What are the best SEG rates right now?
Last updated March 2025
5 min read
SEG - or smart export guarantee - tariffs pay you for the electricity you export back to the grid.
Larger energy suppliers are 'Mandatory SEG Licensees' and must provide a SEG tariff. They also often provide more competitive export rates. People often confuse SEG and export, and interchange the names. They are pretty much the same thing, you get paid to export electricity.
Solar export (or SEG) is very simple. Your solar panels generate electricity and any surplus that is not used by your house or stored in your battery (if you have one) is exported to the grid. Your energy supplier will pay you for this excess energy.
There are really two types of export rates available on the market.
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If you already have your solar panels installed, you can get good rates from suppliers. You probably will have to switch your electricity supply to the supplier first.
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The very best rates are reserved for new installs. You need to get the install done by the supplier to get these special rates.
The best Solar SEG tariffs you can switch to right now
Supplier | Tariff | Price: pence per kWh |
|---|---|---|
eon | Next Export Exclusive | 16.5p |
British Gas | Export and Earn Plus | 15.1p |
Octopus | Outgoing Octopus | 15.0p |
eDF | Export 12m | 15.0p |
Good Energy | Solar Savings | 15.0p |
Scottish Power | SmartGen | 12.0p |
OVO | SEG Beyond Exclusive | 12.0p |
eDF | SEG Export Variable Value | 5.6p |
Octopus | SEG | 4.1p |
OVO | SEG | 4.0p |
British Gas | Export and Earn Flex | 3.0p |
eon | NextExport | 3.0p |
eDF | SEG Export Variable | 3.0p |
Octopus | Agile Outgoing | variable |
Octopus | Flux | 3 rate tariff - day, peak and flux |
The very best rates come when the supplier installs your solar panels
Supplier | Tariff | Price: pence per kWh |
|---|---|---|
Good Energy | Solar Savings Exclusive | 40.0p |
eon | Next Premium | 21.0p |
OVO | SEG Install Exclusive | 20.0p |
eDF | Export Exclusive 12m | 20.0p |
Scottish Power | SmartGen+ | 15.0p |
OVO | SEG Install Exclusive | 15.0p |
How do I choose the best tariff?
All the best rates come with a catch. The highest rate 'install exclusives' are only available for new solar and battery systems installed by the energy company, and you usually need to have your your electricity supply with the supplier.
The remaining higher rate SEGs are also usually only available if you have your electricity supply with the SEG provider. This means you will need to switch provider if you want to take a SEG with someone who doesn't supply your electricity. Scottish Power is the only exception currently.
The SEG rate aside, there are 3 key things to know before you make your choice.
1. See how long the rate is guaranteed for. The best rates often come fixed for a year.
2. Check how often the supplier will pay you. Some are quarterly, some more often.
3. Make sure your export tariff is compatible with your EV tariff (if you have one). They don't always work together.
Which Octopus export tariff is best?
Octopus has some of the more innovative (and harder to understand) tariffs on the market.
Outgoing Fixed is the simplest of their tariffs and is competitively priced. You must have your electricity supply with Octopus to access the tariff.
Agile Outgoing is more complex and gives access to day-ahead uncapped wholesale rates. This tariff is most suited to customers who can optimise their system, and is often paired with their agile import tariff.
Octopus Flux is a three-tier combined import and export rate that has three prices for three periods during the day. It is best suited to those with a battery who can take advantage of the very cheap off-peak rate to power their home, and the very high peak export rate. However, make sure you can take advantage of these rates - a lot of households will not be exporting to the grid during the afternoon peak when the export prices are the best. And make sure your home can avoid the high peak import rates.
In summary - Outgoing Fixed is well priced and simple and will suit most solar customers. If you are a sophisticated energy user with time to invest in optimising your home usage, Agile is best. And Flux is best if you have a large battery and a household electricity usage that avoids pulling from the grid at 4pm-7pm.