Standing Charges Explained: What You Pay Per Day in 2026
Every UK household with a gas and electricity supply pays a fixed daily standing charge before using a single unit of energy. From April 2026, that is 86.30p per day for dual fuel, or £315 per year. Here is what standing charges pay for, why they have doubled since 2021, and whether they are going up or down.
UK standing charges from April 2026:
- Electricity: 57.21p per day (£208.82 per year)
- Gas: 29.09p per day (£106.18 per year)
- Combined (dual fuel): 86.30p per day (£315 per year)
Source: Ofgem Q2 2026 price cap, confirmed 25 February 2026
Standing charges from April 2026 (confirmed by Ofgem)
Source: Ofgem, Q2 2026 price cap (from 1 April). Figures are for direct debit customers including 5% VAT.
What is a standing charge?
A standing charge is a fixed daily fee on your energy bill. You pay it whether you use any energy or not — even if you are on holiday for a month, you still owe around £27 in standing charges.
Think of it like line rental for your phone. The standing charge covers the cost of maintaining the infrastructure that delivers gas and electricity to your home, plus some government policy costs. The energy you actually use is charged separately at the unit rate (24.67p per kWh for electricity and 5.74p per kWh for gas from April 2026).
On most energy bills, you will see two lines: the standing charge (a fixed amount based on the number of days in the billing period) and the usage charge (based on how many kWh you consumed).
What does the standing charge actually pay for?
According to Ofgem, the standing charge covers several cost categories:
Network costs
~65%The cost of maintaining and upgrading the gas pipes and electricity cables that deliver energy to your home. This is the largest component and is rising as the grid is upgraded for net zero (more electric vehicle chargers, heat pumps, and renewable generation require significant infrastructure investment).
Supplier operating costs
~15%The fixed costs of running an energy company — billing systems, call centres, metering. These costs exist whether you use one kWh or ten thousand.
Policy costs
~12%Government schemes like the Warm Home Discount (WHD), which subsidises energy bills for low-income households. From April 2026, WHD costs are moving off the standing charge and into unit rates.
Supplier failure costs
~8%When energy suppliers went bust during the 2021-22 crisis (29 suppliers failed), the cost of absorbing their customers was spread across all bills through the standing charge. These costs are still being recovered.
Standing charges have doubled since 2021
In 2021, typical dual fuel standing charges were around £160 per year. By Q1 2026 they have reached £328 — an increase of 105% in five years. During the same period, the overall energy price cap rose by about 55%.
Standing charges have grown faster than unit rates for two main reasons:
| Period | Elec standing charge | Gas standing charge | Total/year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2021 | 25.0p/day | 18.5p/day | ~£159 |
| Apr 2022 | 46.0p/day | 27.2p/day | ~£267 |
| Jan 2024 | 52.0p/day | 30.0p/day | ~£299 |
| Jan 2026 | 54.75p/day | 35.09p/day | ~£328 |
| Apr 2026 | 57.21p/day | 29.09p/day | ~£315 |
Source: Ofgem price cap announcements, direct debit tariff rates. Figures rounded, including 5% VAT.
Who gets hit hardest by standing charges?
Standing charges are a flat fee — the same whether you live in a one-bed flat or a five-bed house. That makes them regressive: they take a bigger percentage of the bill for people who use less energy.
Standing charges as a percentage of the total bill
~£1,020/year total bill · £328 standing charges
~£1,758/year total bill · £328 standing charges
~£2,800/year total bill · £328 standing charges
Minimal grid usage in summer · standing charge dominates the bill
The people standing charges hit hardest are exactly the people the energy system should be rewarding: those who use less energy, those who have invested in efficiency improvements, and those who generate their own electricity.
A single pensioner in a well-insulated flat who keeps their heating low and their lights off pays the same £328 standing charge as a household running a large detached house at 22°C all winter. The pensioner's standing charge eats up a third of their bill. The large house barely notices it.
What is changing in April 2026?
✅ Confirmed: Standing charges fall to £315/year from April
Ofgem confirmed on 25 February that dual fuel standing charges will fall from £328 to £315 per year from 1 April. Gas standing charges drop sharply (35.09p to 29.09p per day) as policy costs are removed. Electricity standing charges rise slightly (54.75p to 57.21p) due to network cost increases.
The net saving of £13/year on standing charges is modest. The bigger saving comes from the unit rate cuts (electricity down 11% to 24.67p/kWh), which reduces the overall bill by £117.
✅ Confirmed: Green levies moved to general taxation
The Autumn 2025 Budget announced that 75% of Renewables Obligation costs would shift from energy bills to general taxation. The Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme will also not be extended beyond March 2026. Combined with the WHD change, the government says this should take approximately £150 off the average annual bill.
