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What UK businesses pay for and use in energy, from official figures. Free to use with credit.

Britain's smallest businesses are paying a record price for electricity, higher than at the height of the energy crisis

8 October 2026

Firms using the least power paid an average of 38.36p per kWh in Q2 2026, the highest since records began in 2004, while larger businesses still pay well below their crisis peaks.

Nine in 10 hospitality businesses are worried about energy prices

8 October 2026

90.4% of pubs, restaurants, cafes and hotels told the ONS they were concerned about energy prices between 7 and 20 September 2026, against 64.1% of all businesses.

Slough leads Britain's biggest rises in business electricity use, as data centres grow

8 October 2026

Business electricity use in Slough rose 120% between 2012 and 2024, the largest rise of any council area using at least 200 GWh, while Great Britain as a whole used 16.1% less.

Where business electricity use has fallen most: King's Lynn and West Norfolk tops the list

8 October 2026

Business electricity use in King's Lynn and West Norfolk fell 48% between 2012 and 2024, the biggest fall of any council area using at least 100 GWh.

727,416 business energy meters are still not smart

8 October 2026

Large suppliers were running 727,416 non-smart business gas and electricity meters in Q2 2026, about 35% of the 2,076,372 they operate.

Wholesale electricity was about a quarter of what small businesses paid

8 October 2026

Wholesale electricity averaged 9.46p per kWh from April to June 2026, while the smallest businesses paid an average of 38.36p.