Compare the cheapest electricity prices in Perth

Fact Checked

Households in Western Australia may not always have a choice of electricity provider, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have a choice of electricity tariff. Synergy, as the only electricity supplier for almost all residential customers in the Perth area, offers a range of energy plans, including single rate and time of use options.

This means that, depending on energy usage habits, a change of tariff could potentially deliver savings on power bills for Perth residents. Canstar Blue explores the different tariff options from Synergy below to help Perth households find the cheapest electricity prices.

How do I find a cheap electricity price in Perth?

Finding the cheapest electricity plan in Perth isn’t as simple as comparing multiple providers and offers. Unfortunately, the majority of customers in Perth as considered ‘non-contestable’, meaning that they aren’t able to choose their electricity retailer.

This is because addresses in Perth are connected to the South West Interconnected System – the electricity distribution network that supplies residential customers from Albany to Kalbarri, including metropolitan Perth. In this area, Synergy is currently the only authorised electricity retailer and there is no opportunity to switch. The prices that Synergy charges for power are regulated by the WA government.

Contestable customers can shop around, but to fall in this category you’ll need to use more than 50 megawatt hours (MWh) of electricity per year. As most homes only use around 6MWh annually, this really only applies to businesses, so residential customers in Perth are still limited to solely Synergy electricity plans.

It’s a similar story in regional WA, with Horizon Power currently the sole electricity supplier to residential customers. The gas market in WA is also still regulated, but there are six different gas suppliers to choose from, which is proving good for competition.

While there is no electricity competition in the Perth area, there are multiple different electricity tariffs to pick from, resulting in different usage rates and varying overall energy costs. Picking the right tariff for your household’s needs is crucial if you’re looking for cheaper electricity in Perth.

Synergy Home Plan (A1) Tariff

Synergy’s Home Plan offers a single rate tariff, which could be a good cheap electricity option if you want easy to understand bills. With this tariff, households are charged the same electricity usage rate regardless of the time of day they use energy.

Usage and supply charges for customers in the Perth area are as follows:

Source: Synergy website, April 2024.

Synergy Midday Saver Tariff

Synergy’s Midday Saver Tariffs offers flexible electricity pricing to households in Perth and surrounding areas, through a ‘time of use’ tariff. This means that customers are charged different electricity usage rates depending on the time of day they use power. The usage times are split into three categories – peak, off-peak & ‘shoulder’ (the time between peak and off-peak) – and rates vary significantly across each period.

Usage and supply charges for customers in the Perth area are as follows:

Source: Synergy website, April 2024.

While the daily supply charge with Synergy’s time of use tariff is the same as its single rate plan, you can see how dramatically usage charges vary: from as low as 8.00c per kWh to as high as 51.00c per kWh.

• Peak usage rates apply between 3pm and 9pm every day.
• Off-peak rates apply between 9pm and 9am every day.
• Super off-peak rates apply between 9am and 3pm every day.

If you’re looking for cheaper electricity in Perth, adjusting the bulk of your energy usage to off-peak hours and switching to Synergy’s Midday Saver tariff could help cut down your bills. However, households must have a smart meter installed to access this plan.

Which Synergy tariff offers the cheapest electricity prices in Perth?

Choosing the product that will offer the cheapest electricity prices comes down to when you use power – and how much you use.

Usage rates with the Midday Saver Tariff come in noticeably cheaper than usage rates on the A1 Tariff during off-peak times. However, there is minimal difference between A1 Tariff rates and shoulder charges on the time of use plan. In comparison, peak time prices on the Home Smart Tariff are close to double those of the A1 Tariff.

Overall, the cheaper option will depend on when and how you use electricity at home. But if you’re interested in finding a cheaper electricity price in Perth, we recommend contacting Synergy about your options before making a purchase decision.

Is the Synergy time of use tariff worth it?

If you’re able to shift the vast majority of your daily electricity requirements to off-peak hours, the time of use tariff could deliver some savings. However, it’s unlikely that anyone but shift workers who are not at home in the early hours of the evening would be able to achieve this. If you don’t think reducing your peak time energy usage to less than 20% of your total consumption is realistic, the time of use tariff is probably not right for you.

If a household switches to the time of use tariff, but makes no changes to its energy usage habits, opting for Synergy’s Midday Saver plan could be an expensive mistake. With this in mind, customers considering the time of use option should have a good understanding of their energy requirements, and also think carefully about how their usage habits might change over time.

Can I find a cheap gas plan in Perth?

Perth residents can select from a small range of natural gas retailers, meaning it’s much easier to find a competitive gas deal. Below is a selection of plans from providers on the ATCO network in Perth.

Original Author: Jared Mullane