Energy Australia vs Origin Energy: Compare Providers & Plans 2022
EnergyAustralia & Origin Energy are two of the largest suppliers within the National Electricity Market – dominating around 45% of Australia's retail energy market. So what's the difference between the two suppliers? In this guide we compare Energy Australia vs Origin Energy to help you see where they operate, the plans they offer and find out which one is cheapest in your state. Read on for this and more.
Energy Australia vs Origin Energy: Where Do They Operate?
For the most part, EnergyAustralia and Origin Energy are available in the same areas.
However, Energy Australia's gas plans aren't available in Queensland and Origin Energy only offers natural gas in Western Australia.
Here's a table that shows where Origin Energy & Energy Australia operate:
| Energy Australia | Origin Energy | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Electricity | Gas | Electricity | Gas | |
| New South Wales | ||||
| ACT | ||||
| Victoria | ||||
| Queensland | ||||
| South Australia | ||||
| Western Australia | ||||
| Tasmania | ||||
| Northern Territory | ||||
Origin Energy vs Energy Australia: What Plans Do They Offer?
As we mentioned before, not all services are available in each state.
However, in the section below you can find a list of the available energy plans for EnergyAustralia and Origin Energy and a description of what each one offers.
If you like to go ahead and find out which one's cheapest, feel free to skip ahead to the next section where we show you which provider offers the cheaper deal in each state.
Origin Energy Gas and Electricity Plans
Origin Energy has many more electricity and gas plans than Energy Australia, including several options for solar feed-in tariffs.
However, if you're looking for the cheapest electricity plan from Origin Energy, it's the Origin Go plan.
Here's a table showing the different Origin Energy plans available:
| Origin Energy Plan Name | Description of Each Origin Energy Plan |
|---|---|
| Go (+ Everyday Rewards) | The biggest discount off the reference price with fixed rates for 12 months with optional Origin Everyday Rewards |
| Go Variable | Variable rates on a 12-month benefit period with a discount off the reference price |
| Solar Boost | No additional discounts, but a higher-than-average solar feed-in tariff |
| Solar Boost Plus | Get the highest solar FiT on the market by purchasing a solar PV system through Origin Energy |
| Basic | The default market offer with no discounts, benefit period, or exit fees |
Energy Australia Electricity and Gas Plans
Energy Australia only has 3 market offers available for electricity and gas and only offer one solar feed-in tariff.
Despite only offering a few tariffs, their plans are simple and affordable. The cheapest plan that Energy Australia offers is the Total Plan.
Here's a table showing the different plans available from Energy Australia:
| Energy Australia Plan Name | Description of Each Energy Australia Plan |
|---|---|
| Basic Home | The default market offer with no discounts, benefit period, or exit fees |
| No Frills | Get simple, low rates for 12 months |
| Total Plan | The biggest discount off the reference price, with a guaranteed discount on your total energy bill |
Comparing cost is one of the biggest influencing factors when it comes to switching energy providers. Finding a cheaper energy provider with the best rates can lower your energy bill and save money.
Which is Cheaper Energy Australia vs Origin Energy?
We compared gas and electricity prices in each state for Energy Australia vs Origin energy using their cheapest plans.
The general trend was that Origin energy was cheaper for electricity in most states and that Energy Australia was cheaper for gas in most states. However, a cheaper plan in one state doesn’t always mean it will be cheaper in another state.
Below you will find a comparison table showing you which company is cheaper for electricity in your state.
| State | Origin Energy (Origin Go) |
Energy Australia (Total Plan) |
|---|---|---|
| NSW | 18% discount $1,143 / year |
16% discount $1,170 / year |
| ACT | $1,740 / year | $1,910 / year |
| VIC | 12% discount $1,120 / year |
13% discount $1,105 / year |
| QLD | 14% discount $1,252 / year |
14% discount $1,251 / year |
| SA | 14% discount $1,476 / year |
6% discount $1,613 / year |
Source: Origin Energy and EnergyAustralia websites. Valid July 2021. Discounts and annual cost based on the reference price for each capital city. Comparison does not include all offers available.
- Which Company Offers Cheaper Electricity?
- In New South Wales, Origin's electricity is cheaper than Energy Australia's.
- In ACT, Origin's electricity is cheaper than Energy Australia's.
- In Victoria, Energy Australia's electricity is cheaper than Origin's.
- In Queensland, Energy Australia's electricity is the same as Origin's.
- In South Australia, Origin's electricity is cheaper than Energy Australia's.
To see more detailed information regarding plans and pricing for electricity, you can visit our guides to Origin Energy rates and EnergyAustralia rates.
