Octopus Energy vs Tomato Energy (2026)
Tomato Energy was a small, EV-focused challenger built around cheap overnight charging rates, but it stopped trading in November 2025 and the regulator moved its customers — roughly 15,000 homes — to British Gas under the supplier-of-last-resort safety net. That makes a like-for-like comparison largely academic: you can no longer join Tomato, and its keen headline prices proved hard to sustain. If what drew you to Tomato was the EV and smart-energy focus, Octopus offers the same idea with far more scale behind it — Intelligent Octopus Go for cheap EV charging, plus Tracker, Agile and Cosy — as the UK's largest supplier rather than a thinly-capitalised start-up. Octopus suits drivers and smart-home users who want low-cost, flexible tariffs without the risk of another collapse. Join through a referral link and you also receive a £50 welcome credit.
Switching from Tomato Energy takes ~5 working days with no break in supply — and my link gets you £50.
Switch to the UK’s most awarded energy supplier! Switch to Octopus Energy and you’ll get £50 credit once your switch is complete. T&Cs apply (only one switching offer per household).
The verdict
Tomato Energy was a small, EV-focused challenger built around cheap overnight charging rates, but it stopped trading in November 2025 and the regulator moved its customers — roughly 15,000 homes — to British Gas under the supplier-of-last-resort safety net. That makes a like-for-like comparison largely academic: you can no longer join Tomato, and its keen headline prices proved hard to sustain. If what drew you to Tomato was the EV and smart-energy focus, Octopus offers the same idea with far more scale behind it — Intelligent Octopus Go for cheap EV charging, plus Tracker, Agile and Cosy — as the UK's largest supplier rather than a thinly-capitalised start-up. Octopus suits drivers and smart-home users who want low-cost, flexible tariffs without the risk of another collapse. Join through a referral link and you also receive a £50 welcome credit.
Tomato Energy was a Basingstoke-based independent, incorporated back in 2015, that later reinvented itself as a high-profile EV and clean-energy supplier. After the regulator banned it from taking on new sign-ups in April 2025 over financial-resilience concerns — including debts of around £3 million — it ceased trading on 5 November 2025, had its supply licence revoked, and its roughly 15,000 domestic and 8,000 business customers were transferred to British Gas.
Where Octopus tends to win
- Stability and scale: Octopus is the UK's largest electricity supplier, serving around one in four GB homes — the opposite of Tomato, which the regulator barred from taking on new sign-ups in April 2025 over its finances before it failed that November.
- A proven EV proposition: Intelligent Octopus Go gives drivers cheap, smart overnight charging that's available now to any customer with a compatible smart meter — the kind of low-cost charging Tomato marketed, but from a supplier that's still here.
- Genuine tariff breadth: once you've joined and have a working smart meter you can move free onto Tracker, Agile, Cosy or Outgoing — a range a small single-focus supplier could never realistically match.
- Independently rated: Octopus is a multi-year Which? Recommended Provider with an 'Excellent' Trustpilot score around 4.8/5 and 100% renewable electricity — those are Octopus's own ratings, not this site's.
- Resilience you can see: the regulator has itself appointed Octopus to rescue customers of collapsed suppliers, including Bulb's 1.5 million homes — it absorbs failures rather than becoming one.
Where Tomato Energy still has a case
- Tomato chased a clear niche — cheap EV charging and overnight rates — and at times advertised some of the keenest headline prices in the market for drivers who could shift their usage to off-peak.
- It positioned itself as a green, tech-forward independent, bundling solar, battery storage and heat-pump ambitions with energy supply, and brought welcome competition as a genuine small challenger.
- When it did fail, customers weren't left exposed: supply continued uninterrupted and credit balances were protected under the industry safety net, with British Gas stepping in to take over.
At a glance
| Feature | Octopus Energy | Tomato Energy |
|---|---|---|
| Trustpilot | 4.8/5 “Excellent” | Lower |
| Which? Recommended | 9 yrs running | No |
| Smart / EV tariffs | Agile, Tracker, Intelligent Go, Cosy | Limited |
| 100% renewable electricity | Yes | Varies |
| £50 welcome credit | Yes — via referral link | No equivalent |
These are general, evergreen comparisons — Octopus’s Trustpilot and Which? standing are Octopus’s own ratings, not ours. Tariff prices change with the energy price cap and your region, so always confirm live rates on octopus.energy before switching.
Is Tomato Energy cheaper than Octopus Energy?
On paper Tomato often advertised lower headline EV and overnight rates than mainstream suppliers, so for some drivers it could look cheaper — but the question is now moot, because Tomato no longer supplies energy and you can't sign up to it. Its collapse is also a reminder that an unsustainably low price can end in failure rather than savings. With Octopus, what you'll pay depends on the tariff, your region and how much you use — and the smart EV tariffs in particular can be very cheap for off-peak charging — so check octopus.energy for the current live rates rather than relying on any figure quoted here.
How to switch from Tomato Energy to Octopus
Because Tomato has ceased trading, any former Tomato customer is now with British Gas, so in practice you'd be switching from there — but the process is identical and just as simple. Use the referral link on this page to start your Octopus sign-up, give your address and a recent meter reading, and Octopus takes care of contacting your current supplier and closing the old account for you. It runs on the Energy Switch Guarantee, so there's no engineer, no break in supply and the same pipes, wires and meter — it usually completes in around five working days and the whole thing is protected. Your £50 then lands automatically as bill credit once the switch completes and your first monthly Direct Debit clears, usually about four weeks later, occasionally longer if the old supplier drags its feet. The one thing that costs you the bonus is starting via a price-comparison or switching site such as Uswitch, Confused or GoCompare, which strips the referral and pays them instead — so begin from the link here.
FAQs
Is Tomato Energy cheaper than Octopus Energy?+
On paper Tomato often advertised lower headline EV and overnight rates than mainstream suppliers, so for some drivers it could look cheaper — but the question is now moot, because Tomato no longer supplies energy and you can't sign up to it. Its collapse is also a reminder that an unsustainably low price can end in failure rather than savings. With Octopus, what you'll pay depends on the tariff, your region and how much you use — and the smart EV tariffs in particular can be very cheap for off-peak charging — so check octopus.energy for the current live rates rather than relying on any figure quoted here.
How much is the Octopus Energy referral credit?+
£50 of credit when you switch to Octopus through a referral link. Business and charity switches get £75. It’s added straight to your Octopus energy account.
Is the Octopus referral code still working in 2026?+
Yes. The scheme is active and we re-verify our code on the 1st of every month. We last confirmed it works on 1 June 2026.
How long does it take to get the £50 credit?+
It’s paid automatically once your switch completes and your first monthly Direct Debit has been taken — usually around 4 weeks after you join. No claim needed.
Is this an official Octopus Energy offer?+
Yes — the £50 referral credit is Octopus’s own scheme. Octopus Energy Referral is an independent guide, not affiliated with Octopus, but the link takes you straight to Octopus’s website where you sign up directly with them.
Ready to switch? Use my link and get £50 — it costs you nothing.
Switch to the UK’s most awarded energy supplier! Switch to Octopus Energy and you’ll get £50 credit once your switch is complete. T&Cs apply (only one switching offer per household).