How to find the best energy provider in the Netherlands
As an expat or temporary resident in the Netherlands, you’ll often need to arrange your own energy contract. But where do you start, and which provider fits your situation best? This article helps you quickly find the right energy deal for your new home.
In short: this is how to find the best Dutch energy provider for your situation
First: decide which type of contract you want. A fixed tariffs-contract for 1 year is usually the best option.
Second: decide what kind of energy supplier is important to you: a well known and big brand, the cheapest one or a provider with good English customer support?
The biggest and most reliable energy suppliers in the Netherlands at this moment are:
These also have an English customer support.
Generally the cheapest energy providers for most households at this moment are:
Not all of them have an English customer support.
Third: compare tariffs between energy providers with our energy comparison-tool. By comparing energy contracts you know which supplier is cheapest based on their tariffs, taxes and discounts, and which provider has the best terms and conditions. You can turn on Google Translate if this makes comparing easier for you.
What you should know about Dutch energy contracts
- You’ll need an energy contract in your own name, they are person-bound unless your landlord takes care of the energy bill (with an all-in rent structure). Make sure you check this with your landlord.
- Most houses in the Netherlands have both an electricity and gas connection. Modern houses only have an electricity connection.
- If you have a gas connection it's best to sign up for a combined contract (electricity + gas). This is the most convenient and often cheapest option.
Types of energy contracts in the Netherlands
In the Netherlands you can choose from 3 types of energy contracts:
- Fixed price energy contract - same tariffs during your contract term
- Short-term energy contract - tariffs change every month, quarter year or half a year, depending on your provider
- Dynamic price energy contract - tariffs change daily (every 15 minutes for electricity)
With all contracts you pay for energy consumption, grid management costs, administration fees and taxes. All these tariffs and prices are included in the total costs as they will be shown on the energy suppliers website or in our energy comparison-tool.
All three types of energy contracts have pros and cons that you should know about. We’ll explain them in short.
Fixed price energy contract (vast)
Pros
- Certainty about your contract tariffs for 1 to 3 years
- Most often the cheapest contract because of newcomer discounts
Cons
- When energy market prices change during your contract term, your contract might not longer be the cheapest for you
- You can’t switch to another energy contract before the enddate of your contract without paying a high cancellation fee
Short-term energy contract (variabel)
Pros
- You can cancel your energy provider after 1 month (or switch to another), without having to worry about a cancellation fee
- When the energy market prices go down, you profit from lower tariffs immediately
Cons
- Less price certainty about your contract, mostly for one to three months
- When energy market prices go up, you will pay higher contract tariffs immediately
- Only sometimes discounts
Dynamic price energy contract (dynamisch)
Pros
- Cheap cost price (energy market) tariffs
- Can be a good choice when you work from home a lot and use a lot of energy during the day
- Can be the cheapest contract if you control your energy consumption on an hourly basis (via app)
- Can be cancelled daily after 1 month
Cons
- Least certainty about your tariffs, they change every day
- Not the best choice with solar panels, because of possible negative feed-in fees
- No discounts for new customers
- Can be very expensive during the winter months when energy market prices go up
While you're choosing an energy contract type, we suggest you also take into account the length of your stay. Are you staying shortly in the Netherlands, or for an indefinite period?
Will you stay in the Netherlands for less than a year?
Then it’s best to choose a short-term energy contract or dynamic prices. The tariffs and discounts are usually not as good as with a fixed contract, but these contracts have the benefit of early termination without a cancellation fee (overstapboete).
Staying at least a year: choose fixed tariffs
Will you live in the Netherlands for at least one year or longer? Choose a fixed price energy contract for 1 year. This has many benefits:
- You know exactly what tariffs you will pay
- Research has shown this contract type is the cheapest
- New customers can get a welcome discount up to more then € 300,- right now
- After 1 year you can cancel your contract and switch if necessary
About Dutch energy suppliers
Now that you know about the kinds of energy contracts which to choose from in what situation, let’s talk in short about the energy suppliers themselves.
- The Dutch energy market has been fully privatized since 2004, resulting in over 50 household energy suppliers.
- All suppliers are regulated, which ensures fair pricing and business practices.
- Some suppliers operate locally with a few thousand customers, while most suppliers serve the entire country.
- The larger nationwide well-known suppliers each have at least 10,000 customers up to 1 million or more. They are generally more reliable.
Which energy suppliers are worth checking out?
Biggest energy suppliers in the Netherlands
Most households in the Netherlands - nearly 8 million - have a fixed price - or short-term energy contract with one of the following biggest energy suppliers:
- Vattenfall - 2 million customers
- Eneco - 2 million customers
- Essent - 2.5 million customers
- Budget Energie - 1 million customers
These biggest energy suppliers have a trackrecord of many years in the business and are financially stable. Not a bad decision to choose one of these big suppliers. Do know that very often these big suppliers don't have the cheapest energy contracts in comparison.
Biggest dynamic energy providers in the Netherlands:
Cheapest energy providers in the Netherlands
Are you looking for generally the cheapest Dutch energy providers with a fixed price contract? The following energy suplliers are the cheapest for most households at this moment. We’ve tested this for different household sizes.
Do know that the cheapest energy provider depends on many factors and changes over time. Therefore it's best to verify if one of these three providers is also the cheapest for your situation with our energy comparison page.
Dutch energy providers with an English (online) customer service
Is it really important to you that the energy provider communicates in English with you? Luckily many Dutch energy providers have an English speaking customer support, or translate the chat conversation for you in English.
We know the following energy providers have an English (chat) support.
Dutch energy providers with an English customer webpage:
Two energie suppliers in particular also have an English customer webpage to help you with an energy contract.
Signing-up with a Dutch energy provider without a Dutch IBAN
Now that you know which Dutch energy providers you can chose from, we also want to make clear that some of them make it easier for you to sign-up than others.
Unfortunately, even though this is not according to regulation, some energy providers allow customers to sign-up only with a Dutch IBAN.
You could argue about this with your energy provider, if this is the case for you. Or you could directly sign-up with one of the following energy providers where you don't need a Dutch IBAN right away:
Need help with signing-up? In this blog we we'll explain to you how to sign up with a Dutch energy provider.
Need an internet provider as well? Make sure you check our advice on the best internet provider in the Netherlands too. We sorted them out for you.
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