Next Business Energy electricity plans and review

Our verdict: Next Business Energy has a responsive support team and plans that could suit your business, no matter its size.

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Next Business Energy

Pros

  • 100% Australian customer support
  • $50 referral bonus
  • NextConnect system offers 24/7 energy monitoring across all your devices

Cons

  • Slightly below-average solar tariffs in some states

Next Business Energy review: Our verdict

Next Business does a couple of things to stand out from other business plans.

The main draw is the NextConnect system that offers 24/7 energy monitoring. It lets you access a personal energy management dashboard on all your devices. This dashboard lets you:

  • See your daily and weekly power usage in charts and graphs.
  • Set an energy budget and track your actual usage.
  • Get mobile energy alerts.
  • Enable bill smoothing where you can split your bill into 12 equal monthly instalments.

That said, most business providers have a similar system available for customers.

Other benefits of Next Business Energy include the following:

  • 100% local Australian customer support available during business hours.
  • $50 referral bonus for you and another business you refer when they sign up to Next Business.
  • Fast customer support response when you call.
  • Supports multi-site and single-location billing.

What's the catch?

  • Medium and large businesses (over 40MWh consumption in Victoria or 100MWh in other states) may face an exit fee when cancelling their energy plan.

Next Business Energy offers

Next Business Energy logo

$50 referral bonus

If you refer a colleague or other business and they sign up to Next Business Energy directly, you'll both receive a $50 credit on your account.

Where is Next Business Energy available?

Next Business Energy sells electricity plans to small, medium and large businesses in QLD, VIC, SA, NSW and the ACT.

Click on your state below to get started. Please note that rates and other details were last checked 3 June 2022.

Energy plans and annual cost estimates by state

electricity icon

Electricity plans

PlansDifference from reference priceRatesAnnual bill estimate
Business Single Rate - Assured30%Variable$

Estimated cost including GST for an average household using 3,900 kWh yearly on a flat rate tariff in the Ausgrid network.

PlansDifference from reference priceRatesAnnual bill estimate
Business Single Rate - Assured3%Variable$

Estimated cost including GST for a household using 4,000 kWh yearly on a flat rate tariff in the Citipower network.

PlansDifference from reference priceRatesAnnual bill estimate
Business Single Rate - Assured1%Variable$

Estimated cost including GST for a household using 4,600 kWh yearly on a flat rate tariff in the ENERGEX Ltd network.

PlansDifference from reference priceRatesAnnual bill estimate
Business Single Rate - Assured1%Variable$

Estimated cost including GST for an average household using 4,000 kWh yearly on a flat rate tariff in the SA Power Networks - NSP network.

PlansDifference from reference priceRatesAnnual bill estimate
Business Single Rate - AssuredVariable$

Estimated cost including GST for a household using 4,600 kWh yearly on a flat rate tariff in the ActewAGL network.

solar energy icon

Solar Energy

Does Next Business Energy offer solar plans?

Yes, Next Business Energy offers a feed-in tariff to any businesses that already have solar panels installed.

However, it doesn't help with the installation process for new solar panels.

How good is the feed-in tariff?

Next Business offers a flat 7c/kWh across the states (except SA, where it doesn't publish its feed-in tariff).

This is slightly above the 6.7c/kWh average in VIC, but about 0.5–1c/kWh lower than average in QLD, NSW and the ACT. It's decent but nothing special.

Here's a state-by-state breakdown.

Name Product AUFEG-CDR Solar feed-in tariff
QLD
3.3 cents per kWh
VIC
3.3 cents per kWh
NSW
3.3 cents per kWh
SA
3.3 cents per kWh
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green energy icon

Green Energy

How green is Next Business Energy?

Next Business Energy is certified for GreenPower, a government-backed program where customers can pay extra to support Australian renewables.

It also owns Next Generation & Renewables, which aims to partner with major solar projects along the Eastern Seaboard. It's not clear how large this partnership is at present.

If you want a portion, or all, of your energy to be GreenPower, you'll be charged an extra 4.95c/kWh. To give you an idea how that could affect your bill, it may cost you an extra:

  • $6.19 per quarter: 10% GreenPower
  • $30.94 per quarter: 50% GreenPower
  • $50.74 per quarter: 82% GreenPower
  • $61.88 per quarter: 100% GreenPower

Note: 5,000 kWh was used as an average annual power consumption figure based on data from the 2020 Residential energy consumption benchmarks report for the AER. Power consumption varies by state and household size.

user

User reviews and customer service

Next Business Energy user review and customer service

Next Business Energy scored extremely well on customer service, with short wait times and below-average complaints.

Data is provided by the AER's Annual retail markets report 2020–2021, which contains information on the call centres of many energy providers.

Next Business EnergyMarket AverageMajor provider average
Average call wait time15 seconds58 seconds116 seconds
Calls abandoned before being answered1%7%7%
Complaints (% of total customers)1%3%1.5%

How can I get in touch with Next Business Energy?

Have a problem or question you need to sort out? Next Business Energy's support team is available from 9am to 5pm (AEST), Monday to Friday. You can:

    • Ring up the call centre.
    • Drop a message on the Next Business Energy Facebook social media page.
    • Send an email if you don't mind a slightly slower response.

All of Next Business' customer support representatives are based in Australia.

Looking to switch to Next Business Energy?

If you're looking to switch to an energy plan from Next Business Energy, you'll have to head to the Next Business website and fill out the sign-up form there. Next Business will call you back and get you sorted with an energy plan.

  • Once your plan has been approved, Next Business should take over from your previous provider within 2 business days.

For more details, take a look at our guide on switching energy plans.

Important notes: The estimated prices on this page default to single rate tariffs. On your power bill this could be written as a "peak tariff", "peak only", or "anytime tariff". Other tariffs are available, so you may need to check with your provider if you have any of these tariffs:

  • Single rate with a controlled load
  • Time of use
  • Time of use with a controlled load

The price estimate should not be used as official quotes, they're an indication of what your costs might be on a given plan. These quotes vary based on whether you provide us with bill details and you can learn more here.

Learn more about energy

Our energy guides can help you compare and understand what plan is best for you.

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To make sure you get accurate and helpful information, this guide has been edited by Joselle Delos Reyes as part of our fact-checking process.
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Written by

Writer

Sam Baran is a writer for Finder, covering topics across the tech, telco and utilities sectors. They enjoy decrypting technical jargon and helping people compare complex products easily. When they aren't writing, you'll find Sam's head buried in a book or working on their latest short story. Sam has a Bachelor of Advanced Science from the University of Sydney. See full bio

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