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New. British Gas price cut - £300/yr off

- For NEW and EXISTING custs (but only if you ask)
-  It's British Gas's cheapest deal since 2016
- With Scot Power, E.on or EDF? Save £200/yr WITHOUT switching

If your energy's provided by one of the Big 6 (Brit Gas, E.on, EDF, Npower, SSE  or Scot Power), this is a no-brainer moment for action. Most of them have cut prices, but only on a DON'T ASK, DON'T GET basis (though you can't usually ask the firms directly, it has to be via a comparison site).

And staggeringly, I was about to say that makes the new British Gas tariff the market's cheapest fix... then, stop press, just before we sent this email  Scottish Power undercut it a tad. It's all a result of wholesale energy prices (that energy firms pay) dropping in the last couple of weeks. Rates are changing rapidly, but who knows how long they'll stay this cheap.

Do nowt, and you'll likely be stuck on their bog-standard, expensive, 'price cap rate' tariffs, which won't change until next March, meaning you'll overpay by £100s during the heavy-use winter period. So carpe diem (ie, get your backside in gear). Here are three options:

1. Switch to the very cheapest. Do a 5min whole of market comparison.
2. Switch to a name you know. Scroll through the cheapest big names below.
3. Don't want to switch? MAKE your current provider charge you less. Grab its cheapest tariff, which the team detail below...

All tariffs apply to Eng, Scot & Wales (not NI) energy users paying by direct debit or on receipt of a bill (ie, not prepay). The savings are compared to someone with typical dual-fuel use on that firm's standard tariff (that's an avg £1,178/yr).

Links go via our comparison - as your cheapest can vary by usage and location, so you get a personal price, saving and cashback where poss (plus it updates with price changes). Here are the deals in alphabetical order...

1. BRITISH GAS (incl existing custs) - SAVE £305 compared to its standard rate (and go green). The new British Gas Energy & Boiler Cover Green Nov2020v4 is a 1yr fixed-rate deal (so no price hikes for that time) at £872/yr  on typical usage, including £25 MSE cashback. It's only available via comparison sites, such as via our link (which also gets you the extra cashback).

This is a serious powerplay by BG, its cheapest tariff since Nov 2016. You also get a year's 'free' boiler insurance (it auto-renews after a year, so cancel then if you don't want it).

MSE customer service score: 40% great, 27% OK (200 votes).
Fixed? Until 30 Nov 2020, so the rate won't change (though cost depends on usage).
Renewable? 100% renewable electricity, 100% carbon offset gas.
MSE cashback? Yes, for new and existing custs.
Dual-fuel only? Yes, you must get both gas & electricity.
Early exit fees? £60 if you leave more than 49 days before fix ends.
Will existing custs switching to it be charged exit fees? No.
Payment: Monthly direct debit is cheapest, but avail other ways.
Smart meters: If you don't have 'em, you must get 'em installed (one for gas, one for elec) within 3mths to stay on this tariff.

2. E.ON new custs save £297/yr, existing custs £188/yr . The cheapest E.on deal is its Fix Online Exclusive v15 , but that's ONLY for new custs. It's a 1year fix at £880/yr on typical use, including MSE cashback.

Its cheapest deal for existing customers is its Fix Online v32, which is far more expensive at a typical £989/yr, though that's still far cheaper than its standard tariff. You can only get it direct, but you'll see how it stacks up via a comparison site.

MSE customer service score: 32% great, 33% OK (217 votes).
Fixed? Both for 1yr, so the rate won't change (but cost depends on use).
Renewable? 100% renewable electricity, not green gas.
MSE cashback? For new custs only.
Dual-fuel only? No. It can be dual-fuel or elec-only (incl Eco 7).
Early exit fees? £30/fuel.
Will existing custs switching to it be charged exit fees? No.
Payment: Monthly direct debit only.
Smart meters: If you don't have 'em, you must get 'em installed (one for gas, one for elec) within 3mths or you'll be moved to its standard tariff.

3. EDF (incl existing custs) - SAVE a typical £265/yr on its standard rate. The EDF Simply Online 1 Year Fix Nov20v6  is fixed for year at £912/yr on typical use, including MSE cashback. You can't get it direct though, only via comparison sites, such as via our link (which also gets you the extra cashback).

MSE customer service score: 40% great, 34% OK (247 votes).
Fixed? Till 30 Nov 2020, so the rate won't change (but cost depends on use).
Renewable? No.
MSE cashback? Yes, for new and existing custs.
Dual-fuel only? No. It can be dual-fuel or elec-only (incl Eco 7).
Early exit fees? £35/fuel.
Will existing custs switching to it be charged exit fees? Yes, unless you're on its standard tariff or a fix that ends in less than 3mths.
Payment: Monthly direct debit only.
Smart meters: If you don't have 'em, you must get 'em installed (one for gas, one for elec) within 3mths or you'll be moved to its standard tariff AND have to pay exit fees of £35 per fuel.

