Agile Frequently Asked Questions

What are the N2EX and EPEX30 badges next to some rates?

Octopus set Agile rates from the day-ahead wholesale auction, but don't publish them until the evening. Before that, we show an estimate calculated from the same wholesale data, badged so you can see it's not yet official:

• N2EX — an early, rougher estimate calculated from N2EX day-ahead wholesale prices, available from around 09:50am. This is the least certain figure of the day and can move once refined data arrives.
• EPEX30 — a refined estimate calculated from the actual EPEX 30-minute wholesale auction, available from around 4pm. This is the same underlying data Octopus's own formula uses, so it's typically very close to the real rate once published.

Once Octopus publish the real rate, the badge disappears and the figure is their genuine published number.

Why might the "cheapest slot" tool disagree with itself later on?

If the cheapest window it finds includes any N2EX-badged slots, we show a warning — those are the least certain estimates, and the window could shift once the real EPEX-30 or Octopus rate settles. EPEX30-badged slots are generally reliable enough not to trigger the warning.

How does the "cheapest slot" cost figure work?

It assumes a constant 1kWh drawn every hour across the window you choose — the kind of load you'd get from something like an immersion heater or a fixed-rate charger. If your appliance draws power unevenly (most EV chargers, battery systems with their own charge curve), the actual cost will differ from the figure shown. The window itself is still the cheapest available — just the cost figure may not match exactly for a variable-draw appliance.

Are the rates VAT inclusive?

Yes — both the exc-VAT and inc-VAT figures are shown where relevant (e.g. via the API), and the rates displayed on the page are inclusive of VAT.

Why does the FreePhase page look different from the Agile page?

They're two separate tariffs with separate pricing mechanisms — FreePhase is EDF's own formula, Agile is Octopus's. FPRates keeps the two completely separate, including their own terms, contact form and API, so there's no risk of mixing up which tariff you're actually looking at.

Which regions are supported?

All 14 UK electricity distribution regions are supported. Use the dropdown at the top of the Agile rates page to select your region. If you're not sure which region you're in, check your Octopus bill or account.

Is FPRates an official Octopus service?

No — FPRates is an independent service and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to Octopus Energy in any way. Octopus and Agile are trademarks of Octopus Energy. We use publicly available data to provide this service.

Is FPRates free to use?

Yes, completely free. If you find it useful, you can buy me a coffee to help cover server costs — but there's no obligation whatsoever.

I'm a developer — is there an API?

Yes! There's a free JSON API for Agile rates, in the standard Octopus/Kraken format used by home-automation tools like predbat, plus a historical endpoint for pulling data into Excel. See the Agile API documentation for full details.

Does FPRates use cookies on the Agile pages?

Yes, the same two small cookies as the rest of FPRates, stored only on your device: one remembers your chosen region, the other your preferred page width. Neither tracks you, is shared, or leaves your browser. There are no advertising or analytics cookies.

What do the internet.nl badges at the bottom of each page mean?

internet.nl is a free, independent testing service run by the Dutch Internet Standards Platform (a partnership including the Dutch government and internet industry bodies). It checks whether websites and email systems correctly use modern, open internet standards — things like IPv6, DNSSEC, HTTPS security, and email anti-spoofing protections (SPF, DKIM and DMARC).

The badges show that FPRates scores 100% on both the website and email tests. In practical terms: the connection between your browser and this site is properly encrypted, the domain is protected against tampering, and our emails are cryptographically signed so other mail providers can verify they genuinely came from us — which protects you against anyone trying to impersonate FPRates.

You can verify this yourself at any time — clicking either badge takes you to the actual test results, where you can also re-run the test live. Anyone can claim to be trustworthy; we'd rather point you at an independent test you can run yourself.