Compare electricity & gas with Australia's best energy

Comparing electricity and gas in Australia is no longer just about chasing the loudest advertised percentage or a welcome credit. In 2026, a better energy comparison means checking the whole cost structure for your exact address, reading the tariff details properly and knowing which official comparison tool applies in your state.

Many households now compare both fuels at once because the decision is connected. The retailer with the lowest-looking electricity headline is not always the one with the strongest combined electricity and gas outcome once daily supply charges, controlled load settings, time-of-use pricing, gas usage patterns and post-promo rates are taken into account.

Quick answer: how to compare electricity and gas

To compare electricity and gas plans properly, use the same address, the same billing period and the same household assumptions across both fuels. Start with your latest bill, check the daily supply charge and usage rates, confirm your tariff type, then compare the written plan information before switching.

Compare electricity and gas providers

The first step in any electricity and gas comparison is separating brand familiarity from plan fit. Large retailers such as AGL, Origin Energy and EnergyAustralia can all look competitive in one suburb and average in another because network charges, distribution zones and plan availability vary by address.

When you compare electricity and gas providers, look for:

• whether the provider supplies one fuel or both fuels at your address;
• the daily supply charge for each fuel;
• electricity usage rates in cents per kWh;
• gas usage rates in cents per MJ;
• tariff type, including flat rate, time-of-use or controlled load settings;
• billing options, payment flexibility and direct debit conditions;
• solar or feed-in tariff terms if electricity and solar are both relevant;
• any bundle or dual-fuel condition that changes the long-term price.

An electricity and gas provider can still be a poor fit even if it is well known. The real test is whether the provider's available plan structure works for how your home uses energy.

Best electricity and gas plans in Australia

There is no single best electricity and gas plan in Australia for every household. The best plan for an all-electric apartment, for example, can be very different from the best plan for a family home that uses gas heating and gas hot water.

In practice, the best electricity and gas plans in Australia usually share a few traits:

• the supply charge is reasonable for the amount of energy you actually use;
• the tariff structure matches your usage pattern;
• plan conditions are clear and not dependent on hard-to-meet requirements;
• the provider offers written plan details that are easy to verify;
• any dual-fuel saving still holds up after the promotional period ends.

If you are comparing "best" plans, define best for your own home first. For some households it means the lowest combined annual bill. For others it means predictable billing, solar suitability, fewer late-payment traps or access to concessions and flexible payment support.

Electricity vs gas costs

Electricity vs gas costs are hard to compare with one simple national rule because the fuels are priced and billed differently. Electricity is generally priced in cents per kilowatt hour, while gas is generally priced in cents per megajoule. Both fuels also include a daily supply charge.

That means the right question is not "Is electricity cheaper than gas?" in the abstract. The more useful question is "Which fuel is costing my home more for the appliances I actually use?"

Common examples:

• Electric hot water can make controlled load pricing important on electricity bills.
• Gas heating can increase winter gas usage sharply even if the per-MJ rate looks moderate.
• Homes with solar may offset daytime electricity imports but still carry a meaningful supply charge.
• Small apartments can be hit harder by high supply charges because the fixed cost makes up a larger share of the total bill.

For many households, the only sensible electricity vs gas cost comparison is to read both bills together and calculate the combined annual spend.

How to compare gas rates

When people search for ways to compare gas rates, they often focus only on the cents-per-MJ figure. That is not enough. A gas comparison needs the rate and the supply charge together.

Energy Made Easy explains that gas and electricity tariffs usually have two parts: a daily supply charge and a usage charge. For gas, the usage charge is commonly shown in cents per MJ. That means a lower gas rate can still be offset by a higher supply charge, especially in homes with modest gas usage.

Use this gas-rate checklist:

1. Check the daily supply charge.
2. Check the gas usage rate in cents per MJ.
3. Look for seasonal usage spikes, especially in winter.
4. Confirm whether the plan is bundled with electricity.
5. Review billing conditions, fees and any price-change clauses.

