Energy

EnergyAustralia vs COVAU: Which Is Cheaper for SA Households in 2026?

SaveNest Editorial Team · 2026-10-27 · 10 min read

If you live in South Australia and you are weighing up EnergyAustralia vs COVAU: which is cheaper for SA households in 2026, the honest answer is that neither retailer is cheaper for everyone. EnergyAustralia is one of the large, long-established retailers with a broad range of plans. COVAU (also written CovaU) is a smaller Sydney-based, Australian-owned retailer that sells to households in several states, including SA. Which one wins on your bill depends on how much electricity you use, when you use it, whether you have solar, and which discounts you will actually collect. This guide shows you how to run that comparison properly instead of trusting a headline rate.

Rates, discounts and plan details change often, so use this article as a framework and compare current offers for your own address before you switch.

The short answer

There is no permanent winner between these two retailers, and anyone who names one without knowing your usage is guessing. What we can say with confidence is this:

The network is the same. Almost every South Australian home is connected to SA Power Networks, so both retailers pass through the same network charges. The difference you can influence is the retailer's own margin, its discounts and how the plan is structured.
Plan structure matters more than brand. A single-rate plan, a time-of-use plan and a plan with free midday power can each produce a very different bill for the same household.
Your usage decides the winner. A plan with a low usage rate and a high daily supply charge suits a big user. A plan with the opposite shape often suits a small household or an apartment.
Conditional discounts can flip the result. A discount for paying on time or by direct debit only counts if you reliably meet the condition.

Who are EnergyAustralia and COVAU?

EnergyAustralia is one of the big three energy retailers in Australia, alongside AGL and Origin, and it sells electricity and gas in SA and other states. Larger retailers usually offer a wider menu of plans, an app and online account tools, and sometimes extras such as bundled offers or rewards. Their prices on a given day can still be competitive or not, so you have to check the specific plan rather than assume.

COVAU is a smaller independent retailer. Public regulatory material describes it as serving residential and small business customers in New South Wales, South Australia and South East Queensland, and comparison sites describe it as pitching simple plans without lock-in contracts. It has also been described as pricing its market offers relative to the regulator's Default Market Offer benchmark. Smaller retailers often compete hard on price, but their plan range, discounts and customer service model can differ from a big retailer's, so read the fine print.

How electricity pricing works for SA households in 2026

Two reference points shape what you will see when you compare plans in SA.

The Default Market Offer (DMO)

The Australian Energy Regulator sets the Default Market Offer each year as a maximum price on standing offers in regions such as SA. The 2026–27 determination took effect on 1 July 2026. Unlike some other states, where regulated prices fell, SA households saw only small movements either side of zero, with the exact change depending on household type and tariff. The DMO is a ceiling for default plans, not what you have to pay. Most retailers, including both of these, advertise market offers priced below that benchmark, which is exactly why shopping around still pays.

SA Power Networks tariffs and smart meters

Your retailer builds your plan on top of the network's tariff options. If you have a smart meter, you may be able to choose a time-of-use plan, where peak, shoulder and off-peak periods are priced differently. Some households also have a controlled load circuit for hot water, which is priced separately. Not every plan from every retailer supports every tariff type at every address, so the plans you can actually choose may differ from the ones advertised.

Want a quick reality check before you dig into the detail? Get a free personalised bill check and see what you could save in 2 minutes. It is free, and it uses your actual usage rather than a generic average.

EnergyAustralia vs COVAU: what to compare on each plan

When you put two plans side by side, compare these items in this order. Every one of them is shown on the retailer's Basic Plan Information Document and on the government's Energy Made Easy comparison site.

1. Usage rate and daily supply charge

Your bill is mostly two numbers: cents per kilowatt-hour for the energy you use, and cents per day just to be connected. A plan can look cheap on one and expensive on the other. Always check both, and note whether the price is quoted including GST.

2. Discounts, and what they apply to

Look at whether a discount is guaranteed or conditional, and whether it applies to your usage charges, your supply charges, or the whole bill. A 20 per cent discount on usage only is not the same as 20 per cent off the entire bill. Conditional discounts, such as a pay-on-time discount, are lost if you miss the condition, and retailers must disclose these in the plan documents.

