By Andrea Hargraves 
Last year was an exceptional year of electricity savings for those who had the courage to switch to companies in the indexed market. There were months when electricity was free.
On the Contas-Poupança Facebook page, you can find many testimonials from people like Marco Carvalho who saved about 300 euros in six months. Or Gina Gouveia, who started paying 35 euros a month instead of 70.
But that was in 2023. In 2024, those savings will be more difficult to achieve.
Hey Ersi Increase grid access tariffs for all companies and stabilize the price of electricity on the wholesale market to some extent. But this does not mean that you cannot save electricity.
The secret remains the same: change your electricity company whenever you find one offering a cheaper rate than the one on your bill.
Pay more than 0.16 EUR
When you receive your January bill, don't be surprised if it's about 20% higher. It will be normal. But then, look closely at the value that appears on the kWh line. If the price is higher than 16 cents, you are clearly paying more than you can afford. But always remember that every case is different. It depends on whether you consume a little or a lot.
In most cases, within 10 minutes, during your lunch break, you can change electricity companies over the phone or online. Just have an invoice in hand.
Inquiry from Deco He revealed that 80% of electricity subscribers last year did not change the electricity company, despite the significant savings they achieved. But the question is: switch to which one? This is the big question asked by thousands of Portuguese. The simplest way to find out is to use online simulators.
You can do this on the ERSE electricity simulator, which has all the definitions for all companies. There are more than 300. You should understand that the same company has expensive and cheap tariffs. Just because you're in a company doesn't mean you pay the same amount as someone else who is also a customer. You should always be on top of your electricity bill. Always check prices directly with the company before switching. Simulators sometimes fail.
At the moment, the cheapest tariffs are indexed, but it is not for everyone. Prices vary each month depending on the price of electricity abroad. You have to be careful to exit this tariff once prices rise. You can have very large savings, but the risk of rapid increases is also greater.