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Agile Outgoing Octopus is a smart export tariff that pays a different rate for electricity exported during every thirty minute period of the day. Instead of receiving one flat payment whenever surplus electricity enters the grid, customers receive a rate linked to the day ahead wholesale electricity market. This makes Agile Outgoing one of the most active export tariffs available to domestic renewable energy owners. It may reward homes that can export at valuable times, but it also exposes the customer to periods when export payments are extremely low. This guide was checked on 10 July 2026.
A compatible smart meter records how much electricity leaves the property during each thirty minute period. Octopus applies the Agile Outgoing rate for that particular period and credits the account accordingly. There are forty eight export prices during a normal day. The payment can therefore change significantly between the middle of the night, a sunny afternoon and the early evening. Octopus describes Agile Outgoing as being best suited to homes with energy storage that can export when wholesale electricity is most valuable. The tariff has a twelve month term with a locked pricing formula, but the resulting export rate continues to change throughout every day. There are no exit fees. Agile Outgoing is an export tariff rather than an import tariff. It determines what Octopus pays for electricity sent to the grid. A separate import tariff determines what the household pays when electricity is taken from the grid.
Agile Outgoing prices follow the day ahead wholesale electricity market. Octopus uses wholesale prices together with regional electricity system values and operating costs to calculate the amount paid for each exported unit. The published calculation includes a regional multiplier, the wholesale electricity price and additional values connected with balancing and network benefits. A separate peak value may also apply between 4pm and 7pm. The formula differs by electricity region because the costs and benefits of electricity entering the network vary across Great Britain. Wholesale prices for the following period are normally published during the afternoon. This gives customers with controllable batteries time to review the approaching rates and adjust their export schedules. The tariff is described as uncapped. There is no upper payment limit protecting Octopus from an unusually high wholesale price. Equally, customers are not guaranteed a minimum commercially attractive payment during quiet or oversupplied periods. Octopus states that when wholesale prices become negative, the Agile Outgoing export rate stops just above zero rather than becoming a charge for exporting. A customer may therefore receive little or no meaningful payment during a negative market period, but should not normally be billed simply for sending eligible electricity to the grid.
Wholesale electricity prices reflect the balance between generation and demand. Prices can fall when wind and solar generation are plentiful, particularly when national demand is modest. They can rise when demand increases, renewable output falls or more expensive generation is needed. This pattern means the highest export payment will not necessarily occur when a solar system is producing its largest surplus. A south facing solar installation may export heavily around midday. However, midday electricity can sometimes have a relatively low wholesale value because solar generation is high across the country. Electricity released during the early evening may be worth more because household demand is rising while solar output is falling. Agile Outgoing gives the customer the market value of the timing, rather than paying the same amount for every exported unit.
A home battery can store surplus solar electricity during the day and release it when Agile Outgoing rates are more attractive. Without storage, the household has limited control over export timing because generation follows daylight and weather. The battery must first supply electricity being used within the property. Only the remaining discharge crosses the smart meter and qualifies as export. A household expecting to export 5 kilowatt hours during a valuable evening period may find that cooking, heating and other domestic demand consume much of the battery output before it reaches the grid. Battery capacity is also not the same as exportable capacity. The owner may retain a reserve for backup, protect the battery from deep discharge or need stored energy for overnight household use. Conversion losses must be included in any calculation. Electricity is lost when alternating current is converted for battery storage and again when stored energy is converted back for use or export. Repeated cycling also contributes to gradual battery degradation. The additional Agile payment must be large enough to justify those losses and the effect of extra cycling. Customers should also examine the current export terms before using electricity imported from the grid purely for later export. Octopus reserves the right not to pay for electricity classed as brown export, meaning electricity that was not generated by an eligible renewable asset. A battery does not automatically make the source of that electricity eligible.
