Are smart meters worth it?
Published 26 October 2026. Costs at the price cap for 1 October 2026 to 31 December 2026.
For most homes, yes, but not for the reason usually given. A smart meter on its own saves very little. What it’s worth having for is what it unlocks: bills based on real readings, tariffs that are cheaper at certain times, and your own half-hourly data, which shows exactly where your money goes.
What it costs you
Nothing up front. Citizens Advice confirms you won’t pay to have one installed, and your supplier should offer an appointment within 30 working days of asking. The rollout is paid for through everyone’s bills, so if you refuse one you still pay your share.
What you get
- No more estimated bills. The meter sends readings itself, so you pay for what you used, not a guess.
- Cheaper tariffs. Time-of-use tariffs, with cheap overnight or off-peak rates for an electric car, battery or heat pump, need a smart meter to record when you use electricity. Citizens Advice notes that some cheaper tariffs are only available to smart meter customers.
- Your own data. Electricity meters record every half-hour by default; your supplier’s app or website lets you download it. Our electricity and gas analysers read that file in your browser and show your always-on use, when your heating really runs, and gas burning when nothing should be. In one home it found a boiler setting costing hundreds of pounds a year.
- Easier prepayment. On a prepayment tariff you can check your credit and top up by app or online.
The evidence on saving energy
The government’s central estimate, summarised by the LSE’s Grantham Institute, was that seeing your use on an in-home display would cut electricity use by about 2.8% and gas by 2%. On a typical bill today, £1,724 a year at the price cap, that’s worth about £34 a year. Trials found a wide range, mostly a few per cent, and the savings depend on people actually looking at the display. As Citizens Advice puts it, a smart meter won’t automatically save you money.
What can go wrong
- It stops being smart. At the end of June 2026, 3.1 million of the 40.3 million smart meters in homes and small businesses were running in traditional mode, not sending readings: about 8%, according to the government’s statistics. It still measures correctly, but you’re back to sending readings or getting estimates. Your supplier should fix it.
- Switching supplier. You can switch, but check first that your meter will stay in smart mode with the new supplier.
- Worries about accuracy. Smart meters have to meet the same legal accuracy limits as any other meter. See are smart meters accurate?
Who it suits most
- Anyone with an electric car, a battery or a heat pump, for time-of-use tariffs.
- Anyone tired of estimated bills or of sending readings.
- Anyone who wants to know where their energy goes and cut the waste.
It suits least a household that will never look at its data, never change tariff and has an accurate, easy-to-read meter already, though even then it costs nothing extra.
How many homes have one
At the end of June 2026, 75% of homes had a smart electricity meter and 57% a smart gas meter. Large suppliers fitted 1,067,000 in homes between April and June.
Common questions
Do I have to pay for a smart meter?
Not to have one fitted: suppliers install them free. The cost of the rollout is recovered through everyone’s energy bills, whether they have a smart meter or not, so you’re paying towards it either way.
Can I refuse a smart meter?
Yes. You don’t have to accept one, and you can ask for one with its smart functions switched off. The catch is that some of the cheapest tariffs are only available with a smart meter.
Will a smart meter save me money?
Not by itself. The government estimated households would use about 2.8% less electricity and 2% less gas by seeing what they use: about £34 a year on a typical bill today. The bigger savings come from what a smart meter makes possible, such as time-of-use tariffs and spotting waste in your own data.
What happens to my smart meter if I switch supplier?
You can still switch. Before you do, check whether your meter will keep working in smart mode with the new supplier: Citizens Advice has a checker. If it does lose its smart connection, it still measures your energy; you’d just send readings yourself.
Statistics from DESNZ, smart meters in Great Britain, to 30 June 2026. Consumer rights from Citizens Advice. Typical use from Ofgem’s typical domestic consumption values; prices from Ofgem’s price cap.