Ovo Energy, British Gas, Octopus Energy: which are the best and worst energy suppliers?

Citizens Advice has ranked 16 energy suppliers for customer service but which one has been crowned the best and which one is the worst?

Smart meter displaying energy costs
Citizens Advice has ranked 16 energy suppliers from best to worst
(Image credit: George Clerk via Getty Images)

Ecotricity has been named the UK’s best energy supplier for customer service.

Citizens Advice publishes data on the UK’s largest suppliers every three months rating them based on three categories – fewest complaints received, contact waiting time and customer commitments.

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The latest data covers the period from July to September and 16 suppliers’ level of service in England. Only firms with more than 25,000 customer accounts are included in the round-up.

Best and worst energy suppliers

Ecotricity came in top, with an overall rating of 4.1 out of 5 stars. The firm also received a 4 star rating on the fewest number of complaints received.

Second was Outfox Energy, with an overall rating of 4 out of 5 stars, followed by 100Green and Co-op Energy, Octopus and E (Gas and Electricity) which came joint third with 3.8 out of 5 star ratings.

At the other end of the table, Tru Energy scored 1.9 out of 5 stars overall, including a 0 out of 5 star rating for customer commitments – this is based on suppliers’ membership to the Energy Switch Guarantee and the Vulnerability Commitment.

So Energy, EDF Energy and Utilita also had low overall scores, receiving 2, 2.2 and 2.4 out of 5 stars, respectively.

British Gas, the UK’s second biggest energy firm, came 11th out of 16 in the overall rankings.

Swipe to scroll horizontally
How the biggest 16 energy firms scored

Energy firm

Stars out of five

Ecotricity

4.1

Outfox Energy

4

100Green

3.8

Co-op Energy

3.8

Octopus Energy

3.8

E (Gas and Electricity)

3.8

ScottishPower

3.6

Good Energy

3.6

Utility Warehouse

3.2

E.ON Next

3.1

British Gas

2.9

Ovo Energy

2.7

Utilita

2.4

EDF

2.2

So Energy

2

TruEnergy

1.9

Source: Citizens Advice. Refers to July to September 2025.

An EDF spokesperson said: “We are committed to providing exceptional service for our customers, with more than 37,000 customers posting 5-star Trustpilot reviews in the past six months.

“Unfortunately, these Citizens Advice results reflect challenges we faced over the summer which have since been resolved.”

MoneyWeek contacted Tru Energy, So Energy and Utilita asking for comment.

How to complain to your energy firm

If you’re unhappy with the service you have received from your supplier, you have the right to complain.

Your firm should have a complaints process on its website. Your firm’s customer service team should also be able to talk you through their complaints process over the phone.

If you want to send a letter or email, you can use the Citizens Advice energy complaints letter template.

Your energy firm has eight weeks to fix any problem you’ve flagged. If it doesn’t, you can take your complaint to the Energy Ombudsman.

This is a free and impartial service designed to rectify issues between supplier and customers.

If you’d rather be guided through the complaints process, you could speak to an adviser at your local Citizens Advice branch.

How to switch energy suppliers?

If you decide to switch providers, you just need to decide on the new supplier and then contact them over the phone or via their website. Your new supplier will contact your old one to tell them you’re switching.

Before moving, make sure you won’t incur any fees for leaving, for example an exit fee for terminating a fixed tariff contract early.

You’ll have a 14 day ‘cooling off’ period when you can cancel the switch without paying a fee. This kicks in the day after you agree to a contract with the new supplier.

Make sure you take an energy meter reading on the day of the switch so the new supplier doesn’t charge you for energy used before the switch.

Suppliers should complete a switch within five working days. If they don’t, they have to pay compensation of £40 within 10 working days.

The Ofgem price cap is set to rise by 0.2% from 1 January. It means the average annual bill for a household on a dual-fuel standard tariff, paying by direct debit, will rise to £1,755 per year, up from £1,758, for the quarter.

Hundreds of thousands are already struggling to cover their gas and electricity costs and will be looking for ways to save on their energy bills.

The number of people falling behind on electricity bills with no repayment plan more than tripled from 300,000 in 2012 to over one million at the end of 2024, recent research from the Resolution Foundation found.

The number of customers falling behind on their gas bill went up from 300,000 to 900,000 over the same time period.

Sam Walker
Staff Writer

Sam has a background in personal finance writing, having spent more than three years working on the money desk at The Sun.

He has a particular interest and experience covering the housing market, savings and policy.

Sam believes in making personal finance subjects accessible to all, so people can make better decisions with their money.

He studied Hispanic Studies at the University of Nottingham, graduating in 2015.

Outside of work, Sam enjoys reading, cooking, travelling and taking part in the occasional park run!