How to compare electricity tariffs in Spain
Spanish electricity bills are notoriously hard to read, and choosing a tariff is harder still: hourly prices, three time bands, two contracted-power values and dozens of retailers. This guide explains how the market works, how to read an offer, and how to compare tariffs against your real consumption — with a worked example.
How the Spanish market is organised
If you have just arrived in Spain, the first thing to understand is that the company that delivers your electricity is not the company you choose. The distributor (distribuidora) owns the cables and meters in your area and cannot be changed. The retailer (comercializadora) is who bills you — and that one you can switch freely, usually online, with no supply interruption and no need to touch the wiring. Your supply point is identified by a code called CUPS, printed on any bill; you will need it for every switch.
Regulated (PVPC) vs. free market
Every household chooses between two worlds:
- PVPC, the regulated tariff: the energy price changes every hour following the wholesale market. Some hours can be extremely cheap (even near zero on windy, sunny days) and others expensive. It is only available from a handful of "reference retailers", has no permanence clauses, and is required if you want the bono social discount for eligible low-income households.
- Free-market tariffs: a price agreed with the retailer — either a single flat €/kWh price, or one price per time band. You gain predictability, but check the contract for lock-in periods, promotional prices that expire after 12 months, and paid "extras" like maintenance services quietly added to the bill.
Neither is universally cheaper: PVPC rewards households that can shift consumption to cheap hours; flat tariffs suit those who cannot or do not want to think about it.
The two halves of every bill
Any Spanish tariff has two main components, and you must compare both:
- Power charge (término de potencia): a fixed cost in €/kW per day, paid even with zero consumption, for each of two periods — P1 (weekdays 8:00–24:00) and P2 (nights, weekends and holidays). Most households contract the same value for both, typically between 3.45 and 5.75 kW.
- Energy charge (término de energía): the €/kWh price for what you actually consume, usually split into three time bands.
- On top of both come the electricity tax and VAT, plus the meter rental — identical across retailers, so they do not affect the comparison.
The P1, P2 and P3 time bands
| Band | Hours (weekdays) | Price level |
|---|---|---|
| P1 Peak (punta) | 10–14 h and 18–22 h | Most expensive |
| P2 Mid (llano) | 8–10, 14–18 and 22–24 h | Medium |
| P3 Off-peak (valle) | 0–8 h, plus all weekend and holidays | Cheapest |
Note the detail many people miss: the entire weekend and national holidays are off-peak, all day. Running the washing machine on Saturday afternoon costs the same as at 3 a.m. on a Tuesday.
Worked example: flat price vs. time-of-use
A household with 3.45 kW contracted and 250 kWh/month, split 50 kWh in P1, 75 kWh in P2 and 125 kWh in P3 (a realistic pattern for someone who shifts appliances to nights and weekends), compares two illustrative offers over a 30-day month:
- Tariff A (flat): 0.11 €/kW/day power + 0.15 €/kWh flat → 3.45 × 0.11 × 30 + 250 × 0.15 = 11.39 + 37.50 = €48.89
- Tariff B (time-of-use): 0.10 €/kW/day power + 0.20/0.14/0.08 €/kWh → 10.35 + (50 × 0.20 + 75 × 0.14 + 125 × 0.08) = 10.35 + 30.50 = €40.85
Tariff B wins by about €8 a month — nearly €100 a year — but only because half the consumption sits in the cheap band. Shift that same household's usage into peak hours and Tariff A wins. This is why comparing with your own month-by-month consumption, not the retailer's advertised example, is the only comparison that counts.
Where to find your real consumption
Your bill shows the monthly kWh split by band, and the distributor's website (or app) lets you download hourly data from your smart meter for the whole past year — every home in Spain has one. Registering takes five minutes with your CUPS and your NIE. With twelve months of real data you can evaluate any offer to the euro instead of guessing.
Five ways to cut the bill
- Shift consumption to P3: washing machine, dishwasher, water heating and EV charging at night or on weekends. In the example above, that habit was worth €100/year by itself.
- Right-size your contracted power: each kW you contract costs a fixed amount every day of the year. If your circuit breaker never trips, try lowering it — reductions are cheap to request and reversible.
- Re-compare once a year: promotional prices expire and the market moves. Loyalty is expensive.
- Check the renewal letter: retailers must notify price changes; that email in Spanish you almost deleted may be a 20 % increase.
- If you have solar panels, compare the surplus compensation (€/kWh for energy you export) as a separate line — offers differ widely and it can flip the ranking between two otherwise similar tariffs.
Frequently asked questions
Does switching retailer cut my power off?
No. The switch is purely administrative; the distributor and the physical supply do not change. There is no outage and no visit to your home.
Can I switch if I rent my flat?
Yes, as long as you pay the bill you can change retailer or adjust the contracted power. Putting the contract in your own name is also advisable — you will need utility bills as proof of address (empadronamiento, banks, visa renewals).
Is the cheapest advertised €/kWh always the best tariff?
No. A low energy price can hide a high power charge, an expiring promotion or paid extras. Always compute the full monthly bill for your consumption — both halves.
How do I actually run the comparison?
Take the power and energy prices from each offer (they are published on every retailer's website) and your real monthly kWh, and let the tool below compute the annual cost of each tariff side by side. If you are also budgeting a move, our guide to net salary in Spain helps put the utility bill in context of Spanish take-home pay.
Compare any tariffs from the market against your real month-by-month consumption, including solar surplus.
Tariff comparator →