Bulb Energy is on a mission to provide a simpler, cheaper and greener choice for energy, so how do they stack up against the competition. Set up in 2015, they now supply energy to over a million households with affordable and 100% renewable energy.
They claim that their single variable tariff is 18% cheaper than the average Big Six standard plan, so quite a significant cost saving. This coupled with their single tariff means it’s extremely simple to understand and compare, which is a welcomed sight when compared to other providers.
In this Bulb Energy review I’ll run through various different areas to help you understand whether bulb is right for you. If you want to get started right away, you can go to Bulb here and get a quote.
They’re also offering a £50 cashback referral bonus for a limited time, so if you switch soon you get £50 credit for free.
Tariffs: Vari-Fair
Bulb Energy only offers one tariff to make everything as simple as possible. This is a variable tariff so places can change, although they will give 30 days’ notice if prices are to change, although in recent times they have a habit of going down which is excellent.
This Vari-Fair tariff is available as electricity only or dual fuel with gas and comes with 100% renewable electricity and 10% green gas with the rest offset by Bulb’s carbon reduction projects.
Energy Prices
As Bulb just offers one tariff, it does make things a lot more simple and they are well-known as one of the cheapest energy providers on the market. As of writing, per kWh they are 0.5p cheaper than Octopus Energy, 1.1p cheaper then Shell Energy, 1.8p cheaper than EON and 2.8p cheaper than British Gas.
Exit Fees
Bulb offers no exit fees if you want to leave which is excellent to see when compared to other providers. This shows their commitment to customer service and in my opinion is a great way to keep them accountable to deliver on their promises. With no exit fees, it means that anyone is free to leave at any time, so they have to continue providing a great service at low prices to win your business and loyalty as a customer.
Customer Reviews & Expert Reviews
Bulb has 4.8 out of 5 on Trustpilot with 88% of users rating it as excellent and over 60,000 reviews. They have also received a number of awards including Uswitch’s Best Value for Money award in 2020 and came as a runner up in the Which Recommended Provider awards.
Where Bulb seem to fall short is call waiting times, where they were the second-slowest to answer the phone on average. In previous years it was much faster, and you can probably bet they’re going to be focusing on this going forward as they excelled in most other categories including price and how they resolve complaints.
Smart Meter
Bulb is currently rolling out second generation smart meters and also giving customers an in-House Display (IHD) gadget which allows you to see your daily energy usage.
If you currently have a first generation smart meter, Bulb is currently unable to take readings from them although an update at the end of 2020 should resolve this issue. This means you won’t need to upgrade to the second generation device.
There have have been some negative review on Trustpilot for their smart meters around functionality and compatibility for people switching although that recently looks to have reduced. If you have any problems, just contact their support team.
If you don’t have a smart meter and don’t want one, that’s still completely fine. Ofgem have produced from consumer guidelines that means getting one installed isn’t mandatory although if you want one at a later date you can have it for free.
Cashback Referral Bonus – Free £50
There is currently a referral scheme offered by Bulb called “Refer a Friend”. This means that both you an a friend get £50 bill credit if you switch your energy over to Bulb through their specific link.
Here is my Bulb referral link. If you’re looking for one I’d really appreciate if you used mine!
You get £25 per fuel you switch, so electric only is £25 and both gas and electric is £50, not bad to switch to a cheap energy provider and possibly even save money on top.
How Easy is it to Switch?
Bulb signed up to Ofgem’s Energy Switch Guarantee in 2016 which aims to ensure that the switching process is as simple as possible for consumers. This guarantee means that Bulb takes care of the switching process with your old supplier and completes with switch within 21 days.
All you have to do is sign up for a quote which takes about 30 seconds. You just get asked a few questions and then you’re good to go.
Alternatives
If you’re looking for alternatives to Bulb, then make sure to read this post on the cheapest UK energy suppliers where there’s a detailed breakdown of how to get the best energy deal.
One of the best alternatives is Octopus Energy. This supplier is possibly a better option for some people depending on your usage. If you are just looking for a cheap and simple service then Bulb is the way to go with just one variable tariff.
However, if you have very high energy consumption or can restrict your energy consumption to specific period of the day, such as at night or not during peak times, then Octopus Energy might be better for you.
They offer Innovative tariffs where you can purchase energy at off-peak times significantly cheaper. If you want to know more, read the Octopus Energy review here.
Verdict
Overall Bulb offers an amazing service. They offer renewable energy at very low prices and have great customer service. If you also manage to secure their £50 refer a friend bonus when you switch supplier, it does considerably lower the average price when you look at the annual cost.
If this sounds good, go over to Bulb and get a quote in seconds.
Hi, I’m John. I’ve always had a keen interest in Finance, so much so that I’ve made a career out of it! This site is a place where I can share everything I’ve learned as well as give me the excuse to research certain topics.
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