This is why the best way to compare gas rates is with your real usage profile, not a headline rate viewed in isolation.

Compare electricity and gas prices

To compare gas and electricity prices properly, keep the comparison framework consistent.

Use the same:

• address;
• bill period;
• tariff type where possible;
• GST treatment when reading provider documents and bills;
• usage assumptions;
• concession and solar settings where relevant.

For electricity, check whether you are on a flat tariff, time-of-use tariff or a plan with controlled load. For gas, look closely at whether the supply charge makes the plan less competitive for lower-usage homes.

In Victoria, the Essential Services Commission says the Victorian Default Offer acts as a reference price for market offers and that it helps customers compare market-offer prices more clearly. In other participating jurisdictions, Energy Made Easy remains a key official comparison tool for households and small businesses. Those benchmarks are useful comparison points, but they are not automatic proof that a plan is your best option.

Electricity and gas comparison by state

Australian energy comparison is heavily state-based.

Victoria

Victorian households should use Victorian Energy Compare for official plan comparison. The Essential Services Commission also explains that the Victorian Default Offer is a standing-offer safeguard and a reference price for market offers. On 20 May 2026, the commission set Victorian Default Offer prices to apply from 1 July 2026 to 30 June 2027, with average annual default-offer bills falling compared with 2025-26 in its published examples.

That matters because a Victorian electricity and gas comparison should account for both the available market offers and the VDO reference context.

New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and the ACT

Energy Made Easy is the key official comparison tool in participating national energy retail law jurisdictions. It is designed to help households compare electricity and gas plans using postcode and usage information.

These states and territories still differ in:

• distributor zones;
• tariff availability;
• seasonal gas demand patterns;
• concession settings;
• smart-meter and time-of-use rollout context.

Western Australia and the Northern Territory

Plan-comparison pathways are different because the market structure is different. These regions should be treated separately from the east-coast-style comparison process.

How to switch energy providers

Once you have compared electricity and gas plans and chosen a better fit, switching should still be done carefully.

Energy Made Easy's switching checklist recommends checking the Basic Plan Information Document or written plan summary, understanding cooling-off rights, reviewing whether you have to pay a fee to leave your current plan, checking whether prices can change, and confirming whether you can access concessions.

Its switching guide also explains that after you sign up, the retailer manages the transfer and tells your old retailer you are changing over. It notes that the changeover often happens at the next meter read and can take up to three months unless you request an earlier read, which may involve a fee.

Practical switching checklist

1. Keep your latest electricity and gas bills in front of you.
2. Confirm the exact plan name and plan ID.
3. Read the supply charge and usage rates for both fuels.
4. Check solar, controlled load or time-of-use details if relevant.
5. Confirm whether any dual-fuel discount is ongoing or temporary.
6. Review cooling-off rights and exit-fee conditions.
7. Keep a copy of the written plan information after signup.

Common mistakes when comparing energy

The most common mistakes in an energy comparison are:

• comparing different tariff types as if they were the same;
• ignoring the supply charge;
• comparing a bundled offer with a single-fuel plan without recalculating the combined cost;
• overlooking controlled load or solar settings;
• assuming a national "best" plan exists regardless of postcode;
• forgetting that gas usage can jump in winter and distort a rate comparison.

Related CompareUs pages

Use the electricity comparison page, gas comparison page, electricity cost calculator and gas bill calculator to turn this guide into a shortlist based on your household usage.

If you want provider-specific follow-up reading, start with AGL, Origin Energy and EnergyAustralia on the electricity side, then compare any gas offer against the same household assumptions.

Sources and methodology

This guide uses official Australian comparison and tariff references, including Energy Made Easy and the Essential Services Commission in Victoria. It is written to help households compare electricity and gas plans more clearly in 2026, but plan availability, rates and conditions can still change quickly by address.