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Peak vs. Off-Peak Electricity: Best Times & Tariffs⚡2025
Posted 7 Feb
Difference between On-Peak vs. Off-Peak Electricity: Time-of-use Tariffs Explained
So you may have just received your electricity bill and are seeing varied numbers in the on and off-peak sections.. but what are on
and off-peak demand periods?
In order to optimise your electricity consumption and reduce your energy bills, homeowners need to know peak, shoulder, and off-peak
electricity times in Australia.
When is On-Peak electricity time?
Peak electricity times refer to the high-demand period of energy.
Peak electricity times are generally from 2-8pm in Summer, and 5-9pm in Winter.
When are Shoulder Electricity times?
Shoulder electricity times refer to the time between on and off peak demand periods, which are usually 7am-2pm & 8-10pm in Summer,
and 7am-5pm & 9-10pm in Winter.
When is Off-peak electricity time?
Off-peak electricity time periods are when energy is at its low demand.
Off-peak electricity times are typically from 10-pm-7am.
What's an Example of On-Peak Electricity?
When you arrive home from work on a summers’ day (let’s say 5pm), you will start to use power in the middle of an on-peak time
where electricity will be most expensive to use. Cooking dinner, maybe the air-conditioner goes on, and you start watching your favourite
tv show. All of these will be using peak electricity usage costs which will cost more compared to the shoulder or off-peak periods on a
time-of-use tariff.
For example, Energy Australia's Balance plan says that weekday peak times are between 2pm - 7pm (65.44c/kWh), shoulder times from 7am-2pm
and 8pm-10pm (34.42c/kWh).
Weekend on Energy Australia Balance plans are off-peak from 10pm - 7am (27.24c/kWh), with shoulder times being 7am-10pm (34.42c/kWh).
Understanding Different Electricity Tariffs - Which Tariff should you Pick?
Every property will have unique lifestyles and energy consumption habits. Finding the right electricity tariff can depend on a few
factors, however, below are the main 4 tariffs available throughout NSW, Australia.
Time of Use Tariff
Time-of-use tariff applies variable pricing at different times of the day, based on division between peak, shoulder, and off-peak
periods. This suits people who: can easily manage their usage habits, are out mostly during weekday evenings and at home during the day
and can use appliances on the weekends. You will also need to install a smart meter/time-of-use meter.
Single rate Tariff
On a single-rate tariff, there are no on and off-peak electricity periods. This means you pay a flat-rate price at all-times of the
day. This tariff is the perfect for those who are home a lot during weekday evenings, and for people wanting to use appliances during
peak periods.
Controlled Load Tariff
A controlled-load tariff refers to when an appliance is charged separately at its own stand-alone rate, and often has its own electricity
meter. Every home will have at least one energy-hungry appliance, whether it be hot water
heating,
or a pool pump, or even floor heating to be used overnight or in off-peak periods.
Demand Tariff
On top of regular consumption and supply fees, Demand tariffs are based on the consumption intensity of your property at any point in time.
Each energy retailer will have their own method of calculation like, your single highest demand period, your overall average, and different
demand seasons. This tariff has been made to incentivise lower energy consumption in peak periods – the less you use in these periods, the
cheaper your bill.
What’s the Price difference between Peak and Off-peak Electricity?
Pricing between Peak and Off-peak electricity can more than double, with peak electricity prices sitting at anything
between 20c
per kWh to 64c per kWh*.
Also note that this does not include the fees and supply charges.
This can give you billshock when opening your energy bill after your usage has been heavy, and the price of
energy has been high.
Making a Difference in your Power Bill
When changing your consumption habits to take advantage of off-peak times, you will see an improvement over your bill depending on which
tariff you are on.
If you are a single rate tariff, the pricing will be constant over any demand period.
*Energy Made Easy results for Time of Use tariff (off vs. on peak usage), Inc. GST. Search result of 'Thornton 2322, 2-3 person
residential home on the 'Basic home' plan. Compare here.
Tips on using Off-peak Electricity to your Advantage
Delaying appliances that aren’t time-sensitive to start after 10pm such as dishwashers or pool pumps.
Smart Meters are essentially a tool that can be installed to allow properties to see accurate and clear data of their energy
consumption, which allows the owner to make informed decisions about when and how long to use appliances.
What is Demand Response?
Demand response is a program that you can partake in where customers
are paid to keep the electrical grid stable by balancing the supply and demand. It allows for a more balanced system and rewards
participants for throttling consumption or for using more power in times of over-supply.
A great example would be a building with lots of refrigeration. The operator will notify the participant to limit electricity
consumption, until a certain time in order to reduce the electrical load on the grid. They would do this by either turning the fridges off
temporarily, and in the process the participant is rewarded for throttling their usage.
The same thing happens when the system has too much supply and not enough demand, the participant would then be notified to turn all
fridges up to soak up the generated energy and be paid for it.
Conclusion
With the transition to renewable energy happening, we will most likely see a higher rate of grid failures and higher grid energy costs as
coal-fired power stations close across Australia. We believe now is the best time ever to invest in solar as rebates
are still available (not for long), and the rapidly growing demand for grid security.
If you want to see if you’re on the cheapest energy plan, we recommend visiting ‘Energy
Made Easy’
where you can simply compare energy plans, it’s great.
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