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10 min Reading time The days when you simply chose a supplier based on who sent the cheapest flyer through the mailbox are over. The energy market has become more mature — and more complex. In addition to fixed and variable contracts, there is now a third option: the dynamic energy contract, where you pay a different price every hour based on the current exchange price for electricity.
That sounds attractive. But whether it is also advantageous depends heavily on your situation. And particularly on one question: do you have a home battery, or not?
With a dynamic contract, you pay the current purchase price of electricity on the European energy exchange (EPEX Spot), which differs every hour. During the day, when the sun shines and a lot of energy is put on the grid, prices are often low — sometimes even negative. In the evening and early morning, when everyone is cooking, showering and running the washing machine, prices peak.
The problem: most households consume electricity at precisely the moments when it is most expensive. Without control, you automatically catch the peak hours. You then have access to cheap hours, but in practice you hardly benefit from it — unless you are willing to drastically adjust your behavior to the hourly schedule of the exchange.
Moreover, suppliers always charge a surcharge on top of the exchange price (more on this later). For an average household without special flexibility, a well-priced fixed or variable contract is therefore often more advantageous and more predictable.
For those who do have a home battery, the picture changes completely. A battery makes it possible to store electricity when it is cheap — and use it (or even deliver it back to the grid) when the price is high. That is exactly what a dynamic contract is built for.
With a well-configured system, you can have your battery automatically charge during the cheapest hours of the night or early morning, and use that electricity during the expensive peak moments. The difference between the lowest and highest hourly price on a regular day is regularly 10 to 20 cents per kWh — and in extreme cases much more. A 10 kWh battery that optimally responds to that difference daily can easily recoup the additional costs of the contract.
However, one crucial condition is required for this: smart control.
Connecting a home battery to a dynamic contract without an energy manager is like buying a car without a steering wheel. The hardware is there, but you have no control over when and how it is deployed.
An energy management system — such as the Sunny Home Manager from SMA — regulates this completely automatically. The system consults the current and expected electricity prices every hour, combines them with the weather forecast for your solar panels and your historical consumption pattern, and then smartly controls your battery, heat pump and any charging station.
Concretely, this means:
Without this control, you only partially capture the benefits of a dynamic contract — and you run the risk of drawing electricity at the wrong moments.
With a dynamic contract, you never pay only the bare exchange price. Energy suppliers always charge a surcharge to cover their costs and margin. That surcharge usually consists of two components: a markup per kWh and sometimes a fixed monthly subscription.
The table below provides an indicative overview of the most common structures among Dutch providers of dynamic contracts. Keep in mind that rates change regularly — always check the current conditions on the supplier's website.
Supplier | Markup per kWh (indicative) | Fixed subscription per month | Special features |
Tibber | € 0.00 markup on exchange price | ± € 12.95 | Subscription-only model; no kWh markup. App with extensive price chart and control. |
Frank Energie | ± € 0.005 – € 0.01 per kWh | ± € 3.– to € 5.– | Low fixed costs; transparent hourly prices via app. |
Vandebron | ± € 0.01 – € 0.02 per kWh | No separate subscription | Sustainable origin; dynamic tariff as supplement to existing offering. |
Eneco (Vrijstroom) | ± € 0.01 – € 0.02 per kWh | Depending on contract | Large established party; good customer service and app integration. |
Greenchoice | ± € 0.01 – € 0.02 per kWh | Depending on contract | 100% green electricity; dynamic tariff available for existing customers. |
In addition to the supplier surcharge, you also pay with each contract the energy tax, the ODE rate (surcharge sustainable energy) and the grid tariffs of your grid operator. Those costs are the same for all suppliers and are separate from the exchange price.
A dynamic contract is not a universal choice. It is most worthwhile for households that have a home battery and an energy management system that handles the control automatically. In that case, you can structurally benefit from the price differences on the exchange, without having to track the hourly prices yourself every day.
If you do have solar panels but no battery yet, then a variable or well-priced fixed contract is in most cases a wiser choice — until you take the step towards storage.
Would you like to know whether a dynamic contract fits your situation, and which energy manager is best suited for this? Then request a no-obligation consultation with one of our advisors. We are happy to review your situation with you.
*Generative AI was used in the creation of this article. The content has been verified by our experts.
