Ecotricity vs the rest
Why should you choose Ecotricity instead of another energy supplier?
It’s a good question. Ever since we delivered 100% renewable electricity to our first customer in 1996, we’ve been proud to be Britain’s greenest energy company.
Almost 30 years on, there are a lot of energy companies out there who claim to offer green energy. But do their claims hold water? Who’s telling the truth and who’s greenwashing? And how can you tell?
It’s got to the stage where you need to spend a week reading reports and looking up statistics on websites to get the facts and make an informed comparison between energy companies.
So, we thought we should do some of the legwork. We’ve carefully investigated seven energy suppliers, to find out what they offer beyond the headlines.
Citizens Advice
Every quarter, Citizens Advice independently ranks energy companies on their customer service and publishes the results. This is the latest table for April 2024 - June 2024.
| Supplier | Ranking | Total score |
|---|---|---|
| Ecotricity | 1st | 3.77/5 |
| E (Gas & Electricity) | 3rd | 3.42/5 |
| Good Energy | 7th | 3.20/5 |
| So Energy | 10th | 3.10/5 |
| British Gas | 11th | 2.90/5 |
| Octopus Energy | 12th | 2.90/5 |
| Utilita | 15th | 1.90/5 |
| 100Green | Too small to include | Too small to include |
E (Gas & Electricity) isn’t far behind in this table but only 0.2% of the electricity they sell is from renewable sources. They don’t make green electricity, neither do they make or sell green gas. If you want your bills to help fight the climate crisis, this isn’t the place to go.
Recommended by Which?
Ecotricity is one of just three energy companies to be named a Which? Recommended Provider for Energy Companies 2024.
This independent recommendation is only earned by companies that pass through 15 categories of Which?’s criteria and that are also highly rated by customers, scoring at least 70% in the customer satisfaction ratings.
The other two companies are E (Gas & Electricity) and Octopus, so why should you choose Ecotricity over them?
Well, as mentioned above, E (Gas & Electricity) don’t sell 100% green electricity – only 12.2% is sourced from renewables. They join British Gas (54%) and Utilita (40.8%) in that regard (as at 25 June 2024).
Looking at Octopus, did you know they have over 1,000 shareholders? Ecotricity is different. We’re not-for-dividend, as we use the profits from our customers' bills to build more sources of green energy ourselves – we call this Bills into Mills. Unlike Octopus, we also generate and sell sustainable green gas.
| Supplier | Which? 2024 Recommended Energy Provider | Which? total score |
|---|---|---|
| Ecotricity | Yes | 72% |
| Octopus | Yes | 73% |
| E (Gas & Electricity) | Yes | 71% |
| Utilita | No | 69% |
| So Energy | No | 57% |
| British Gas | No | 56% |
| 100 Green | No | Not ranked, supplier score of 62% |
| Good Energy | No | Not ranked, supplier score of 60% |
We’re also a Which? Eco Provider
Ecotricity is a Which? Eco Provider for energy. This independent rating is based on a range of sustainability criteria, including generating renewable power, buying and selling renewable power and selling green gas.
There are three other Which? Eco Providers: Octopus and Good Energy.
| Green Electricity Supplier | Green Electricity Generator | Green Gas Supplier | Green Gas Generator | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ecotricity | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Octopus Energy | ✔ | ✔ | ||
| Good Energy | ✔ | ✔ |
As far as green electricity goes, Good Energy does not generate their own green electricity, they just buy it from elsewhere. We believe that to fight the climate crisis we need to be putting every penny towards building new wind and solar parks.
Ecotricity is the only company in this list to generate its own vegan green gas, sustainably made from grass. Octopus don’t sell green gas, while Good Energy sell what they call green gas – but it’s made from a variety of sources which includes animal by-products.
Vegan energy
Ecotricity is the only energy company in the world certified as vegan by both the Vegan Society and Viva!, the vegan charity.
As you’d expect, vegan energy is produced without involving animals. Renewable electricity from solar, wind and geothermal is therefore vegan.
Gas is more complicated. Several big energy suppliers use by-products from livestock farming in anaerobic digestion vats to produce biomethane, which is then delivered as household gas or burned to create electricity. This energy finds its way into around 60% of homes in Britain.
They call it ‘green gas’, but livestock farming is one of the biggest contributors to carbon emissions in the UK and around the world. Energy companies who use animals to make energy are supporting the factory farming industry, which is a huge problem for the climate.
Bills into Mills
Ecotricity is a not-for-dividend company. We put every penny towards building new sources of green energy. It’s the only thing that makes a real difference in the fight against climate crisis.
All facts are correct as at 11 November 2024.
The facts speak for themselves.
We’re proud to be a Which? Recommended Provider for energy and a Which? Recommended Eco Provider, as well as ranking top in the Citizens Advice customer service table.
We’ve built 24 wind parks all over the country, which are home to 74 beautiful windmills, as well as sun parks utilising the latest bifacial panels. And we’re always planning more, as fast as possible.
We’re the only energy company in the world certified as vegan and our green gasmills are busy making sustainable gas from grass.
When you’re with us, every penny of your bill makes a difference in building more green electricity, making genuinely green gas and helping to make fossil fuels a thing of the past.
Switch to Ecotricity today and we’ll turn your bills into mills.