For UK homes with a battery and an Octopus smart tariff
Charge your home battery when electricity is cheapest
ShiftCharge checks tomorrow's Octopus prices and your solar forecast every day. It then tells your battery when to charge and when to power the house. Set it up once and stop changing charge times by hand.
30-day money-back guarantee. If it doesn't pay for itself, you get a full refund.30 days free while we're in beta, with no card needed. Setup takes about 10 minutes.
30 days free during the beta, then £4.99 a month or £49 a year if you choose to subscribe.
No payment is taken automatically when your free time ends. Battery automation stops unless you subscribe. Paid plans renew until cancelled; cancel any time. Your first payment is covered by our 30-day money-back guarantee.
Octopus Agile prices, Tuesday 27 October 2026
Each bar is one half-hour price, in pence per kWh
Swipe the chart to see the evening peak →
Works withGrowattGivEnergySolisFox ESSSolaXon Octopus Agile, Go, Flux and moreplus grid events from Axle Energy and Octopus Saving Sessions
How it works
What happens each day
Once you're set up, this runs every day by itself. You can open the app to see the plan, but you don't need to.
- Around 16:00
Tomorrow's prices arrive
Octopus publishes the next day's Agile prices in the afternoon. ShiftCharge picks them up straight away.
- Evening
The plan is made
It weighs up the prices, the weather forecast for your panels and how much power your home usually uses, then sends the times to your battery.
- Overnight
The battery charges
It fills up in the cheapest hours. If tomorrow looks sunny, it leaves room for your panels to top it up for free.
- Daytime
Solar does its part
Your panels run the house and fill the battery. Spare power goes to the grid if you're paid for export.
- Evening peak
The battery takes over
When prices are highest, your home runs from the battery instead of buying from the grid.
Getting started
Set up in about ten minutes
You need your battery app login and your Octopus account. No wiring and no extra hardware.
Connect your battery
Connect the account you use for your Growatt, GivEnergy, Solis, Fox ESS or SolaX app. Your details are stored encrypted.
Add your Octopus tariff
ShiftCharge reads your tariff and keeps its prices up to date every day.
Check tonight's plan
You'll see when the battery will charge and why. If it looks right, leave it to run.
What you get
Cheaper evenings, and nothing new to manage
What it saves depends on your home
That was the gap on the day in the chart above. Every unit your battery moves from the night into the evening avoids most of it. A bigger battery, more solar or a wider price gap all add to the saving.
You can take over at any time
Pause ShiftCharge and your battery stops getting new instructions. Your normal inverter app keeps working throughout, so you can change things there whenever you like.
If something looks wrong with a plan, you'll see it in the app before it runs.
Our guarantee
If it doesn't pay for itself, you get your money back
ShiftCharge should save you more than it costs. If it doesn't, ask for a refund within 30 days of your first payment and we'll give you every penny back. No questions asked, and no forms to fill in.
- 30 days free during the beta. Every new account gets a month of full access.
- No card needed to start your free month.
- A full refund within 30 days of your first payment, if you're not happy.
Compatibility
Works with Growatt, GivEnergy, Solis, Fox ESS and SolaX batteries
We add new batteries once we can test them properly with beta users. If yours isn't listed, tell us in the community forum and we'll let you know when it's ready.
| Growatt | Supported |
| GivEnergy | Beta |
| Solis | Beta |
| Fox ESS | Beta |
| SolaX | Beta |
| Sunsynk | Coming next |
| Axle Energy | Supported |
| Octopus Saving Sessions | Supported |
| Agile | Supported |
| Go and Intelligent Go | Supported |
| Flux | Supported |
| Intelligent Flux | Not compatible |
| Cosy, Snug and Tracker | Supported |
| Flexible and fixed | Supported |
| Outgoing and Flux export | Supported |
| Economy 7 and other suppliers | Enter your rate |
Intelligent Flux: Octopus controls your battery
Use ShiftCharge with plain Flux, rather than alongside Intelligent Flux or another service controlling the same battery. On Intelligent Go, ShiftCharge plans around the regular overnight rates, not extra car-charging slots. If a supplier add-on controls your battery, choose one controller. Compare the Flux options.
Guides
Getting more from a battery on a smart tariff
Plain answers to the questions people ask before and after they buy a battery.
- Octopus Agile and your home batteryA practical strategy
- Should I charge my home battery overnight?When it pays and when it doesn't
- Solar export tariff vs self-consumptionWhich wins for battery owners?
