The Big Six Energy Suppliers

Who are The Big Six Energy Suppliers?

The six biggest energy companies in the UK are often referred to as the “Big Six”. Between them, these six energy suppliers provide 95% of the energy in the UK.

Many people would never even consider switching to an energy supplier outside of these six. But why is this? Could any suppliers outside of these six be offering you cheaper gas and electricity deals?

Who are the big six?

The big six are the largest energy companies in the UK:

• British Gas
  • British Gas is the UK’s largest energy company and is the greenest supplier of the big six.
• EDF Energy
  • EDF Energy is the UK arm of the French energy giant and supplies more than 5.5 million customers.
• E.ON
  • E.ON (formerly Powergen) is another European entrant in the UK energy market, and currently serves around 7 million customers.
• npower
  • npower is the smallest of the big six, and outside of domestic supply is focusing on expanding wind and hydro-electic power.
• Scottish Power
  • Scottish Power is the next largest above npower, and supplies energy to around one in every ten UK households.
• SSE
  • SSE is the second largest energy supplier in the UK, and the second best for renewable power.

Whilst these companies supply almost all the households in the UK with energy, there are many smaller suppliers that offer great deals on gas and electricity. With our free and impartial energy comparison service we will show you offers from all the energy suppliers in the UK; not only from the big six providers.

Why aren’t more people switching supplier?

Politicians have continuously called for people to look around for cheaper electricity and gas deals. In spite of this, under half of the households in the UK have ever changed their gas or electricity supplier.

Many people believe it is very difficult to switch energy supplier; that it takes a long time or that they would need to lay new pipes or cables before they would be able to. However this just is not the case. Switching energy supplier doesn’t need to take more than five minutes.

All you need to do to switch is tell us your postcode and your energy usage. With this information we can present you with a list of all the best energy deals that are available to you.

If you choose to switch by using our energy comparison tool, you won’t experience any interruptions to your power supply at any point. You also won’t need any new pipes or cables put into your house. This is because all energy suppliers deliver their energy in the same way, the only thing that changes is who supplies it and how much you pay for that supply.

Should I switch to a small supplier?

There are many small energy suppliers out there who offer a viable alternative to those companies in the Big Six. In fact many of these companies have much higher levels of customer satisfaction than the companies in the Big Six.

The main concern that people express, when they are asked about switching energy to a smaller supplier, is that they might be left high and dry if the small supplier were to go out of business. However, this is not a concern that you need to have.

Ofgem, the regulator for energy in the UK, has put in place measures to protect you from losing your energy supply if your supplier goes under. This means that no matter what happens you will always receive a steady supply of energy to your household. If your current supplier can no longer provide you with energy, you will simply be switched to another supplier that can.