Energy Saving Tips UK: How to Cut Your Home Energy Bills

The Starting Point: Know What You Are Using

Before making changes to how you heat or power your home, it helps to understand where your energy is actually going. The biggest users of energy in most UK homes are heating and hot water (typically the largest portion of the bill), followed by cooking, refrigeration, and other appliances.

A smart meter with an in-home display is a practical way to see this in near real-time. Smart meters are installed free of charge by your energy supplier — you can request one rather than waiting to be offered. Seeing usage in pounds per hour, rather than kilowatt-hours, makes it much easier to spot which activities or appliances are driving costs.

Heating: The Biggest Opportunity

Heating accounts for the majority of most households' energy bills. Small adjustments to how you heat your home can produce a meaningful reduction in consumption.

Turn the thermostat down by one degree. According to the Energy Saving Trust, reducing your thermostat by 1°C can reduce your heating bill by around 10%. This is one of the most frequently cited and verified energy-saving tips in the UK — the saving is real, though comfort is personal.

Use a programmer or smart thermostat. Heating an empty home is one of the most common sources of wasted energy. A programmer ensures the heating only comes on when people are home. Smart thermostats (Hive, Tado, Nest, and others) can learn your schedule, adjust based on whether you are home, and be controlled remotely from a smartphone. Some energy suppliers offer discounted or free installation of smart thermostats for customers on certain tariffs.

Bleed your radiators. If radiators have cold spots, particularly at the top, trapped air is preventing hot water from circulating effectively. Bleeding radiators with a radiator key — a process that takes minutes — allows the hot water to reach the full surface area. This is free and improves heating efficiency immediately.

Close doors to rooms you are not using. Heating a bedroom or spare room you are not in wastes energy. Closing internal doors and reducing the thermostat or turning off radiator valves in unused rooms concentrates heat where you need it.

Insulation and Draught-Proofing

Heat lost through gaps in your home's building fabric is energy wasted regardless of how efficient your boiler is. Insulation and draught-proofing address this directly.

Draught-proofing is low-cost and can often be done yourself. Key areas: external doors (draught excluders and letterbox covers), gaps around floorboards and skirting boards (flexible sealant), and unused fireplaces (chimney balloons). The Energy Saving Trust estimates draught-proofing a typical home can save a meaningful amount annually, with most products paying back within a few months of purchase.

Loft insulation is one of the most cost-effective professional insulation improvements. A significant amount of home heat rises and escapes through an uninsulated roof. Standard loft insulation can be installed relatively quickly and may be available free through government schemes — see the grant section below.

Cavity wall insulation fills the gap between the inner and outer walls of a property with cavity construction. This is typically installed professionally and is also available through some grant schemes.

Solid wall insulation (for older properties without a cavity) is more expensive to install but delivers significant heat retention improvements. Check scheme eligibility before costing this privately.

Government Grants and Support Schemes

Several government schemes exist to help UK households improve energy efficiency, particularly for lower-income households or properties with low EPC (Energy Performance Certificate) ratings.

The Great British Insulation Scheme provides funding for insulation improvements including loft and cavity wall insulation for eligible homes. Eligibility is based on council tax band, energy performance, and in some cases household income.

Warm Homes: Local Grant (formerly ECO4 in some areas) provides grants for energy efficiency improvements including insulation, heat pumps, and heating system upgrades for low-income households.

The Warm Home Discount provides a fixed annual rebate on electricity bills for customers on qualifying means-tested benefits. The rebate is typically applied automatically once eligibility is confirmed. Check your supplier's website or the gov.uk eligibility checker to see whether you qualify.

For the most current information on scheme eligibility and how to apply, use the gov.uk Energy Support tool at gov.uk/improve-energy-efficiency.

Switching Energy Tariff

The energy price cap sets the maximum unit rate that suppliers can charge customers on standard variable tariffs in the UK. Ofgem reviews the cap quarterly.

When fixed-rate tariffs are priced below the current cap, fixing your energy deal can reduce your bills for the term of the fix. When the cap is lower than available fixed rates, staying on the standard variable tariff is likely cheaper. This relationship changes each quarter, which is why it is worth checking at renewal rather than assuming one approach is always better.

Comparison sites allow you to compare the current cap unit rate against available fixed tariffs at your address. Always check the exit fee terms on any fixed deal — if you need to switch mid-term, exit fees can offset any savings.

Reducing Appliance and Water Heating Costs

Hot water: Reducing the temperature setting on your hot water cylinder thermostat to around 60°C (which is sufficient to kill legionella bacteria) from a higher setting can reduce water heating energy consumption.

Washing machine: Washing at 30°C rather than 40°C or 60°C uses significantly less energy per cycle. Modern washing detergents are formulated to work effectively at lower temperatures.

Fridge and freezer: These run continuously, so their efficiency matters. Keeping the fridge well-stocked (but not overpacked) helps maintain temperature with fewer compressor cycles. Defrost a freezer with heavy ice build-up — ice reduces efficiency.

Standby power: Switching appliances off at the wall rather than leaving them on standby eliminates standby power consumption. A smart plug with energy monitoring lets you see how much any specific appliance is using.

For broader household saving tips, see our guide to how to save on groceries in the UK — grocery spending is typically the second largest variable household expense after energy for most UK families.

You might also find our How to Save on Car Insurance in the UK guide helpful.

Sources & References

• Energy Saving Trust — Home Energy Advice
• Ofgem — UK Energy Regulator
• Citizens Advice — Consumer Rights