How to Save Money on Your Energy Bills

While making sure you’re on a competitive gas and electricity tariff, which you can do by comparing suppliers and switching to a better deal, there are many other things you can do at home to ensure your monthly energy bills are kept to a minimum. At the end of the day, your bills will be determined by the amount of energy you consume, so reducing your usage wherever you can goes a long way to lowering your costs, helping you to save money during these times when everything seems to be going up in price.

In this guide, we’ll take you through some of the quickest and simplest ways to make your home more energy efficient and change your habits to reduce your usage and, ultimately, your energy bills.

Turn off the lights

This may sound obvious, but sometimes it’s the simplest behavioural changes that can make the biggest impact. A single standard light bulb uses around 0.1 kW of energy per hour while in use, which will cost you, on average, around 2.7p.^[1] While this doesn’t sound like much, it’s likely that you have more than one light bulb at home, and by leaving the lights on in multiple rooms at once, these figures can quickly add up.

Generally, turning all the lights off every time you leave a room is a matter of routine and not something many of us consciously think of doing. And if this isn’t yet a regular habit of yours, then it’s wise to change your habits, as it could save the average household around £20 per year on their energy bills.^[2] And, of course, the larger your home and the more light bulbs you have, the more you can save.

Turn off appliances when not in use

It’s not just the lights you need to think about turning off when leaving the room. In today’s world, the average household has around a dozen electrical appliances and connected devices lying around, each of which will be using energy while on standby.^[3] Apart from your fridge and freezer, almost every appliance can be switched off at the mains when not in use without causing too much disruption.

Typical household appliances, sometimes referred to as White Goods, make up around 14% of your energy bill, on average.^[4] These appliances include your washing machine, dishwasher, cooker, and microwave, and all of them still use energy while on standby. Add to these your TV, computers and laptops, phone chargers, games consoles, and internet router, making sure to switch off appliances, devices, and chargers at the plug each time you’re not using them can result in significant savings on your energy bills.

Use appliances efficiently

Of course, you’ll need to switch on your home appliances fairly regularly if you actually want to get any use out of them. However, there are also eco-conscious habits you can pick up to ensure the energy efficiency of these appliances when they are in use.

For example, to get the most out of your washing machine with the least amount of energy, you should wash as many clothes as possible each time, use the right settings such as ‘quick wash’ and cooler temperatures, and use a high spin setting to ensure your clothes dry faster. Similar principles apply to your dishwasher and fridge, while kettles should only be boiled with the amount of water you need. For more information, check out our page on which household appliances use the most energy.

Invest in energy-efficient appliances

If you think you’ve cracked it in terms of using your home appliances in the most efficient way possible, you’re extremely diligent when it comes to turning off all your lights, but your energy usage and bills are still too high for your liking, then it may be time to take one step further and invest in newer, more energy-efficient appliances and lighting.

One of the easiest changes to make, and also probably the cheapest, is to switch to energy-efficient lighting. Incandescent lightbulbs are typically the least efficient, with more than 90% of the electricity used to power them being lost as heat. Fluorescent lightbulbs are an improvement, but it’s best to go for LED lighting, which uses up to 75% less energy than traditional incandescent bulbs.^[5]

Upgrading your White Goods, such as your dishwasher, fridge, or electric cooker, will inevitably come with a higher upfront cost, but the savings you can make in the long run in terms of lower energy usage can be significant. When searching for new appliances, take a look at their energy rating, which will range from A to G - with A being the most energy-efficient and G being the least. While newer models are likely to be more efficient, they’ll also be more expensive at first, but can cost up to 50% less to run.^[6]

Have better control of your thermostat

Heating costs, especially in the cold, dark winter months, make up a significant chunk of household energy bills in the UK. On average, more than half of a typical UK household’s energy bill will be spent on heating and hot water, so being in control of your heating and using it efficiently can go a long way to reducing your monthly bills.^[7]

While energy costs are high, you don’t have to freeze yourself in the winter or put on your thickest jumper to keep warm. Reducing your thermostat by just one degree can save up to £80 per year on your energy bills, and reducing it by a further degree on milder days will help you to save even more.^[8]

You should also consider installing a smart thermostat, which can be controlled with a remote device such as your smartphone, allowing you to control the heating in different rooms in your house wherever you are. By only heating the rooms you’re actually using at any given time, and to an optimally efficient temperature, can result in huge savings on your annual energy bill.^[9]

Minimise draughts

There are also simpler ways to ensure your home is warm without relying on your heating system. It’s estimated that around a quarter of an average home’s heating is lost through draughts, which can be found by your windows, doors, and even your roof.^[10] The easiest way to minimise this is to draught-proof your property, which involves things like draught blockers under your doors or sealing gaps around your windows.

However, the best way to ensure heat is kept within your home and not lost to the elements is to invest in home insulation and double-glazing. While both of these come with a significant upfront cost, they’re a worthwhile investment, as they can drastically reduce your need for heating while boosting the value of your property.^[11][12]

There are a few different forms of home insulation to consider, and some will be better suited to some households than others. They include loft insulation, cavity wall insulation, solid wall insulation, and floor insulation. When it comes to windows, double-glazing can reduce your home’s heat loss by up to 70%, while you could even consider triple-glazing.^[13] Your front door could also be upgraded to a more efficient type, which would typically be a composite or uPVC door.

Upgrade your boiler

One of the most energy-intensive appliances in your home is likely your boiler. These are essential for heating your home and your hot water, but there can be a huge range in their energy efficiency depending on the model and age. Generally, a boiler will work efficiently for around 12-15 years, but after this, it may be using a lot more energy than is needed.^[14]

So, if you haven’t upgraded your boiler for a few years, it may be due for an upgrade. Investing in a modern, energy-efficient boiler can cost anywhere between £500 and £5,000, so it’s not a decision that should be taken lightly. However, an A-rated boiler can save you up to 40% on your annual bills compared to an older model, so it won’t be long before you see a return on this investment.^[15]

You could also consider going for an even more eco-friendly option - a heat pump. Both air source and ground source heat pumps are growing in popularity in the UK, and both are up to four times as energy-efficient as a gas boiler.^[16][17] They’re expensive to install, and their feasibility also depends on the type of home you have, but if you’re serious about reducing your energy bills long-term, heat pumps are without doubt a viable option.

Generate your own energy

Another investment to make if you’re determined to lower your energy usage and reduce your reliance on the grid is to generate your own energy at home. This can be done in a variety of ways, whether it’s installing solar panels, mini wind turbines, water turbines, or some more experimental technologies.

As of today, solar panels are by far the most popular form of domestic microgeneration in the UK, despite all the cloudy weather we’re known for.^[18] Solar panel installation can cost several thousand pounds, depending on the size of your home and the type of solar panel you go for, but by using the energy they harness, you can drastically lower your household electricity bills.^[19] You can also make use of Smart Export Guarantee (SEG) tariffs, which actually pay you for exporting your domestically-produced energy to the grid.

Switch suppliers

Finally, arguably the easiest way to lower your energy bills is to switch to a cheaper energy tariff. While energy prices have soared in the last few years, they’re showing signs of stabilising, and competitive deals can be found once again. If you haven’t switched your energy supplier for two years or more, it’s likely that you’re paying over the odds, and the time to switch is now.

Switching energy suppliers is quick, simple, and absolutely free, so there’s no need to be daunted by anything. To get started, simply enter your postcode into our comparison engine, along with your annual energy usage, to see a list of quotes from a wide range of suppliers. Make sure to compare both the unit rate and standing charge in order to find the most cost-effective tariff for your needs.