🔌What Is Economy 7?
Economy 7 (often shortened to E7) is a two-rate electricity tariff that runs on a meter with two registers: one records your usage during 7 cheap overnight hours, the other records everything else at a higher day rate. The name is literal — seven hours of economy-priced electricity per night.
It was introduced decades ago to encourage households to use electricity overnight, when national demand is low — originally so storage heaters could charge up on cheap power at night and release heat through the day. Millions of UK homes, especially flats and properties without mains gas, still run on E7 meters today.
The trade-off is simple: the night rate is much cheaper than a standard single rate (which sits around 27p/kWh under the current price cap baseline), but the day rate is more expensive. Whether E7 saves or costs you money depends entirely on how much of your usage you can push into those seven hours.
🕐Typical Economy 7 Times in the UK
This is the question everyone asks — and the honest answer is there is no single national Economy 7 window. The 7 off-peak hours vary by region, supplier, and even individual meter. They usually fall somewhere between 23:00 and 08:00, and some meters split them into two blocks (for example, a chunk after midnight plus a top-up in the early morning).
To find your exact times: check a recent bill (the day/night split is usually printed there), look at the timer on or near your meter, or ask your supplier. Also note that some older meters don't adjust for British Summer Time, so the window can shift by an hour in summer. Never assume your times from a generic list — running the dishwasher at the wrong hour on E7 means paying the expensive rate.
🐙Does Octopus Energy Support Economy 7?
Yes. Flexible Octopus — the standard variable tariff — has Economy 7 rates with a cheap night unit price and a higher day rate, so you can switch to Octopus and keep your existing E7 meter and storage heater setup exactly as it is. You still get the full Octopus package: 100% renewable electricity, no exit fees, the £50 referral credit, and service rated 4.8/5 on Trustpilot from 779,000+ reviews.
That said, Octopus is also the supplier most likely to talk you out of classic E7 — because its smart tariffs often do the same job better. If you have (or get) a smart meter, tariffs like Intelligent Octopus Go and Agile Octopus offer off-peak pricing that's typically cheaper, more flexible, or both. Think of E7 as the legacy version of the idea Octopus's smart tariffs have modernised.
⚖️Who Economy 7 Still Suits — and Who Should Upgrade
The rule of thumb: Economy 7 pays off when around 40% or more of your electricity is used in the off-peak window. In practice that means homes with storage heaters, an immersion-heated hot water tank on a night timer, or overnight EV charging without access to a smart tariff. For everyone else, here's how the options stack up:
If you have electric heating via a heat pump rather than storage heaters, Cosy Octopus is the purpose-built option — typically saving around £219/year with scheduled cheap-rate windows that match heat pump running patterns far better than E7's single overnight block. And if you're below the ~40% night-usage threshold with no shiftable loads, a single-rate tariff is usually the cheapest boring answer — browse all Octopus tariffs to compare.
🔥Getting the Most from Storage Heaters on Economy 7
Storage heaters are the reason E7 exists, and using them well is the difference between a cheap winter and an expensive one:
- Set input by tomorrow's weather — the input dial controls how much heat is stored overnight; turn it down in milder spells so you're not paying to store heat you won't use
- Keep output low until you need it — a high output setting in the morning can empty the heater before the evening, forcing you onto expensive daytime top-ups
- Run hot water overnight too — if you have an immersion tank, put it on a timer inside the off-peak window and you're heating water at the cheap rate
- Shift heavy appliances into the window — washing machines and dishwashers with delay timers can ride the night rate (mind fire-safety advice on running appliances while asleep)
- Avoid daytime electric top-up heaters — plug-in fan heaters at E7 day rates are the most expensive heat in the house
🔄How to Switch To — or Away From — Economy 7
Switching supplier on E7 is easy: your meter and wiring stay put, you just move to a supplier with E7 rates (Octopus included). Sign-up takes around 5 minutes and the switch completes in a few working days.
Moving from E7 to single rate (or vice versa) depends on your meter. With a traditional two-register meter you may need a meter exchange; with a smart meter it's typically a remote reconfiguration — no engineer visit, no rewiring.
This is the strongest argument for getting a smart meter installed (free with Octopus): it makes your metering flexible. You can run E7-style rates today, then move to Agile or Intelligent Go later without touching the meter again. With no exit fees on flexible tariffs, you can experiment until you find the cheapest fit.
✅Verdict — Is Economy 7 Worth It in 2026?
Verdict: Worth keeping for storage heaters — but a smart tariff usually beats it for everyone else.
If your home runs storage heaters or night-time immersion hot water and around 40%+ of your usage is overnight, Economy 7 still earns its keep — and Octopus supports it fully with competitive E7 rates. If you don't fit that profile, you'll typically do better on a single rate or, with a smart meter, on Intelligent Go or Agile. Either way, switching to Octopus gets you £50 free credit, 100% renewable electricity, and no exit fees while you find the right fit.
Octopus has been Which? Recommended for 9 years running and supplies 7.3 million UK households — so whether you keep your E7 setup or modernise it, you're not locked into anything. Compare every Octopus tariff to see where your usage pattern fits best.