4. NPOWER (incl existing custs) - SAVE a typical £64/yr on its standard rate. The Npower Price Fix January 2021  is fixed for just over 1yr for £1,114/yr on typical use, including MSE cashback. This is a saving, but not a big one, so have a think about whether you should be switching firm, even to another big 6.

While you can get this direct, go via our comparison link and you get the extra £25 dual-fuel cashback.

MSE customer service score: 25% great, 39% OK (108 votes).
Fixed? Till 31 Jan 2021, so the rate won't change (but cost depends on use).
Renewable? No.
MSE cashback? Yes, for new and existing customers only.
Dual-fuel only? No. It can be dual-fuel or single-fuel (incl Eco 7).
Early exit fees? £30/fuel.
Will existing custs switching to it be charged exit fees? No for most (full info via link).
Payment: Monthly direct debit is cheapest, but avail other ways.
Smart meters: If you don't have 'em, you must get 'em installed (one for gas, one for elec) within 4mths or you'll be moved to its standard tariff.

5. SCOTTISH POWER (incl existing custs) - SAVE a typical £308/yr on its standard rate. Scottish Power was lying in 2nd place until late Tue night, when it repriced its Super Saver November 2020 tariff to undercut British Gas. It's fixed for a year at £870/yr on typical use, including £25 MSE cashback.

You can't get it direct though, only via comparison sites, like our link (which also gets you the cashback). Be warned, its customer service rating is poor, even for a Big 6.

MSE customer service score: 18% great, 27% OK (198 votes).
Fixed? Till 30 Nov 2020, so the rate won't change (but cost depends on use).
Renewable? 100% renewable electricity. Not green gas.
MSE cashback? Yes, for new and existing custs.
Dual-fuel only? No. It can be dual-fuel or elec-only (incl Eco 7).
Early exit fees? £30/fuel.
Will existing custs switching to it be charged exit fees? No.
Payment: Monthly direct debit is cheapest, but avail other ways.
Smart meters: If you don't have 'em, you must get 'em installed (one for gas, one for elec) within 3mths or you'll be moved to its standard tariff.

6. SSE (incl existing custs) - SAVE a typical £39/yr on its standard rate. The SSE 1 Year Fix Paperless  is fixed for 1yr at £1,139/yr based on typical use, including MSE cashback. There is a cheaper tariff for new custs only, but it's not worth highlighting as others are much cheaper.

The saving is likely so small because SSE is currently being bought by Ovo, so it's in a state of flux. While the fixed price is locked in regardless, it is worth looking at switching to another firm to make bigger savings.

If you do want this tariff, while you can get this direct, go via our comparison link and you get the extra £25 dual-fuel cashback.

MSE customer service score: 34% great, 33% OK (83 votes).
Fixed? For 1yr, so the rate won't change (but cost depends on use).
Renewable? No.
MSE cashback? Yes, for new and existing custs.
Dual-fuel only? No. It can be dual-fuel or single-fuel (incl Eco 7).
Early exit fees? No.
Will existing custs switching to it be charged exit fees? No for most (full info via link).
Payment: Monthly direct debit is cheapest, but avail other ways.
Smart meters: Not needed.

Q. Is switching risky? Could I be cut off? No. It's the same gas, same electricity and same safety. The key thing that changes is the price and the service if you switch provider. Though many of the top deals now require smart meters, so if you don't have them already, someone may have to visit your home. See our Switching FAQs .

Q. I live in Northern Ireland. Can I get these deals? Unfortunately not. No UK comparisons include NI, but see Cheap NI Electricity or the Consumer Council for Northern Ireland's tool.

Q. Does MSE make money from this? Yes. Like all energy comparison sites, we're paid each time you switch through us, yet we give you roughly half (that's £25 dual-fuel, £12.50 single-fuel cashback).

This is money you wouldn't get if you went direct, so it's a win-win. The rest helps cover our costs and hopefully makes us some profit.

Q. How green is green? It's complicated. We explain the difference between the various renewable options in our Green energy explainer.

We've lots more help, incl...

Switching with smart meters | Why's my price risen when I'm fixed? | Reclaim credit | Switching-in-debt help | Switching if I've solar panels | How direct debits are set | I've an independent gas transporter, can I switch? | Can I pick a switch date? | How do you compare my rates?