The gas tariff barely matters. The gas price decides everything
There is almost nothing to win by switching gas supplier: every unit rate on the market sits within about a penny. What matters is the ratio between the price of a unit of gas and a unit of electricity, because that ratio is what decides whether a heat pump is cheaper to run than the boiler it replaced — and whether it is worth keeping the meter at all.
Typical gas unit rate
8p
Per kWh on a capped variable tariff
Typical standing charge
29.7p
A day, whether you burn anything
Standing charge over a year
£108
The cost of keeping the meter
Electricity to gas ratio
3.3×
The number a heat pump has to beat
Rates are the Ofgem price cap for 1 October 2026 to 31 December 2026, GB average, direct debit, including VAT.
The cap
What the cap allows for gas where you live
The cap is set region by region, because it costs more to run the network in some places than others. A typical year of gas on a capped tariff runs from £851 in East Midlands to £884 in London.
| Region | Unit rate | Standing charge | Typical year |
|---|---|---|---|
| East Midlands | 7.8p per kWh | 29.4p a day | £851 |
| North West | 7.9p per kWh | 29.8p a day | £856 |
| Northern Scotland | 7.9p per kWh | 29.9p a day | £857 |
| Southern Scotland | 7.9p per kWh | 29.9p a day | £857 |
| Eastern | 7.9p per kWh | 29.3p a day | £859 |
| Yorkshire | 7.9p per kWh | 29.8p a day | £859 |
| Midlands | 7.9p per kWh | 29.7p a day | £859 |
| N Wales and Mersey | 7.9p per kWh | 30.1p a day | £861 |
| Northern | 7.9p per kWh | 29.8p a day | £862 |
| South East | 8p per kWh | 29.3p a day | £871 |
| South Wales | 8.1p per kWh | 30p a day | £877 |
| Southern Western | 8.1p per kWh | 29.3p a day | £878 |
| Southern | 8.2p per kWh | 29.2p a day | £882 |
| London | 8.1p per kWh | 30.2p a day | £884 |
| GB average | 8p per kWh | 29.7p a day | £865 |
Ofgem price cap, 1 October 2026 to 31 December 2026, direct debit, including VAT. A typical year is Ofgem's benchmark of 9,500 kWh. The regions are the electricity network's, which is why they don't match council boundaries.
The rates
Every supplier, within a penny of every other
This table exists to show you how little is at stake. The capped variable rates are pinned to the same Ofgem cap; the tracked and fixed products trade a little certainty for a little price. Nothing here is worth an afternoon.
Flexible Octopus
Octopus Energy
7.3p
per kWh of gas
A capped variable rate, following the Ofgem cap each quarter. The benchmark for the rest of the table.
Requires: Nothing · Exit fee: None
The Standard Variable Tariff
British Gas
6.4p
per kWh of gas
The default after a fixed deal ends. Capped, so within a rounding error of everyone else.
Requires: Nothing · Exit fee: None
Next Flex
E.ON Next
6.3p
per kWh of gas
Variable and capped. Included to make the point that the spread across the market is pennies a year.
Requires: Nothing · Exit fee: None
Simpler Energy
OVO Energy
6.4p
per kWh of gas
Variable, capped, dual fuel by default. The gas side is indistinguishable from the others.
Requires: Nothing · Exit fee: None
Octopus Tracker
Octopus Energy
5.6p average
per kWh of gas
Repriced daily from the wholesale gas price, with a ceiling. Usually below the cap, and the only product here that is meaningfully cheaper.
Requires: Smart meter · Exit fee: None
Fixed, 12 months
Most suppliers
6.6p
per kWh of gas
Slightly above the cap for a year of certainty. Reasonable for a household that heats with gas and hates surprises.
Requires: Nothing · Exit fee: Usually £50 per fuel
Octopus Energy's rates are its published prices on 17 September 2026: direct debit, including VAT, averaged over the fourteen regions. Averages and highs are over the four weeks before.
Illustrative. Every other supplier's rates are placeholders until we have a source for them.
What actually matters
Four gas decisions worth making
Not which supplier. A gas tariff is close to a commodity, so the useful questions are about the meter itself and about what the price of gas does to every upgrade decision in the house.
The ratio, not the rate
Gas at 8p and electricity at 26.3p is a ratio of about 3.3. A condensing boiler turns about 90% of its gas into heat, so a heat pump has to deliver more than 3.0 units of heat per unit of electricity to be cheaper to run. A well-designed system on a low flow temperature manages around 3.5 to 4.0 — which is why the tariff, not the hardware, usually decides the answer.
The standing charge outlives the boiler
About £108 a year buys you a live gas connection and nothing else. If the boiler is the only thing left on the meter, that charge is being spread over less and less gas, and the effective price per unit climbs every year you use less.
Capping the meter is not the same as removing it
Capping stops the supply and the standing charge, and the pipe stays in the ground. Full removal costs several hundred pounds and is close to irreversible — reconnecting later means a new connection charge. Cap first if there is any chance of a hob, a fire or a change of mind.
Dual fuel discounts have mostly gone
Taking both fuels from one supplier is simpler to administer and worth very little in money. It is not a reason to stay on a worse electricity tariff, which is the mistake it most often causes.
Traps
What catches people out on gas tariffs
None of these are hidden. They are all in the tariff information label, which is a document almost nobody reads before switching.
Where this page's answers come from
- Ofgem — default tariff cap level and methodology
- Supplier published tariff information labels
- Xoserve — calorific values used to convert metered volume to kWh
- Cadent and the regional gas networks — capping and disconnection charges
Last checked against these sources on 17 September 2026.
Your bill is in cubic metres, not kWh
A gas meter measures volume, and the bill converts it using a calorific value published for your area. If a reading looks wrong, check the conversion on the bill before blaming the boiler.
Estimated readings hide a lot
Gas is the fuel most likely to be estimated, because the meter is often in an awkward place. A winter of estimates followed by a real reading is where large catch-up bills come from.
The cheapest gas tariff can come with a poor electricity one
Dual fuel deals are quoted as one number. Price the two fuels separately, because the electricity side is where hundreds of pounds are actually won or lost.
Leaving gas changes your electricity tariff decision
An all-electric house has a much larger and much more shiftable electricity load. The tariff that suited you with a gas boiler is almost never the one that suits you afterwards.
Questions
Common questions about gas tariffs
Is it worth switching gas supplier?
Rarely for its own sake. Capped variable rates are within about a penny of each other, so the realistic saving is a few pounds a year plus whatever the standing charge difference comes to. A wholesale tracker is the one product that can be meaningfully cheaper, and it moves both ways.
Should I cap my gas meter after fitting a heat pump?
If nothing else on the meter burns gas, capping saves the standing charge — around £108 a year at the current price cap. Keep it if you still have a gas hob or fire, and cap rather than remove if there is any chance you will want the supply back.
Does gas get cheaper per unit if I use less?
The opposite. The unit rate does not change, but the fixed standing charge is spread across fewer units, so the effective cost of each one rises. This is what makes a half-used gas connection expensive.
Why is gas so much cheaper per kWh than electricity?
Policy costs, network charges and the way electricity is priced against the marginal generator — which is usually gas. It is the single biggest reason heat pump running costs disappoint people, and the ratio is a political decision as much as a market one.
Does the price cap apply to gas?
Yes, to variable tariffs, and it caps the unit rate and standing charge rather than the bill. Fixed deals sit outside it, which is why they are usually priced a little above the current cap.
Work out which tariff suits your home
Start with your postcode. We'll use what is known about the property and what you have already installed.