Compare Gas Rates Origin Energy vs EnergyAustralia
Below you can find our comparison of the cheapest natural gas plans from EnergyAustralia and Origin Energy:
| State & Average Usage | Origin Energy (Origin Go) |
Energy Australia (Total Plan) |
|---|---|---|
| NSW 18,542Mj / year |
$770 / year | $730 / year |
| ACT 38,544Mj / year |
$1,490 / year | $1,360 / year |
| VIC 58,035Mj / year |
$1,510 / year | $1,260 / year |
| QLD 7,154Mj / year |
$640 / year | N / A |
| SA 10,987Mj / year |
$730 / year | $750 / year |
Source: Origin Energy and EnergyAustralia websites. Valid July 2021. Discounts and annual cost based on the Basic Plan Information Document for each capital city. Comparison does not include all offers available.
- Which Company Offers Cheaper Gas?
- In New South Wales, Energy Australia's gas is cheaper than Origin's.
- In ACT, Energy Australia's gas is cheaper than Origin's.
- In Victoria, Energy Australia's gas is cheaper than Origin's.
- In Queensland, only Origin energy offers gas.
- In South Australia, Origin Energy's gas is Cheaper than Energy Australia's.
Origin Energy vs Energy Australia: Solar Feed-in Tariffs
One of the biggest differences between Origin Energy and EnergyAustralia are their solar feed-in tariffs.
Origin Energy is a Clean Energy Council approved end-to-end solar energy retailer and installer with solar energy electricity plans available.
EnergyAustralia only offers one solar energy plan which is a standard single-rate feed-in tariff. They also don't offer solar PV systems or solar panel installation.
In other words, if you are looking for a high solar feed-in tariff your only option will be with Origin Energy
Origin Energy has 3 solar energy electricity plans:
- Basic Feed-in Tariff: standard single-rate FiT.
- Solar Boost: Offers a higher than average solar feed-in tariff for your solar energy generation
- Solar Boost Plus: Offers a very high solar feed-in tariff when you purchase your solar PV system through Origin Energy
Here's a table showing solar feed-in tariff prices by state for both suppliers:
| NSW | ACT | Vic | QLD | SA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EnergyAustralia Basic FiT | 7.6c / kWh | 7.6c / kWh | 7.1c / kWh | 6.6c / kWh | 8.5c / kWh |
| Origin Energy Basic FiT | 5c / kWh | 7c / kWh | 6.7c / kWh | 5c / kWh | 6c / kWh |
| Solar Boost Plus | 22c / kWh | 20c / kWh | 20c / kWh | 18c / kWh | 21c / kWh |
| Solar Boost | 14c / kWh | 11c / kWh | 10c / kWh | 13c / kWh | 13c / kWh |
Valid July 2021. Must purchase solar panels through Origin Energy to get Solar Boost Plus.
It’s important to remember that solar-specific electricity plans often come with a lower discount off the reference price and depending on your energy usage habits and the size of your rooftop solar system you might be better off choosing the standard solar FiT.
Should I sign up for Origin Energy or Energy Australia?
Choosing the best energy provider doesn’t necessarily mean simply choosing the cheapest, there are other things to consider when comparing and switching.
Both Energy Australia and Origin Energy have longer than average call wait times. However, Energy Australia's customer service team answers on average nearly 1 minute before Origin Energy's.
However, when looking at customer complaint data it's clear to see that Energy Australia had far higher customer complaints than Origin Energy. As we don't know the reason for these complaints, it's hard to say if this is a bad sign for customer service, but it is definitely something to consider when choosing a supplier.
As we mentioned before, if you have solar panels or are looking to install solar panels, Origin Energy wins out over Energy Australia as they have a robust solar energy offering and higher feed-in tariffs.
Therefore, it doesn't come as a surprise that Greenpeace also ranks Origin Energy higher in terms of green electricity ratings.
Lastly, it's important to note that if you are basing your choice of supplier on price alone, Origin energy offers better deals for electricity in NSW, ACT and SA while Energy Australia offers better gas deals in NSW, ACT and VIC.
Here you can find an overview comparison of EnergyAustralia and Origin Energy, or find a complete review of EnergyAustralia and a review of Origin Energy for even more information about each energy provider.
| Energy Australia | Origin Energy | |
|---|---|---|
| GreenPeace Green Electricity Guide Rating 2022 | 1.35 / 10 | 1.6 / 10 |
| Average wait time for customer calls* | 101 seconds | 145 seconds |
| Calls answered within 30 seconds* | 66% | 53% |
| Customer complaints: Total number and percentage of customers* | 17,806 complaints 2% of total customers |
26,598 complaints 1% of total customers |
| GreenPower percentages | 10%, 20% or 100% | 25%, 50% or 100% |
| Solar energy | Solar panels: No Solar FiT: Yes |
Solar panels: Yes Solar FiT: Yes |
| Electricity pricing | Cheaper in: VIC & QLD | Cheaper in: NSW, ACT, SA |
| Gas pricing: | Cheaper in: NSW, ACT, VIC | Cheaper in: SA |
*Source: AER Retail Market Report 2019-2020
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