3 June 2026 · 4 min read
Dynamic energy contract: how it works and who it suits
By Stefan Douw · Maker of Stekkerkompas
On a dynamic contract your electricity price changes every hour and your gas price every day. The price comes from the energy exchange where suppliers buy power. On a sunny afternoon a kWh can cost a few cents, in the evening peak three times as much. You need a smart meter, which most households already have.
Who it pays off for
It pays off if you can shift your use to the cheap hours. With an electric car, a heat pump, a home battery or appliances you can time, you catch the low prices. With solar and a battery you get the most out of it: store when it is cheap, use when it is expensive.
When a fixed contract fits better
If you mostly use power at the fixed morning and evening peaks and cannot or will not change that, dynamic is often more expensive for you. If you mainly want calm and a predictable bill, a fixed contract fits better. The downside of dynamic is uncertainty: you do not know in advance what you will pay over a year.
Watch the feed-in side too
Most dynamic contracts charge no separate feed-in cost, which makes them attractive if you have solar. Run your own situation in the calculator and switch on a battery to see what dynamic then adds.
A dynamic day, hour by hour
Example day. Real prices vary daily, but the pattern repeats.
Cheap: night and midday sun
Expensive: morning and evening peak
The more of your use you can move from the peaks to the cheap hours, the more a dynamic contract saves. A battery, EV or timed appliances do the shifting.
Run the numbers for your home
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