How Octopus Energy’s Smart Tariffs Work (Agile, Go, Tracker) – And Where the Referral Code Fits In
Smart meters have quietly changed how we can pay for energy in the UK. Instead of one flat price all day, companies like Octopus Energy now offer smart tariffs that reward you for using electricity at cheaper, greener times.
Octopus has three headline smart tariffs:
- Agile Octopus – prices change every 30 minutes
- Octopus Go / Intelligent Go – cheap overnight electricity, ideal for EV charging
- Octopus Tracker – gas/electricity prices update daily in line with wholesale markets
If you’re reading this on octopus50.co.uk, you’re probably also wondering:
“How does the Octopus Energy referral code fit into all of this?”
We’ll break down how each tariff works, who it suits, and how to use this referral link to get bill credit when you join:
👉 Octopus Energy referral link – melon-crane-917
What Is a Smart Tariff?
A smart tariff uses readings from your smart meter to charge you different prices at different times or days.
With Octopus, that usually means:
- You might pay less overnight and more in the evening
- Or prices might change every 30 minutes
- Or they might change once per day, depending on what’s happening in the wholesale market
Smart tariffs can save you money if:
- You can move a lot of your usage to cheaper times
- You have equipment like an EV, battery, solar panels, or a heat pump
- You’re comfortable with prices that move around rather than staying fixed
You do not have to start on a smart tariff on day one. Loads of people:
- Join Octopus using the referral link
- Get their smart meter sorted
- Then switch to Agile / Go / Tracker later from inside their online account
Agile Octopus – Half-Hourly Pricing
Agile Octopus is the most “techy” of the smart tariffs.
How Agile works
- The electricity price changes every 30 minutes (so 48 different prices in a day)
- Tomorrow’s prices are published the day before, so you can see when energy will be cheap or expensive
- Prices follow the wholesale market, so they can be very low at some times and high at others
- Very occasionally, prices can go negative (meaning you’re effectively paid to use electricity)
Your smart meter sends half-hourly usage data, and Agile charges you the price for each half-hour slot you actually used energy in.
Who Agile suits
Agile can be great if you can shift your usage to periods when electricity is cheap, for example:
- You have an EV and are flexible about when it charges
- You have a home battery or solar + battery and like to store cheap power
- You can run dishwashers, washing machines, immersion heaters and similar at non-peak times
- You enjoy a bit of energy geekery and don’t mind looking at graphs and numbers
Agile is not ideal if:
- Most of your usage is stuck in the 4–7pm peak and you can’t move it
- You hate the idea of prices changing and want something more predictable
Pros and cons of Agile
Pros
- Potentially very cheap overall if you avoid peak times
- Encourages use when the grid is greener (lots of wind/solar)
- Pairs brilliantly with automation and batteries
Cons
- Unpredictable month to month
- Requires a compatible smart meter
- Needs you to be fairly engaged with your energy use
Octopus Go / Intelligent Go – Cheap Nights for EV Owners
Octopus Go (and Intelligent Octopus Go) is designed mainly for electric vehicle drivers.
How Go works
- You get a low fixed rate overnight for a set window (e.g. a 4–6 hour period)
- Outside that window, you pay a higher “daytime” rate
- With Intelligent Go, Octopus can automatically schedule your EV charging within the cheap window, so you don’t have to think about it much
The idea is simple: most of your heavy usage (EV charging, water heating, maybe a battery) happens when the power is really cheap.
Who Go suits
Go is especially good if:
- You have an EV and can charge it mainly at home
- You can leave it plugged in overnight and let the cheap window do the work
- You like straightforward: “cheap at night, standard in the day”
It can also work nicely if you have:
- Storage heaters
- A hot water tank you can heat at night
- A home battery you can top up overnight
Pros and cons of Go
Pros
- Much simpler than Agile – just two price periods
- Often one of the cheapest ways to run an EV at home
- Easy to set and forget once you’ve got a routine
Cons
- Cheap period is limited to a few hours
- Day rate can be higher, so you really want to move usage into the cheap window
- Still requires a smart meter and, ideally, an EV
Octopus Tracker – Follow the Market
Octopus Tracker is a different take on “smart”. It doesn’t rely heavily on what time of day you use energy, but on how the wholesale price moves from day to day.
