Outgoing Octopus: export rates, conditions and which tariffs it pairs with

Outgoing Octopus pays 12p per kWh for every unit of electricity you export, as long as Octopus also supplies your electricity on a compatible tariff. That rate applies in every region of Great Britain and has been in place since 1 March 2026 (it was 15p before). It is variable, so Octopus can change it with notice. If you keep another electricity supplier, Octopus pays 4.1p instead. All rates here were checked in Octopus's price data on 24 September 2026.

Outgoing is Octopus's version of the Smart Export Guarantee, the scheme under which larger suppliers must pay for exported electricity in Great Britain. Our SEG guide explains how the scheme works, and our export tariff comparison sets Outgoing against other suppliers' rates.

Outgoing Octopus rates

Octopus sells three versions of Outgoing to its electricity customers, plus an export-only tariff for people who buy their electricity elsewhere. Export payments carry no VAT, and none of these has a standing charge.

The 12p, 16p and 9p rates were the same in all 14 regions. Agile Outgoing prices differ by region.

Which import tariffs work with Outgoing

You can only pair Outgoing with certain Octopus import tariffs. This is Octopus's compatibility table, limited to the import tariffs open to new customers on 24 September 2026:

So you can combine a flat or Prime export rate with an overnight car-charging tariff, or with a heat pump tariff. Only the two Flux tariffs lock your export to their own rates. Our guide to tariffs for solar and batteries compares these pairings with worked examples.

Flat, Prime or Agile: which pays most?

Flat 12p (needs Octopus as your electricity supplier) pays the same for every export. It suits panels without a battery, because most of your surplus comes around the middle of the day.

Prime Outgoing pays more than the flat rate only if enough of your exports fall between 4pm and 7pm. The break-even share is when 16p × share + 9p × (1 − share) = 12p, which gives 7p × share = 3p, so share = 3 ÷ 7, about 43%. With panels alone you rarely get close: in winter there is little sun by 4pm, and in summer most of the surplus is exported earlier in the day. A battery that you discharge to the grid at 4pm makes Prime worth checking, but only after the battery has covered your own evening use, which saves more than exporting.

Agile Outgoing follows the wholesale market. Over the 30 days to 23 September 2026, London prices averaged:

• 14.66p per kWh across all half-hours
• 10.31p between 10am and 4pm, when solar exports are highest
• 22.56p between 4pm and 7pm
• from a low of 0.60p to a high of 42.35p

These are simple averages of the half-hourly prices, not what a household earned. In that month, a home exporting only daytime solar would have averaged about 10p, less than the flat 12p. Agile Outgoing rewards a battery or car you can discharge when prices spike. Octopus says the rate stops just above zero when wholesale prices go negative, so you are never charged for exporting. Past prices don't predict future ones.

What you need to sign up

• Octopus as your electricity supplier. If you're not a customer, you join on a standard tariff first and apply for Outgoing once your account is set up.
• A smart meter that sends half-hourly export readings. Octopus says this includes almost all second-generation (SMETS2) meters and most first-generation ones.
• Your installation paperwork: usually the MCS certificate, plus the network operator notification and its reply. Octopus uses these to request an export MPAN, the reference number for your export meter point, from your network operator.

Octopus sets out the timeline as about 2 days to process your application, 1 to 4 weeks for the network operator to create the export MPAN, and about 5 days to add it to your account.

No MCS certificate?

Octopus says it pays for exports without MCS or Flexi-Orb certification if you send three documents: an Electrical Installation Certificate, a Building Regulations certificate of compliance (not needed in Scotland) and your network operator's acceptance letter. It charges a £250 fee, processing usually takes 2 to 3 weeks, and Octopus must be your electricity supplier. Other suppliers' SEG tariffs generally need MCS or equivalent certification, so this route mainly helps systems installed without that certification.

On the Feed-in Tariff?

If your Feed-in Tariff payments started in the last 12 months, you can't switch to Outgoing yet. After that, you keep your generation payments but must opt out of Feed-in Tariff export payments. Our SEG guide covers the choice.

Outgoing, like the Smart Export Guarantee, is for Great Britain only. Northern Ireland has its own export arrangements.

Batteries and Outgoing

Outgoing pays for any electricity your meter records as exported, including from a battery, Octopus's FAQ says. With the flat rate, which needs Octopus as your electricity supplier, exporting stored solar earns the same 12p you would have got by exporting it straight away, less the energy lost in the battery. A battery on the flat rate earns most by covering your evening use, not by exporting. Our solar battery guide works through that trade-off.

Octopus also sells an add-on, Charge Pack, which needs Outgoing for your export and an import tariff of Intelligent Octopus Go, Octopus Go, Flexible or a fixed tariff. Octopus says it runs your battery for about two grid sessions a week and pays at least £12 a month for taking part. It supports AlphaESS, EcoFlow, Enphase, FoxESS, GivEnergy, HanchuESS, Huawei, Sigenergy and SolarEdge batteries.

Frequently asked questions

What is the Octopus SEG rate?

On 24 September 2026, Outgoing Octopus paid 12p per kWh if Octopus supplied your electricity on a compatible tariff. If you buy your electricity elsewhere, Octopus's export-only SEG tariff paid 4.1p. E.ON Next's Flex Export, open to customers of any supplier, paid 6p that week.

Can I get Outgoing Octopus without being an Octopus customer?

Not the 12p rate. You need Octopus as your electricity supplier. Without that, Octopus offers its 4.1p export-only tariff.

Does Outgoing Octopus work with Intelligent Octopus Go?

Yes. Octopus's table lists Outgoing, Prime Outgoing and Agile Outgoing as compatible with Intelligent Octopus Go, Octopus Go, Cosy Octopus, Agile Octopus and its standard tariffs. It is not compatible with Octopus Flux or Intelligent Octopus Flux, which have their own export rates.

Is Outgoing Octopus fixed or variable?

The flat 12p Outgoing, which needs Octopus as your electricity supplier, is variable, so Octopus can change it with notice; it fell from 15p to 12p on 1 March 2026. Prime Outgoing and Agile Outgoing are 12-month fixed-term tariffs with no exit fees.