Is E.ON Next worth it? An honest review after 4 years

Affiliate disclosure: this post contains an E.ON Next referral link. If you use it, we both get a £50 retail voucher redeemable at 100+ retailers. It doesn't change the price you pay.

I became an E.ON Next customer by accident. My gas supplier Bulb went into special administration in November 2021, and I was transferred to E.ON Next as part of the Ofgem safety net process. Four years later, I can say something most people can't about their energy supplier: I've run E.ON Next and Octopus Energy side by side for nearly four years, with electricity on one and gas on the other. That gives me a direct first-hand comparison most reviews can't offer.

The question this post answers: is E.ON Next worth switching to? Not whether it's the flashiest or most innovative — it isn't. Whether it's reliable, fairly priced, and does what an energy supplier should do without creating problems. Here's what four years of actual bills, support interactions, and side-by-side comparison have shown me.

Three things I'd tell you up front

1. E.ON Next is boringly reliable — and that's a compliment. Bills are predictable, the direct debit has never been aggressively hiked without reason, and the switch process was painless. After the chaos of 2021–2022 when dozens of UK suppliers collapsed, "boring and reliable" is a genuine selling point.
2. Pricing is competitive but not market-leading. E.ON Next typically sits at or just below the Ofgem price cap. It won't win a unit-rate comparison on any given week, but it won't surprise you with sudden spikes either.
3. The referral reward is straightforward. £50 retail voucher, redeemable at 100+ retailers, arrives about four weeks after your first direct debit. No mystery amounts, no conditions beyond switching — it just works.

My pricing experience over four years

I was transferred to E.ON Next for gas in late 2021, inheriting what was essentially a price-cap-tracked standard variable tariff. Here's how costs have moved:

The increases reflect the post-2022 wholesale price reset that affected every UK supplier, not E.ON Next specifically. My bills have tracked the Ofgem price cap closely, which is exactly what you'd expect from a standard variable tariff.

How it compares to Octopus: when I was running both suppliers simultaneously, the unit rates were typically within 1p/kWh of each other on standard tariffs. The standing charges were almost identical. On price alone, there was no compelling reason to consolidate one way or the other — I eventually moved everything to Octopus when I moved house in 2025 purely for the convenience of one supplier and one app.

Fixed vs variable

E.ON Next offers fixed-rate tariffs that lock your unit rate for 12 months. I stayed on the standard variable throughout my time as a customer because the premium for fixing was typically £50–£100/year more than the variable rate, and I wasn't convinced the price cap was about to spike again.

If you value price certainty and think energy costs might rise, fixing makes sense. If you're comfortable tracking the cap, the standard variable is usually cheaper over a full year.

The 100% renewable electricity claim

E.ON Next supplies 100% renewable electricity on all tariffs. This is backed by REGO (Renewable Energy Guarantee of Origin) certificates, which means E.ON Next purchases enough renewable electricity to match what its customers use.

What this means in practice: the electrons coming through your meter are from the national grid — a mix of renewable, nuclear, and fossil fuel sources. The REGO certificates ensure that equivalent renewable generation has been funded. It's a real contribution to the UK's renewable energy market, but it's not the same as your house being powered directly by a wind turbine.

Gas is not renewable. E.ON Next's gas supply is standard natural gas, same as every other UK supplier. If "green gas" matters to you, look for biomethane-blended tariffs — E.ON Next doesn't currently offer one.

This is roughly the same approach Octopus Energy takes with renewable electricity, so it's not a differentiator between the two.

Customer service: what actually happens

This is where E.ON Next is adequate but not exceptional.

Phone support: I've called three times over four years. Average wait time was about 15 minutes. The agents were helpful and resolved issues on the call — no callbacks, no "we'll get back to you." Not fast, but not frustrating.

Web chat: available during business hours. Responses are a bit scripted but functional. Good for simple queries like meter readings or payment dates.

App: the E.ON Next app handles routine tasks well — submitting meter readings, viewing bills, managing your direct debit. It's functional rather than polished. If you're coming from a big-six supplier with no app at all, it's a big upgrade. If you're coming from Octopus or Monzo-tier app quality, it'll feel basic.

Compared to Octopus: Octopus's in-app chat is noticeably faster (usually under 5 minutes vs E.ON Next's 15+ minute phone waits), and the Octopus app is more capable. This was the one area where the side-by-side comparison clearly favoured Octopus. For a detailed breakdown, see our Octopus Energy vs E.ON Next comparison.

Who E.ON Next is best for

Best for:

• Households wanting a reliable, established energy supplier with no surprises
• People who value 100% renewable electricity without paying a premium
• Anyone who'd rather deal with a big, stable company after the post-2021 supplier collapses
• Customers who want a simple, clean referral scheme (£50 voucher, no mystery amounts)

Less ideal for:

• EV owners, solar panel users, or heat pump households (Octopus's smart tariffs are significantly better)
• People who want the best possible app experience
• Anyone who prioritises rapid customer support response times

E.ON Next vs Octopus Energy

Since I've used both simultaneously, here's the honest comparison:

The bottom line on the comparison: if you have standard energy needs and want a straightforward supplier, both are good choices. If you have any smart-home energy kit (EV, solar, heat pump, battery), Octopus is clearly better because of the tariff range. The full comparison is here.

The referral bonus

E.ON Next's refer-a-friend scheme gives both you and the referrer a £50 retail voucher, redeemable at over 100 retailers including Amazon, M&S, John Lewis, and Tesco. The voucher arrives about four weeks after your first direct debit payment clears.

Unlike Monzo's mystery reward, there's no randomness — you know exactly what you're getting. And unlike Octopus's bill credit (which reduces your energy bill), E.ON Next's voucher is spendable retail credit, which some people prefer.

Get your E.ON Next referral code here →

The bottom line

E.ON Next is worth it. It's not the most exciting energy supplier in the UK — it doesn't have Octopus's smart tariffs, its app isn't as polished, and its customer service is slower. But it's competitively priced, genuinely backed by renewable electricity, part of one of Europe's largest energy companies, and has a clean referral scheme that pays out without fuss.

After four years as a customer and nearly four years of running it side by side with Octopus, I can say it does what an energy supplier should do: supply energy reliably at a fair price without creating problems. For most households, that's enough — and the £50 voucher for switching is a nice bonus on top.