Snug Octopus for storage heaters: how it works and what it costs

How Snug works

Octopus launched Snug in November 2024 for homes heated by traditional storage heaters. The smart meter switches the heaters on and off through its auxiliary load control switch, and Octopus schedules the charging for the cheapest times. The whole house pays the Snug rate of 9.5p/kWh:

• every night from 00:30 to 06:30, all year round
• whenever Octopus schedules the heaters to charge
• during a one-hour boost every afternoon

Every other hour is charged at the day rate for your region. Snug is a variable tariff with no exit fee, so the rates can go up or down with the wholesale market, and Octopus says it gives reasonable notice of changes.

Checking whether your heaters will work

Octopus runs compatibility checks when you sign up. Its Snug page says you need:

• to be an Octopus customer and the account holder, living at the property
• a SMETS2 smart meter, though Octopus says not every SMETS2 meter is compatible
• storage heaters controlled by the meter's auxiliary load control switch (ALCS), with a compatible ALCS calendar on the meter

Octopus also gives some pointers on what's likely to work:

• meters with 4 or 5 terminals are more likely to be compatible than those with 6 or 7
• heaters that switch on and off automatically, without their own timer, are more likely to work
• newer heaters controlled by wifi or an app may not be compatible
• an immersion heater on the same circuit as the heaters is charged on the same schedule

Octopus says it can fit a SMETS2 meter for free if you don't have one, and that meters usually respond to a schedule within 15 minutes, so a delay can mean some charging lands on the day rate. Snug works alongside Outgoing Octopus or the Smart Export Guarantee if you have solar, but you can't join another flexibility service while you're on it.

What it costs

The Snug rate of 9.5p/kWh is from Octopus's Snug page. The day rate and standing charge vary by region, and the figures below are from Octopus's pricing data on 25 October 2026. VAT on home electricity is 0% from 1 October 2026 until 31 March 2027, so there's nothing to add.

The Snug day rate is a little above the price cap's single rate in both regions, so Snug works best when the heaters account for a big share of your electricity and almost all of it lands in the cheap hours. Economy 7 gives seven cheap hours a night, and the exact times depend on your meter.

A worked example

Octopus bases its own Snug example on a home on Economy 7 using 3,900 kWh a year. Using that total and the rates above, our sums come out like this:

• with 70% of use in the cheap hours in South Scotland, Flexible Octopus Economy 7 comes to about £1,001 a year and Snug to about £799, standing charges included
• with 50% in the cheap hours, it's about £1,134 on Economy 7 and £936 on Snug
• on the London rates the gap is about £180 a year in both cases

The bulk of the difference comes from the overnight rate, as 9.5p is about 5p below the Economy 7 night rate, and the Snug day rate is lower as well. The sums assume the same share of use lands in the cheap hours on both tariffs, which won't be exactly true because Economy 7 has seven hours a night and Snug has six plus the boost hour and any extra charging Octopus schedules. These are our calculations from published rates, not an Octopus figure, and they aren't a promise of what you'll pay.

Who it suits, and who it doesn't

It suits you if your home is heated by traditional storage heaters wired to the meter, you're on Economy 7 now, and you're happy for Octopus to decide when the heaters charge.

It's unlikely to suit you if:

• your heaters run on their own timers or are controlled by wifi or an app, as they may not be compatible
• you use a lot of electricity during the day for things other than heating, which all pays the day rate
• you have an EV, as you can only be on one import tariff at a time and Octopus Go is the one built around overnight charging

If you're replacing old storage heaters, our electric heating guide compares high heat retention storage heaters with heat pumps. In Scotland, Home Energy Scotland offers a £2,500 grant and a £5,500 interest-free loan for high heat retention storage heaters, but only where you can show a heat pump isn't suitable. If you move to a heat pump, Cosy Octopus is the Octopus tariff built for it.