced? No worries, we'll be in touch shortly to book you in for your meter upgrade as soon as we have engineers available in your area.

 and the national smart meter rollout here.

3. We installed your meter and we're still connecting to it.

It can take a little while to get your new meter linked up to us after it's been installed. Generally, it takes about 14 days to get all your meter details into our systems, and another few days after that to fully connect so that we're able to take readings automatically.

While we're waiting for your meter to connect, you may receive an email asking for a meter reading. You don't need to do anything if you get this email, as your final meter reading from your old meter will have been taken already by our engineer.

If you receive this email, it just means we're still trying to connect to your new smart meter. If you receive it more 14 days after we installed your meter, 

I have a smart meter - why are you asking for meter readings?

If you've got a traditional meter or a non-smart meter, we recommend sending in a reading every month – or if not, as often as you can.

If you have a smart meter that we're connected to, you don't need to worry about sending us readings as we can take these automatically.

When you give us meter readings, we can see how much energy you've really used, and base your bills on that instead of estimating how much you've used. As well as making your bills more accurate, regular meter readings give us a clear picture of your energy use over time, which makes our forecasts of your payments and energy costs much more accurate as well.

It's also a good idea - if you don't have a connected smart meter - to send us a meter reading when your tariff is changing. This ensures any usage you're billed for is completely accurate.

If you're a Flexible Octopus customer, you'll be notified ahead of time when your prices will change. If you want a completely accurate bill, you're best to submit a reading on - or close to - the date your prices change. For example, if your tariff is changing on April 2nd, submit a reading sometime on the 2nd.

However, if you aren't able to provide a reading: don't panic! No one will be massively disadvantaged if they can't send us one. Octopus will still need a reading for that date, but we'll estimate one from your last meter reading instead. This will probably only be a few units off what the actual reading is, if you were able to provide it.

send us a meter reading at any time here.

When should I send a meter reading?

Right now, In-Home Displays aren’t able to show dynamic smart tariff prices like Agile or Go. These prices update frequently, and the IHD wasn’t designed to handle that level of real-time data. We know this isn’t ideal, and we’re always working on improvements.

In the meantime, there are easier ways to track your prices and energy use:

(not just missing smart tariff prices), try these

Why doesn’t my In-Home Display (IHD) show my smart tariff prices?

I’m on a smart tariff and my meter’s In-Home Display (IHD) screen isn’t working properly

Smart meters are the next generation of metering technology. 

latest generation of gas and electricity smart meters

Smart meters automatically record how much energy you use, removing the need for you to take manual readings. 

This means no more estimated bills, and access to innovative

where you could get electricity for less!

We release thousands of new appointments every week.

, we'll send you an email when we have appointments available in your area.

 to get booked in - you'll need to choose a date and time that works for you, and we'll sort the rest!

Why wouldn't I be able to have a smart meter installed?

If you have a complex meter set up, like a CT electricity meter.

Is there anything that may impact smart functionality?

If your home does not have a strong enough signal (WAN or Wider Area Network) to connect to the smart meter network

If the distance between your meters is far apart or if there are thick walls between your meters:

What is a smart meter and can I have one?

At Octopus Energy, we can automatically read second-generation (SMETS2) and Secure™ first-generation (SMETS1) smart meters. But there are lots of different types of smart meters installed around the UK.

 to taking manual readings from a smart meter, whatever type you might have...

Your electricity reading will be a number followed by “KWH”. We don't need the numbers after the decimal place.

If your meter has more than one unit rate (for example, if you're on an Economy 7 tariff), you'll have to take a reading for each rate. 

The two readings will appear one after the other — generally followed by “R1” and “R2” (Rate 1 and Rate 2). There is no set rule as to which one is your peak rate reading and which is your offpeak. Your meter might have a sticky label indicating which is which, though.

After R1 and R2, a third reading might appear onscreen — “T”. This is the total of your peak and offpeak readings combined. You don't need to give us this one.

If your meter has a green A and a white B button:

If your meter has three unmarked buttons:

If your meter has an orange button and a blue button:

*If your meter has two buttons marked Reconnect and Display Select:

Your gas reading will be a number followed by “m3”. We don't need the numbers after the decimal place.

If your meter has three square red buttons (they might be labelled A, B, and C):

If your meter has a left arrow, a circle and a right arrow:

If your meter has orange and blue arrow buttons:

How do I read my non-Octopus smart meter?

We're sorry to hear you're having problems with your In-Home Display – don't worry, these issues are common and often easy to fix. Before calling out a technician, try these steps:

Why isn’t my smart meter’s In-Home Display (IHD) screen working?

Why isn’t my Smart Meter’s In Home Display (IHD) screen working?

We're big supporters of the Government's target to get a smart meter in every home by the end of 2025.

This will help people manage how and when they use energy - saving money, carbon and the planet. We've been powering ahead with the smart meter rollout and have installed a record high of just under 1 million smart meters in 2024 alone, of which 622,603 are qualifying meters which count towards our Ofgem target.

At Octopus we’re focused on installing and maintaining working smart meters so that our customers get full access to the benefits they provide - And we’ll even replace smart meters when they aren’t working, which unfortunately means that sometimes installs won’t count towards our Ofgem targets.

Of these installs, the meter type targets for 2025 are:

Our historical performance is also summarised below. As we welcomed Bulb and Shell customers to Octopus in 2023 and 2024, we have also included their target and actual numbers below.

What are your smart meter targets?

If you've accidentally submitted an incorrect reading, don't worry. Our verification system should catch it, but if not, 

 with the correct reading and we'll update it for you. 

I accidentally sent an incorrect reading, what should I do?

Send us a reading at any time by clicking here

Meters

What can we help you with?