- Octopus Agile vs Cosy vs GoWhich tariff suits a battery owner?
- Solis vs GivEnergyWhich UK home battery for Octopus Agile?
- GivEnergy vs GrowattWhich UK home battery for Octopus Agile?
- Intelligent Octopus Flux alternativeRun Flux your way
- Battery timer vs smart schedulingIs a fixed timer enough?
- Intelligent Octopus Go with a home batteryWhat to know
- Predbat alternativeHosted and self-hosted options
- Octopus Flux vs AgileWhich is better with a battery?
- Axle Energy alternative or add-on? Events vs daily plans
- Why ShiftCharge has no home battery app (on purpose)
- Machine learning home battery planning, tuned per home
Who's behind ShiftCharge
Hi, I'm Jamie. I'm building ShiftCharge in Portsmouth. Smart tariffs make home batteries good value, but they also mean checking prices every afternoon and changing charge times in an app. ShiftCharge does that bit for you.
Beta testers shape what gets built next. If something doesn't suit your setup, tell us in the community forum.
Questions
Common questions
- Can I choose a one-off battery action?
- Yes. On Plan, choose Charge from grid, Discharge to grid or Hold battery for a time today or tomorrow, where your inverter supports it. You can save tomorrow’s request before prices arrive. ShiftCharge plans around your action and resumes automatically afterwards. Battery limits still apply, and a disconnected inverter may not carry out the request.
- Does ShiftCharge work with Octopus Agile?
- Yes. Agile was the first tariff we supported. ShiftCharge reads prices for every Octopus smart-meter tariff, including Go, Intelligent Octopus Go, Flux, Cosy, Tracker, Flexible and fixed, plus Outgoing and Flux export tariffs. On Economy 7 or another supplier, you can enter your rate by hand, though a single all-day price leaves less to save.
- Which home batteries does it work with?
- Growatt is fully supported. GivEnergy, Solis, Fox ESS and SolaX are in open beta. Sunsynk is next.
- Does ShiftCharge work with Axle Energy?
- Yes. Link your Axle account and eligible grid events go into your plan: ShiftCharge fills the battery beforehand when that pays, then exports during the event. Turning battery export off in Settings also prevents export grid events. Axle pays you directly, as usual.
- Does ShiftCharge work with Octopus Saving Sessions?
- Yes. Turn on Saving Sessions in Settings, using the Octopus key you already gave us for your tariff. The plan saves battery for Power Downs when that pays, and charges from the grid during Power Ups and Weekend Happy Hours you’ve booked, when import is free. It can join Power Downs and Power Ups for you if you tick the box, but never books Happy Hours. Octopus pays your Octopoints as usual.
- Will it charge from the grid when tomorrow is sunny?
- It checks the solar forecast first. On a sunny day it charges less overnight so your panels can fill the battery for free.
- Can I still use my inverter app?
- Yes. Your app keeps working as normal. You can also pause ShiftCharge at any time.
- Will it tell me if my inverter has a fault?
- Yes, for Growatt, Fox ESS, Solis and SolaX inverters, and GivEnergy inverters on a GivEnergy Premium account. ShiftCharge checks for inverter alarms regularly. If your inverter reports a problem, Home tells you in plain words what it means for your battery, and Settings lists the code to give your installer.
- Do I need an export tariff?
- No. If you're paid for export, ShiftCharge looks for worthwhile times to sell battery energy. An automatic Discharge to grid window must offer at least 50p of expected benefit after battery wear; tiny forecast savings leave your battery alone. Prefer to keep battery energy for your home? Turn off Allow battery export to grid in Settings → Battery preferences. This also prevents export grid events and force-discharge price rules; Self-consumption and surplus solar export continue normally. If you aren't paid for export, it focuses on cutting what you buy.
- How much will I save?
- It depends on your battery size, your tariff, your solar and how much power you use. A bigger battery, more solar or a wider gap between cheap and peak prices all add to the saving.
- How much does it cost?
- Every new account gets 30 days free during the beta, with no card needed. Then it is £4.99 a month or £49 a year if you choose to subscribe. No payment is taken automatically when the free time ends; battery automation stops unless you subscribe. Paid plans renew until cancelled, with a 30-day money-back guarantee from your first payment.
- Is there a money-back guarantee?
- Yes. Ask within 30 days of your first payment and we'll refund you in full, with no questions asked.
Stop changing charge times by hand
Connect your battery and Octopus account, and tonight's plan will be ready in about ten minutes. You get 30 days free during the beta, and every paid plan comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.