Ofgem confirmed the April 2026 price cap at £1,641, down from £1,758 - a 6.6% reduction.
⏳ Delayed: Low/zero standing charge tariffs
In 2025, Ofgem announced plans to require all energy suppliers to offer at least one low or zero standing charge tariff. The original target was early 2026. As of February 2026, this has not happened — Martin Lewis of MoneySavingExpert publicly criticised the delay, calling it a failure.
A few suppliers already offer low standing charge options (Utilita, Fuse Energy), but they typically offset this with higher unit rates. Until Ofgem mandates it, most households are stuck paying the full standing charge.
📈 Rising: Network costs
While policy costs are falling, network costs continue to climb. Upgrading the electricity grid for net zero — more capacity for EVs, heat pumps, and renewable generation — requires massive investment. These costs are primarily recovered through standing charges. This will partly offset the WHD saving.
Why this matters most for solar panel owners
If you have solar panels, particularly with battery storage, your summer electricity bills can be almost entirely standing charge. You generate your own electricity during the day, export the surplus for Smart Export Guarantee payments, and draw minimal grid electricity overnight.
In this situation, a typical summer electricity bill might look like:
| Cost component | Without solar | With solar + battery |
|---|---|---|
| Standing charge (30 days × 57.21p) | £17.16 | £17.16 |
| Electricity usage (summer month) | £25.40 | £3.10 |
| Total monthly bill | £42.56 | £20.26 |
| Standing charge as % of bill | 40% | 85% |
For a solar household, over 80% of their summer electricity bill is standing charge. Every penny the standing charge falls translates directly into savings. A £39 annual reduction in standing charges might not sound like much, but for someone whose bills are already minimal, it is a meaningful improvement.
More fundamentally, the shift from standing charges to unit rates aligns incentives properly: if you invest in solar panels, battery storage, or energy efficiency, your reward gets bigger because more of the bill is based on consumption you can reduce.
What you can do about standing charges
1. Check if a low standing charge tariff saves you money
A handful of suppliers offer zero or reduced standing charge tariffs. If you are a low-usage household, these could save you money even with higher unit rates. Compare carefully — the breakeven point is typically around 2,000–2,500 kWh per year for electricity. If you use less than that, a zero standing charge deal may be cheaper.
2. If you have solar, this makes it even more worthwhile
The structural shift toward unit rates and away from standing charges improves the economics of solar panels. Every kWh you generate yourself avoids a unit rate that is becoming a larger share of the bill. If you are considering solar, our solar guide explains costs, payback, and the £7,500 grant.
3. Improve your home's efficiency
The less energy you use, the more standing charges hurt proportionally. But the flip side is also true: every efficiency improvement (better insulation, LED bulbs, draught-proofing) reduces your unit-rate costs while the standing charge stays fixed. Over time, as standing charges are reformed, low-usage households will benefit the most. Start with insulation — it is almost always the highest-impact improvement.
4. Switch to a fixed deal below the price cap
Some fixed tariffs currently offer rates below the price cap, which could save around £200 per year. British Gas predicts the April price cap at £1,635 — if you can lock in below that, you are protected against future rises. Check our tariff comparison guide for current deals.
The bigger picture: are standing charges fair?
The standing charge debate is really about how we pay for shared infrastructure. There are broadly two schools of thought:
Keep standing charges
- • Everyone connected to the grid should share infrastructure costs equally
- • Without standing charges, high-usage homes subsidise low-usage homes
- • Network costs are genuinely fixed — they do not change with usage
- • Low standing charges could make some fixed tariffs misleadingly cheap
Reduce or abolish them
- • Flat fees are regressive — they disproportionately hit the poorest
- • They penalise energy efficiency and renewable investment
- • Many costs in the standing charge are not truly fixed
- • Other countries manage without high standing charges
The April 2026 changes are a step in the right direction — moving policy costs into unit rates and, eventually, into general taxation. But with network costs rising as the UK upgrades its grid for net zero, standing charges are unlikely to fall dramatically anytime soon. The best protection is reducing your dependence on grid energy through efficiency and self-generation.
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- Ofgem — Standing charge for electricity and gas (Q2 2026 confirmed figures, 25 Feb)
- Ofgem — Changes to energy price cap, January–March 2026
- House of Commons Library — Energy standing charges (updated February 2026)
- Cornwall Insight — Q2 2026 price cap forecast: £1,641/year (February 2026)
- The Guardian — Household energy bills forecast to fall by £117 a year (18 February 2026)
- MoneySavingExpert — Ofgem has failed to deliver its promised 'low or no standing charge' tariffs (January 2026)