What is the Demand Flexibility Service?
The Demand Flexibility Service is a national scheme that pays households for using less electricity, usually for an hour or two on a winter evening. It’s run by the National Energy System Operator, the body that keeps Britain’s lights on, and Ofgem regulates it.
Joining is free, it runs through your existing electricity supplier, and it doesn’t ask you to switch anything except when you put the kettle on. Most of the energy market profits when you do nothing. This is one of the few bits that pays you for doing something, and even Roo, our chronically upbeat mascot, admits that’s a nice change.
Checked August 2026: the scheme sits under NESO’s balancing services and is overseen by Ofgem, which approved its current design in March 2026.
How do you get paid for using less electricity?
You sign up through a participating supplier or aggregator, then cut your electricity use during a set window when you’re asked to. Octopus Energy, EDF and E.ON Next have all run demand flexibility service events for their customers, paying out in cash, bill credit or loyalty points depending on the deal.
You’ll usually need a smart meter sending half hourly readings, since that’s how your supplier proves you actually cut your usage during the window. Not sure if yours qualifies? Our guide on reading a smart meter walks through what to check.
Events aren’t announced months ahead. Your supplier will typically message, email or ping you through the app a day or so before, usually for an hour or two on a weekday evening when the grid’s under the most strain.
How often that happens depends on the weather as much as anything else. A cold snap in January tends to bring more demand flexibility service events than a mild autumn week, so some winters you might get a handful of invites, and others considerably more.
What changed in the demand flexibility service for 2026?
The demand flexibility service was redesigned in 2026, and the headline change is that it now pays two ways. NESO’s updated version launched in April 2026, rewarding participants for turning their electricity use down, and for the first time, for turning it up too when there’s surplus power on the system worth using.
Ofgem confirmed its approval of the redesigned demand flexibility service on 25 March 2026 (Ofgem, checked August 2026). NESO reports that more than 2.46 million households and businesses have signed up since the scheme began.
That’s a lot of people already quietly getting paid for something most households never hear a word about from their own supplier.
Demand flexibility service at a glance
| What | Detail |
|---|---|
| Runs the scheme | National Energy System Operator (NESO), regulated by Ofgem |
| Cost to join | Free, via a participating supplier or aggregator |
| What you need | Smart meter with half hourly readings |
| Current version launched | April 2026, approved by Ofgem 25 March 2026 |
| What’s rewarded | Using less power, and since 2026, using more at surplus times |
| Sign ups reported | Over 2.46 million households and businesses (NESO) |
Is the demand flexibility service worth signing up for?
For most households, yes. It costs nothing to join, and there’s no obligation to take part in every event you’re invited to. Individual payments tend to be modest, often around a few pounds a session, though some suppliers have reported bigger one off events. Octopus Energy, for instance, says customers have earned as much as around £9 in a single evening, and it’s paid out over £1 million to customers in total.
Treat it as a bonus, not a budgeting strategy. It won’t make a dent in your annual bill on its own, but it’s one of the few corners of the energy system where doing something small and easy gets rewarded instantly, instead of you paying for doing nothing at all.
Key takeaways
- The demand flexibility service is free to join through a participating supplier or aggregator.
- You’ll need a smart meter with half hourly readings to take part.
- Since April 2026, you can be rewarded for using more power at surplus times, not just less.
- Payments are usually modest, so treat it as a bonus rather than a fix for a rising bill.
Signing up takes a few minutes, but it won’t fix a tariff that’s already overpriced. If you haven’t checked what you’re paying against the wider market lately, it’s worth doing both at once. Our guide to how the energy price cap actually works is a good place to start if you’re not sure whether your bill is high because of the cap, or because of your own tariff.
Households on a variable rate that tracks wholesale prices hour by hour can sometimes combine the two, using demand flexibility service events alongside a tariff that already rewards using less at peak times. Our guide to dynamic energy tariffs explains whether that combination is worth the effort for your household.
Frequently asked questions about the demand flexibility service
- Do I need a smart meter to join the demand flexibility service?
- Yes. Your supplier needs half hourly meter readings to prove you cut your usage during an event, so a working smart meter sending regular readings is essential.
- Which suppliers run demand flexibility service events?
- Octopus Energy, EDF and E.ON Next are among the suppliers that have run demand flexibility service events for customers. Check with your own supplier directly, since participation and rewards vary.
- How much could I actually earn?
- It varies by supplier and event, and it’s usually a modest amount per session rather than a guaranteed sum. Treat any figure you see quoted as an estimate, not a promise.
- Is the demand flexibility service the same as a dynamic tariff?
- No. A dynamic tariff changes your unit rate throughout the day based on wholesale prices, while the demand flexibility service is a separate, optional scheme that pays you for specific events your supplier calls in advance.
- Will taking part affect my normal energy tariff?
- No, it runs alongside your existing tariff rather than replacing it, and there’s no fine or penalty if you skip an individual event, you simply miss out on the reward for that session.
