Bundesnetzagentur publishes new data on supplier switching
Year of issue 2026
Date of issue 2026.03.11
The Bundesnetzagentur has today published figures for 2025 on supplier switching in the electricity and gas sectors on the SMARD energy data platform. By comparing energy prices, customers may find that switching suppliers is financially worthwhile.
"For customers, switching their energy supplier is often an attractive means of reducing their energy costs,"
said Klaus Müller, President of the Bundesnetzagentur. "From the continuing high number of supplier switches, we can see that consumers are benefiting from competition on the energy market."
Supplier switching is worth it
About 6.7mn households switched electricity supplier in 2025, saving around €280mn in total. However, the majority of consumers remained with their supplier. At the same time, the Bundesnetzagentur is increasingly receiving reports in this context about problems at the distribution network level that are making it difficult to switch supplier.
Also during the year 2025, around 2.1mn households switched gas supplier, giving rise to total savings of around €126mn.
This meant that 2025 recorded the second highest level of switches of any year on record. The highest level of switches ever occurred in 2024: 6.9mn household customers switched electricity supplier and 2.4mn their gas supplier. This lessened the financial burden by an estimated figure of around €2.3bn in the electricity sector and €1.1bn in the gas sector.
Potential relief for households if willingness to switch remains high
According to the Bundesnetzagentur’s modelling, prices for electricity and gas for new customers fell in January 2026 when compared with the previous year. In January 2026, the modelled electricity price for new customers was 34.9 ct/kWh and thus around 7% less than in January 2025. Households with an average annual consumption of 3,500 kWh can make annual savings of around €95 by switching supplier. If households switch supplier as often in 2026 as they did in 2025, the financial relief could total €590mn.
The modelled gas price for new customers in January 2026 was 9.6 ct/kWh. This is a decrease of around 13% when compared with the previous year. Potential savings for households with a typical annual consumption of 20,000 kWh that change supplier are around €360 per year. If switching activity this year remains at the level of 2025, savings would amount to around €390mn.
The Bundesnetzagentur has published further information and the latest key figures at https://www.smard.de/sharing/page/8369 (in German).