Night rate

What it is

The night rate is the lower unit price applied to electricity used during a set overnight window. It works with a day rate on a multi-rate meter. The reason for the discount is that overnight demand on the grid is lower.

Where you will see it

On your bill as a separate line for night units, in the Principal Terms of your contract, and on the meter itself, which keeps a separate register for night use. The exact hours are set by your meter and supplier, so check them in your contract rather than assuming.

Why it matters

A cheap night rate only pays off when you use a real share of your electricity at night. Good candidates include storage heating, hot water tanks heated overnight, ice machines and equipment on timers. A business with little overnight use may find the higher day rate on a multi-rate deal costs more than a single-rate deal.

Example

Illustrative rates only: day 30p, night 15p, single rate 28p. A bakery that starts baking before dawn uses 6,000 kWh in the day and 6,000 kWh in the night band.

• Two-rate: (6,000 × £0.30) + (6,000 × £0.15) = £1,800 + £900 = £2,700
• Single rate: 12,000 × £0.28 = £3,360

The two-rate tariff saves £660. If only 1,000 kWh were at night, it would cost (11,000 × £0.30) + (1,000 × £0.15) = £3,450, so the single rate would win.

Ask for your last 12 months of day and night readings before you choose a tariff, then run the sums.

Related terms

See day and night rates, unit rate and kWh.