Standard Outgoing Octopus currently pays 12 pence per kilowatt hour regardless of export time. Prime Outgoing pays 16 pence between 4pm and 7pm and 9 pence during the rest of the day. Agile Outgoing follows the changing wholesale market instead. Agile Outgoing is not automatically better because its highest prices may exceed 12 or 16 pence. The annual result depends on the amount exported during every thirty minute period. Consider a home exporting most of its surplus between 11am and 3pm. If wholesale prices are frequently weak during those hours, the average Agile payment may be lower than the flat 12 pence rate. A battery equipped home that consistently moves genuine renewable surplus into high value periods may achieve a stronger average. However, it must compare the extra payment with battery losses and the electricity retained for household use. Prime Outgoing may provide a middle ground. It rewards evening exports without requiring the customer to respond to a different schedule every day. Flat Outgoing provides the simplest arrangement and may be preferable where exports cannot be controlled.
Applicants normally need to be domestic Octopus Energy customers and must have an eligible renewable generation system. Accepted technologies include solar photovoltaic panels, wind generation, hydro, anaerobic digestion and qualifying micro combined heat and power systems. The property must have a compatible smart meter with a dedicated export Meter Point Administration Number. The customer must permit Octopus to collect half hourly export readings. Almost all second generation smart meters and many first generation meters are supported, although Octopus advises customers to obtain confirmation where compatibility is uncertain. The generation equipment must be registered with the local distribution network operator. Octopus will normally request the network acceptance letter or email. An MCS, Flexi Orb or equivalent certificate is usually required for solar, wind and micro combined heat and power installations. Octopus may consider systems without these certificates, but additional evidence and an assessment charge may apply. The tariff requires an export MPAN. When the property does not already have one, Octopus applies to the distribution network operator. Octopus estimates around two days for its application processing, one to four weeks for creation of the export MPAN and a further five days for enrolment. These are indicative periods rather than guaranteed completion dates.
Customers receiving historic Feed in Tariff generation payments can normally retain the generation portion. They cannot receive both a Feed in Tariff export payment and Agile Outgoing payments for the same electricity. The customer must leave the deemed or metered Feed in Tariff export arrangement before Agile Outgoing payments begin. Anyone who started receiving Feed in Tariff payments within the previous twelve months may be unable to change export arrangements immediately. This decision should be examined carefully. A deemed export payment may remain valuable where a household uses most of its solar generation itself and sends relatively little electricity through the export meter.
Agile Outgoing can be combined with several Octopus import tariffs, including Octopus Go, Intelligent Octopus Go, Cosy Octopus and Snug Octopus. Current smart tariff terms specifically identify Agile Outgoing as a compatible export option for these products. It cannot be added to combined import and export products such as Octopus Flux because those arrangements already contain their own export rates. Import compatibility matters because the most profitable export arrangement may not create the lowest total household energy cost. An electric vehicle owner may save considerably through cheap overnight charging, while a heat pump household may benefit from several reduced import periods. The correct calculation combines import costs, export income and standing charges across the full year.
Imports and exports are measured separately. Electricity imported and exported during the same thirty minute period is not simply cancelled out. The smart meter records both flows, and each is settled using its relevant tariff. Export credits normally appear on the monthly Octopus statement alongside import charges. When export earnings exceed the amount owed for imported electricity, the account moves into credit. Customers with current meter readings can request a cash refund through their online account. If Octopus cannot retrieve complete half hourly data, it may move the customer to another export tariff for billing purposes. Prolonged meter communication problems can result in export being valued using the Smart Export Guarantee rate or calculated from manual readings.
Agile Outgoing is most suitable for households with flexible battery storage, reliable smart controls and enough renewable generation to choose when substantial amounts of electricity reach the grid. It also suits customers who are prepared to review market prices or use automation that adjusts battery behaviour each day. The tariff is less suitable for homes that export almost entirely when solar generation naturally peaks, particularly if the customer does not want to monitor changing prices. A flat export rate may deliver more predictable income with less effort. Agile Outgoing provides access to the real changing value of exported electricity. That can be rewarding, but the headline prices seen on exceptional days should not drive the decision. The meaningful figure is the average rate earned across the household's actual annual export pattern after battery losses, household demand and operating limits have been taken into account.
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