P1 · Peak
The dearest band
10 am to 2 pm and 6 pm to 10 pm, Monday to Friday.
Spanish lunchtime and dinnertime: the oven at 1 pm or the hob at 8 pm draw power in the dearest band of the day.
Understand your electricity bill
Five lines on a Spanish electricity bill really matter: power, energy, regulated tolls, taxes and the meter rental. Only one of them is truly up to you. Here is each one explained with a direct answer, in plain language.
Reviewed by the Captia engineering team. Last reviewed: .
The power term: what you pay even with everything switched off
The power term is the fixed part of the bill: you pay for every kilowatt you have contracted, every day of the year, whether you use electricity or not. Think of it as renting your connection: the capacity the grid reserves for you so you can run the oven, the air conditioning and the washing machine at the same time without tripping anything.
On the standard household tariff, the 2.0TD, you can contract two different power levels: one for peak and mid hours and a cheaper one for off-peak hours. Many households pay the same figure for both without ever having checked it, because nobody asked when the contract was set up.
How do you know if you have too much power? Your digital meter records the maximum power you have actually demanded each month. You can look that figure up on your distributor’s customer portal, or bring us the bill and we will go through it with you. The rule is simple: if your yearly maximum sits well below what you have contracted, you are paying every day for capacity you never use. Another homely clue: if the power has never cut out when running several appliances at once, you probably have margin to spare.
Lowering your contracted power is requested through your supplier, and the saving repeats month after month, for good. Relative to the effort involved, it is the most profitable adjustment on the whole bill.
The energy term: what you pay for what you use
The energy term is the variable part: the kilowatt hours you have used, multiplied by the price of each hour or by the fixed price in your contract. It is the line that climbs in summer with the air conditioning and in winter with the heating.
There are two ways to pay it. On an indexed price, every hour has its own market price: cheap in the small hours and at midday, dear as the sun goes down. On a fixed price, your supplier averages all of that into a single price around the clock: more predictable, but you pay for the peace of mind.
This is the part of the bill that matters, for one reason: it is the only one you can genuinely act on. Contracted power is adjusted once, tolls are set by the regulator and taxes are not optional. Your consumption, on the other hand, can be moved to different hours and can be covered with production from your own roof.
Tolls and charges: around 40% of the bill
Tolls and charges are the regulated part of the bill: they pay for the networks that bring electricity to your house and for the general costs of the power system. Around 40% of what you pay goes there. Your supplier does not decide them and they are not negotiable: the regulator sets them and they are the same for everyone.
They are spread across the power term and the energy term, which is why they do not always appear as a separate line. Their existence explains something important: however aggressive a company’s offer, a large slice of the bill will not come down by switching supplier. It comes down by drawing less from the grid, or by drawing when tolls are cheapest.
P1, P2 and P3: the three time bands of the 2.0TD tariff
The 2.0TD tariff splits the day into three periods with different tolls: peak (P1), mid (P2) and off-peak (P3). Knowing which band each appliance falls into is the cheapest way to trim the bill, because it costs no money: it costs planning.
P2 · Mid
In-between price
8 to 10 am, 2 to 6 pm and 10 pm to midnight, Monday to Friday.
The washing machine at 3 pm or the water heater at 11 pm land in the mid band: neither the best nor the worst.
P3 · Off-peak
The cheapest band
Midnight to 8 am on weekdays, and all day on Saturdays, Sundays and Spanish national holidays.
The dishwasher programmed for 2 am, the Saturday morning wash or charging the car overnight pay the lowest tolls.
One caveat: these bands belong to the tolls. If your contract has a single fixed price around the clock, your supplier has already averaged them into that price and shifting usage matters less. If you have solar panels, midday becomes your best band even though it is peak: you are not buying that energy, you are producing it.
The taxes: VAT at 21% and the 5.11% electricity tax
Since 1 June 2026 electricity in Spain once again carries VAT at 21%. It is not a new tax or a fresh rise: it is the end of the temporary reduction that had kept it at 10% since March 2026. When the reduction lapsed, the standard rate applied again.
On top of VAT, the bill carries the Special Electricity Tax, at 5.11%, applied before VAT on power and energy. In other words: you pay one tax and then another tax on the result.
Between the two, a visible share of the bill is taxes that neither you nor your supplier can do anything about. The only way to pay less of them is a smaller base: fewer kilowatt hours bought from the grid.
The meter rental: the small line at the bottom
The meter that measures your consumption is usually not yours: it belongs to the distribution company, and you pay a small regulated rent for it each month. It appears as a separate line at the end of the bill and is the same with any supplier.
It is not a rip-off or a hidden extra: in return, replacing and maintaining the equipment is the distributor’s responsibility. The rules allow you to buy your own meter, but with today’s smart meters it rarely pays: you would have to buy it, have it verified and renew it yourself. It is the line on the bill least worth your worry.
The 3 things you can do tomorrow
All of the above boils down to three concrete moves, ordered from smallest to largest effect. The first two cost no money. The third is the one that truly changes the bill.
1
Check your contracted power
Compare the maximum power your meter records with what you have contracted. If your yearly maximum sits well below it, ask your supplier to lower it. A fixed saving, every month, for good.
2
Shift usage to off-peak
Washing machine, dishwasher, water heater and car charging can all be programmed: overnight on weekdays or any time at the weekend. Every use you move out of peak and into off-peak pays the lowest tolls.
3
Find out whether your roof could produce
Every kilowatt hour your panels produce is one you do not buy from the grid, tolls and taxes included. And what you do not use is credited on your bill. Start with a proper solar panel study for your home, based on your roof and your hour-by-hour consumption.
If you take step three, you will also want to see what each supplier pays for your surplus energy and the tax deductions in force in 2026.
Common questions about the bill
Why am I paying for electricity in a month when I hardly used any?
Because of the power term and the meter rental, which are fixed: they are charged every day, whether you consume or not. If it happens often, check whether you have more contracted power than you need.
How do I know if I have too much contracted power?
Your meter records the maximum power you have actually demanded. You can check it on your distributor's customer portal, or bring us the bill and we will look at it with you. If your yearly maximum sits well below what you have contracted, you are paying for reserve capacity you never use.
Did VAT on electricity go up in 2026?
It is not a new rise. VAT had been temporarily reduced to 10% and on 1 June 2026 that reduction lapsed, so electricity returned to 21%, its usual standard rate.
What are the cheap electricity hours in Spain?
On the 2.0TD tariff, the off-peak period (P3): midnight to 8 am on weekdays, and all day at weekends and on national holidays. If you have solar panels, solar midday also works in your favour.
Can I lower the tolls by switching company?
No. Tolls and charges are set by the regulator and are identical with every supplier. By switching company you only change the energy price and the terms of the contract.
Can I stop paying the meter rental?
Only by buying your own meter, which the rules allow but which rarely pays today: you would take on buying it, having it verified and replacing it yourself. The rental is a small regulated amount, not an extra added by your supplier.
Want to know how much of your bill you could shed?
Bring us a recent bill. We will go through it calmly, tell you which part can be reduced in your specific case and, if it makes sense, prepare a study based on your roof and your consumption. No obligation and no salesman knocking on your door.
A Captia Technology company. Qualified, chartered engineers.