⚖️Side-by-Side Comparison
If you've searched for the greenest energy supplier, Good Energy will have come up. It's a specialist: a Wiltshire-based supplier that has sold only renewable electricity for over two decades, buys it from thousands of small independent generators, and is a certified B Corp. Octopus serves 7.3 million households as the UK's largest supplier. These two are closer on green credentials and service than most head-to-heads on this site, so the differences come down to price, tariffs and what kind of "green" you want.
| Category | Octopus Energy | Good Energy |
|---|---|---|
| Trustpilot Rating | 4.8/5 (800K+ reviews) | 4.8/5 (about 15,000 reviews) |
| Which? Status | Recommended Provider, 9 years running | Eco Provider; not a Recommended Provider in 2026 |
| Customer Base | 7.3M households, largest UK supplier | Far smaller specialist supplier |
| Electricity Mix | 100% zero-carbon: 86.4% renewable + 13.6% nuclear | 100% renewable: 55% wind, 27% bioenergy, 9% hydro, 9% solar |
| How It's Backed | REGOs plus ~4GW of generation managed by Octopus | Direct purchase from 3,300+ independent UK generators |
| Price Cap | Flexible priced at or slightly below the cap | Standard tariff exempt from the cap; £1,812 vs £1,723 from 1 Oct |
| Exit Fees (fixed) | None on any tariff | £75 per fuel on its 12-month fix |
| EV Tariff | Intelligent Go, ~7p/kWh overnight | EV Charge, 8.40p/kWh from midnight to 5am |
| Solar Export | Outgoing 12p/kWh, plus Flux and Agile export | Solar Savings 12p/kWh; 25p for its own solar + battery installs |
| Feed-in Tariff Admin | Switching supplier doesn't stop FIT payments | Largest voluntary FIT administrator, 180,000+ home generators |
Good Energy prices are the estimated annual costs on its own tariff information labels (typical dual-fuel use, Direct Debit), set against the Ofgem cap on the same basis. Regional rates differ.
🌱How Green Is Each, Really?
Fuel mix. Good Energy's disclosed mix for April 2025 to March 2026 is 100% renewable: 55% wind, 27% bioenergy, 9% hydro and 9% solar, with no nuclear and no fossil fuel. Octopus's electricity is 100% zero-carbon at 0 g/kWh, made up of 86.4% renewable and 13.6% nuclear. Both are zero-carbon at the point of generation. The difference is nuclear: some green-minded households are happy with it as low-carbon power, others want none. If you're in the second group, Good Energy is the cleaner match.
REGOs vs direct purchase. Most green tariffs in the UK are backed by REGOs (Renewable Energy Guarantees of Origin), certificates issued for each megawatt hour of renewable power. A supplier can buy the certificates separately from the power itself, which is why critics say REGOs alone don't prove much. Good Energy's model is different: it buys the electricity directly from its generators through power purchase agreements and takes the REGO alongside it. It now sources from over 3,300 independent British generators and buys 12% of the output of the Westermost Rough offshore wind farm. It also reports 87% half-hourly matching, meaning 87% of its customers' use was matched to renewable generation in the same half-hour, which it says is higher than any other UK supplier.
Generation ownership. Here the picture flips. Good Energy used to own wind and solar farms, including the Delabole wind farm in Cornwall, but sold its entire 47.5MW generation portfolio to Bluefield Solar in 2022 to concentrate on supply, solar installation and EV services. Octopus generates and manages around 4GW of renewable capacity through Octopus Energy Generation, with roughly £6 billion in assets across 240+ projects. If you want your supplier to be building new wind and solar at scale, Octopus has the bigger footprint.
Gas. Good Energy offers carbon-neutral gas that includes 10% biogas. Neither supplier's gas is renewable in the way its electricity is, so a heat pump does more for your footprint than either gas tariff.
Which? rates Good Energy highly on this front: it earned the top sustainability score of 85% in Which?'s 2026 assessment and is a Which? Eco Provider. That's a genuine strength and worth weighing.
⭐Customer Service
Good Energy's service is very well regarded. It holds a 4.8/5 Trustpilot score from around 15,000 reviews, and in the 2026 Which? energy survey its customer score of 81% was the second highest of 17 suppliers, a little above Octopus's 79%. Citizens Advice ranked it 4th for April to June 2026 with 3.68 out of 5, with short average call waits. One weakness: its phone lines are open weekdays only, 9am to 5pm.
Octopus matches the Trustpilot score at far greater scale: 4.8/5 from over 800,000 reviews. The bigger difference is the Which? verdict. Good Energy's overall Which? score was 69%, pulled down by a 57% Which? assessment that included one star out of five for the switching process, and it wasn't named a Recommended Provider. Octopus has been a Which? Recommended Provider for 9 consecutive years. Our full Octopus Energy review covers its service in more depth.
⚡Tariffs: EV, Heat Pump & Solar
Good Energy's menu is short: Good Energy Standard (variable, no exit fee), a 12-month fix that needs a smart meter, an EV Charge tariff, a Heat Pump tariff and a Zapmap EV bundle. Octopus has a wider range, from Flexible Octopus and fixed deals through to Agile, Tracker, Intelligent Go, Cosy and Flux, with no exit fees on any of them.
