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.Free while we're in beta, with no card needed. Setup takes about 10 minutes.
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 withGrowattGivEnergySolison Octopus Agile, Go, Flux and moreplus Axle Energy grid events
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
Sign in with the account you use for your Growatt, GivEnergy or Solis 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.
- Free during the beta. You don't need a card to start.
- Three months free for beta users once paid plans begin.
- A full refund within 30 days of your first payment, if you're not happy.
Compatibility
Works with Growatt, GivEnergy and Solis 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 |
| Sunsynk | Coming next |
| Axle Energy | Supported |
| Agile | Supported |
| Go and Intelligent Go | Supported |
| Flux and Intelligent Flux | Supported |
| Cosy, Snug and Tracker | Supported |
| Flexible and fixed | Supported |
| Outgoing and Flux export | Supported |
| Economy 7 and other suppliers | Enter your rate |
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 alternativeBattery planning without Home Assistant
- Octopus Flux vs AgileWhich is better with a battery?
- Axle Energy alternative or add-on? Events vs daily plans
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
- 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 and Solis are in open beta. Sunsynk is next.
- Does ShiftCharge work with Axle Energy?
- Yes. Link your Axle account and every Axle grid event goes into your plan: ShiftCharge fills the battery beforehand when that pays, then exports during the event. Axle pays you directly, 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.
- Do I need an export tariff?
- No. If you're paid for export, ShiftCharge will sell power at good times. If you aren't, 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?
- It's free during the beta. Beta users get three months free once paid plans start. After that you're covered by our 30-day money-back guarantee: if it isn't paying for itself, we'll refund you in full.
- 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. It's free during the beta, and every paid plan comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.