How to manage your electricity bill with a smart meter
Support from supplier
Your electricity supplier plays a key role in helping you get the most from your smart meter and electricity plan. If you’re not seeing savings, contact your supplier.
They may help you switch to a better plan or give you advice on how you are using electricity.
Your supplier can support you in the following ways:
- Show you how to get the most out of your smart meter
- Help you switch to a time-of-use (ToU) tarif
- Help you find the best plan based on your household’s electricity use
- Offer you discounts like online billing, direct debit, or loyalty rewards
- Offer you environmentally friendly (green) electricity plans or advice on microgeneration such as solar panels
There are several electricity suppliers in Ireland, so we suggest comparing plans often.
Most suppliers offer easy-to-use apps or online portals to help you check your use and manage your account.
Solar panels
If you install solar panels, you can take your savings even further:
- You reduce the amount of electricity that you pay for.
- You can sell surplus (extra) electricity back, earning up to €400 tax-free per year.
Improving your home’s energy efficiency
Improving your home’s energy efficiency is a great way to reduce your electricity bills and increase the comfort of your home. Your electricity supplier may also be able to help you with energy efficiency by providing:
- Advice including a BER (Building Energy Rating) assessment
- Information on grants
- Information on installing new windows, solar panels or other measures.
You can apply for many types of grants including towards solar panels from the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI). Check their website for more information.
Moving to a greener, fairer, sustainable energy future
Every small action contributes to a larger national goal: building a cleaner, more affordable, and more resilient energy system for everyone in Ireland. A portion of your bill helps pay for upgrades to the electricity grid and helps to build new ways to generate energy, especially renewables.
By moving to more environmentally friendly energy, as a country we can:
- Reduce carbon emissions (pollution) to fight climate change
- Increase efficiency, so we use less energy overall
- Lower long-term energy costs for homes and businesses
- Improve energy security, by relying more on local renewables like wind and solar
- Take control of our energy use and costs.
Smart meters, ToU tariffs, and microgeneration are key ways to help create a fairer, greener energy future and help us all save money on our electricity bills.
Support if you are struggling with your bills
What should I do if I am falling behind with paying my electricity bills?
If you are struggling to pay your bills, don’t ignore the problem. Reach out for help early.
- Contact your electricity supplier: Many offer payment plans, flexible options, or supports for customers facing difficulty
- For more information on how your supplier can help you manage your electricity bill, you can read our Energy Engage Code.
Search: eaireland.com/energyengagecode/ - The Money Advice and Budgeting Service (MABS) can also support you with debt and budgeting. Call them for free on 0818 07 2000.