How Tracker works
- The unit rate for gas and/or electricity is recalculated each day
- It follows an independent wholesale price index plus a transparent markup for costs like networks and levies
- You can see the daily price and how it’s built up, making it a very transparent tariff
Tracker won’t change every 30 minutes like Agile, but it will go up or down from one day to the next based on the underlying market.
Who Tracker suits
Tracker is a good fit if:
- You like transparency and want a fair link to real market prices
- You’re okay with the idea that prices may rise or fall day to day
- You’re willing to adjust your usage slightly if prices spike
It’s not ideal if you want absolute price certainty for the next 12 months, because it is explicitly designed to follow the market.
Pros and cons of Tracker
Pros
- Very honest and transparent pricing structure
- You benefit quickly when wholesale prices fall
- Less complex than Agile’s half-hourly model
Cons
- Prices can rise if the market spikes
- Not as predictable as a fixed tariff
- Depends on your comfort with some risk and variability
Where the Octopus Referral Code Fits In
Now for the practical bit: how does the referral link work with these tariffs?
Step 1 – Join Octopus via the referral link
To get the referral credit, you need to join Octopus as a new customer using a referral link. On this site, that’s:
👉 https://share.octopus.energy/melon-crane-917
When you use that link:
- You go straight to the official Octopus sign-up journey
- Your switch is tagged as referred
- Once your switch is complete and your first payment has gone through, both you and the referrer receive bill credit (subject to the current terms and amount)
Step 2 – Choose your starting tariff
When you join via the referral link, you can:
- Start on a standard variable or simple fixed tariff, or
- If you already have a compatible smart meter and know what you want, you can aim directly for Agile, Go, or Tracker (availability can depend on meter and region)
Many people choose to keep things simple at first:
- Join with the referral link
- Get comfortable with the app and billing
- Make sure their smart meter is installed/working
- Then move onto Agile / Go / Tracker later if it suits their lifestyle
Either way, the referral credit is linked to the account, not to a specific tariff.
Step 3 – Switching tariffs later
Once you’re an Octopus customer, you can request a move to:
- Agile Octopus
- Octopus Go / Intelligent Go
- Octopus Tracker
from within your Octopus online account or by contacting them.
Your referral credit stays on your account and simply goes towards your future bills on the new tariff.
In other words:
The referral link gets you in the door with a bonus.
The smart tariffs are extra tools you can choose to use once you’re inside.
How to Decide Which Smart Tariff (If Any) Is Right for You
Here’s a quick rule-of-thumb guide.
- You have an EV and can charge overnight →
Start by looking at Octopus Go / Intelligent Go. - You’re techy, have an EV/battery/solar, and can shift loads →
Consider Agile Octopus for maximum flexibility and savings potential. - You want transparent daily pricing and don’t mind some ups and downs →
Explore Octopus Tracker. - You just want something easy and low-effort →
Join Octopus on a standard variable or simple tariff using the referral, then review smart options later.
Remember: you can still use the referral link and never touch a smart tariff if you decide they’re not for you. The referral credit is simply a thank-you for joining via a recommendation.
Final Thoughts – Smart Tariffs + Referral = Better Long-Term Value
Smart tariffs are where Octopus Energy stands out:
- Agile rewards flexibility and clever timing
- Go makes running an EV cheaper and more convenient
- Tracker offers unusual transparency and a close link to real market prices
But none of that means much if people feel confused. That’s why this kind of article matters on a referral landing page: it turns a vague “£££ off” into an informed decision.
If you like the idea of joining Octopus, possibly experimenting with smart tariffs later, and getting a bit of credit to soften the first bills, the next step is simple:
👉 Sign up to Octopus Energy using the melon-crane-917 referral link
You get bill credit, your referrer gets a thank-you, and you keep the option to move onto Agile, Go, or Tracker once you’re ready.