Electric vehicles. Good Energy's EV Charge fix (September 2026) charges 8.40p/kWh off-peak from midnight to 5am, but its peak rate runs at roughly 34p to 39p/kWh depending on region, and it carries a £75 exit fee. Intelligent Octopus Go charges around 7p/kWh overnight, with a daytime rate close to Flexible, and can add extra smart-scheduled cheap slots.
Solar export. This is closer than you might expect. Good Energy's Solar Savings pays 12p/kWh for export, the same as Outgoing Octopus at 12p/kWh. Both need a smart meter and require you to take your electricity supply from the same company. Good Energy also offers Solar Savings Exclusive at 25p/kWh, fixed for 12 months, but only if Good Energy Solar installed your panels and battery. Octopus's edge is choice: Outgoing Agile, Flux and Intelligent Flux can pay more to battery owners who export at peak times. Our export tariffs guide compares every option.
Feed-in Tariff. If you had panels fitted before 2019, you may be on the old FIT scheme. Good Energy is the UK's largest voluntary FIT administrator, serving more than 180,000 home generators, and a lot of solar owners have a relationship with it for that reason. FIT payments don't depend on who supplies your electricity, so you can switch supplier and keep being paid. Note that Good Energy's own Solar Savings tariff isn't available if your installation still receives FIT export payments, and the same principle generally applies to other export tariffs, so check your FIT statement before applying for one.
💷Pricing & the Price Cap
Good Energy is one of three suppliers Ofgem has allowed to price their standard variable tariffs outside the cap, because they give materially more support to renewable generation than the rules require. Good Energy says its prices "may at times be higher or lower than the cap". In practice it has tended to sit above it, and that is true this winter.
From 1 October 2026, the Ofgem cap for a typical dual-fuel household on Direct Debit is £1,723 a year (26.32p/kWh electricity and 7.97p/kWh gas on national average). Good Energy's tariff label for its Standard tariff from the same date gives £1,812: about £89 a year more. Its electricity unit rates are close to the cap (25.07p to 27.69p/kWh depending on region), but its standing charges and gas rates are higher. Its 12-month fix from 17 September 2026 comes out at £1,911 a year for the same household, with a £150 dual-fuel exit fee.
Octopus prices Flexible at or slightly below the cap, with no exit fee. Its smart tariffs can go lower for homes that can shift usage. Regional rates vary for both suppliers, so check Good Energy's current tariff information label for your region before comparing. The gap is the price of Good Energy's model, and some households will think it's worth paying.
🤔Who Should Choose Which?
- ✓You want zero-carbon electricity at or below the price cap
- ✓You drive an EV, have a heat pump, or want a smart or wholesale-linked tariff
- ✓You want no exit fees on any tariff, including fixes
- ✓You value a supplier building renewable generation at scale (~4GW)
- ✓You want the £50 referral credit and Octoplus rewards
- ✓You want 100% renewable electricity with no nuclear in the mix
- ✓You want your money going directly to small independent generators
- ✓You're willing to pay roughly £89 a year above the cap for that model
- ✓Good Energy Solar fitted your panels and battery (25p/kWh export)
- ✓You value a B Corp and a Which? Eco Provider over tariff choice
Comparing more than one green supplier? Our Octopus vs So Energy comparison covers another renewable challenger, and the best energy supplier 2026 ranking puts all the major suppliers side by side.
🔄How to Switch from Good Energy
Switching from Good Energy to Octopus takes about 5 minutes:
- Check your tariff. Good Energy Standard has no exit fee. On a fix or EV Charge, check your end date to avoid the £75 per fuel fee.
- Sort out solar first if you have it. Your FIT payments continue regardless of supplier. If you're on Solar Savings, it ends when your supply leaves Good Energy, so apply for Outgoing once your Octopus account is live.
- Sign up with Octopus using a referral link to get £50 free credit.
- Octopus handles the transfer with Good Energy. It completes in around 2 to 3 working days with no interruption to your supply; just submit an opening meter reading if asked.
See our step-by-step switching guide for the full process.
🏆Our Verdict
Verdict: Octopus for most green households; Good Energy for the purist willing to pay more.
Good Energy is a genuine green specialist with excellent service. Its 100% renewable, nuclear-free mix and direct purchasing from small generators are real strengths, and Which? rates its sustainability highest of any supplier. But it costs about £89 a year more than the cap on its standard tariff, charges exit fees on its fixes, and has a narrower smart tariff range. Octopus gives you 0 g/kWh electricity, ~4GW of its own renewable generation, a 4.8/5 Trustpilot score from 800,000+ reviews, nine years as a Which? Recommended Provider, no exit fees, and £50 credit when you switch.
If you're with Good Energy because you want the greenest possible supply and the premium doesn't bother you, staying is a reasonable choice. If you'd like zero-carbon power without paying above the cap, switching takes about 5 minutes. Read our Octopus Energy review first if you want the full picture.
Sources: Good Energy — our fuel mix · Good Energy — tariff information labels · Good Energy — solar export tariffs · Good Energy — Feed-in Tariff services · Good Energy — Standard tariff and the price cap · Which? — Good Energy review · Which? — energy supplier rankings 2026 · Citizens Advice — Good Energy customer service · Trustpilot — Good Energy · Investegate — recommended cash acquisition of Good Energy Group · Ofgem — energy price cap. Figures last checked September 2026.