Learn · 29 October 2026
Octopus Flux vs Agile: which is better with a battery?
Octopus Flux vs Agile for homes with solar and a battery: how the prices work, what each tariff rewards, and how to pick the one that fits your home.
Join the betaFlux and Agile are the two Octopus tariffs that most reward a home battery, but they reward different things. Flux pays well for exporting in a fixed evening peak. Agile changes price every half-hour and rewards a battery that can chase the cheapest hours.
This guide compares the two for a household with solar panels and a battery. If you are also weighing Go or Cosy, see our Agile vs Cosy vs Go comparison.
How Flux prices work
Flux has the same three bands every day: a cheap window from 2am to 5am, a peak from 4pm to 7pm, and a middle rate the rest of the time. Import and export prices follow the same bands, so the export rate is highest in exactly the hours you most want to sell.
The shape is predictable. You always know when the cheap and expensive hours are, which makes the plan easy to understand.
How Agile prices work
Agile prices change every half-hour and are published the afternoon before. Overnight and on windy days they can drop very low, sometimes below zero, so you are paid to use power. Late-afternoon peaks can be expensive.
Export on Agile is a separate choice: a fixed export tariff or Agile Outgoing, whose prices also move every half-hour.
What each one rewards
Flux rewards exporting. A home with a large solar array and a battery big enough to cover the evening and still sell in the peak gets the most from it.
Agile rewards flexibility. A battery that can charge in the very cheapest half-hours — and a home that can shift other loads — gets the most from it. The best Agile nights can be far cheaper than Flux’s cheap window; the worst peaks can be dearer than Flux’s.
Running a battery on each
On Flux, the plan is similar most days: charge in the early-morning window as far as the solar forecast allows, run the home through the day, and plan Discharge to grid in the 4pm to 7pm peak while keeping enough back for the evening.
On Agile, the plan has to change every day as the prices change. That is harder to do by hand, and where a daily planner earns most of its keep.
ShiftCharge reads both tariffs, including Flux and Agile Outgoing export prices, and plans the battery around whichever one you are on.
Which to pick
Pick Flux if you have plenty of solar, a battery that can cover your evening with room to spare, and you value a predictable daily pattern.
Pick Agile if your solar is modest, you can shift other loads such as a car or a heat pump into cheap hours, and you are happy to let a planner deal with prices that change every day.
If you are unsure, look at your own export and evening use over a few months. The better tariff is the one that suits that shape.
Common questions
- Can I be on Agile import and Flux export?
- No. Flux import and export come as a pair. On Agile you choose a separate export tariff, such as a fixed export rate or Agile Outgoing.
- Is Flux worth it without a battery?
- Usually not. Most of Flux’s value comes from storing cheap or solar power and selling it in the peak, which needs a battery.
- Does ShiftCharge support both tariffs?
- Yes. It reads Flux and Agile prices, plus Flux and Agile Outgoing export prices, and plans around whichever you are on.
Want this running in your home?
ShiftCharge is in private beta. Join the waitlist and we will reach out when there is a slot open for your hardware and tariff.
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