3. Single rate, time-of-use or free midday power

If most of your usage is in the evening, a time-of-use plan with a cheap overnight period may not help you much. If you can shift the dishwasher, washing machine, pool pump or EV charging to the middle of the day, a plan with cheap or free midday hours can be valuable. The Solar Sharer Offer was set to bring a free-power window in the middle of the day to SA, with the regulator proposing 12pm to 3pm. Check whether the retailers you are comparing have such a plan live at your address, and what the rest of the day costs, because the rates outside the free window are usually higher.

4. Solar feed-in tariff

If you have rooftop solar, the rate you are paid for exports matters. Feed-in tariffs in SA are generally low, often in the mid-single digits of cents per kilowatt-hour, and they vary by plan. A plan with a slightly higher usage rate but a better feed-in tariff can beat a cheaper-looking plan for a household that exports a lot. Remember too that SA Power Networks applies export limits on many new solar installations, so how much you can send to the grid is not entirely up to you.

5. Contract terms and exit fees

Check whether the plan has a fixed benefit period, whether the discount or rate changes when it ends, and whether there are exit fees. A no lock-in plan gives you the freedom to move again; a plan with a bigger discount for a fixed term may be cheaper but less flexible.

6. Service, complaints and extras

Price is not everything. Look at how you can contact the retailer, how it handles billing disputes, and whether it offers payment plans or hardship support. Complaint data for retailers is published by the Energy and Water Ombudsman SA (EWOSA), which is a sensible place to sanity-check any retailer's service record instead of relying on star ratings.

A worked example: why usage flips the answer

These figures are hypothetical, chosen to be easy to follow. They are not real EnergyAustralia or COVAU rates.

Plan A: 45c per kWh usage and $1.70 per day supply.
Plan B: 50c per kWh usage and $1.40 per day supply.

Over a 365-day year, Plan A costs about $620 in supply charges and Plan B about $511, so Plan B starts $109 ahead. Plan A claws that back at 5c less per kWh, which means the plans break even at roughly 2,190 kWh a year.

A small household using 1,500 kWh a year pays about $1,296 on Plan A and $1,261 on Plan B. Plan B is cheaper.
A larger household using 4,500 kWh a year pays about $2,646 on Plan A and $2,761 on Plan B. Plan A is cheaper.

The lesson is that the cheapest retailer for your neighbour may not be the cheapest for you. Pull your annual kWh figure from a recent bill and calculate each plan's yearly cost using both the usage rate and the supply charge, with discounts applied only where you will really qualify.

Which type of household tends to suit which retailer?

These are tendencies, not rules, and a specific plan on a specific day can break any of them.

Renters, apartment dwellers and low users: prioritise a low daily supply charge, because supply makes up a large share of a small bill.
Families and high users: prioritise a low usage rate and a discount that applies to usage, because the kWh charge dominates.
Solar households: look at the feed-in tariff and any midday free-power plan alongside the usage rate, and consider whether a battery or load-shifting changes your numbers.
Households on controlled load or time-of-use meters: confirm the plan supports your exact meter configuration before you compare headline prices.
People who value flexibility: weigh a no lock-in plan against a larger conditional discount.

Gas, bundles and other bills

If you also pay for gas, check whether each retailer offers it at your address and whether a combined plan really lowers the total or just moves the discount around. You can compare gas plans on our gas deals page. And if you are already reviewing your household budget, it is worth looking at your other recurring bills as well while you are at it.

Common mistakes to avoid

Comparing the usage rate only. Always add the daily supply charge.
Assuming a discount is guaranteed. Check the conditions, and check whether it applies to usage, supply or both.
Ignoring the end of the benefit period. Rates and discounts can change when a plan's introductory period finishes.
Staying put on a default plan. Your bill must show a best-offer message, but it only compares plans from your current retailer, so it will not tell you whether a competitor is cheaper.
Forgetting concessions. If you hold an eligible concession card, check the South Australian Government's energy concessions, which are applied through your retailer, and make sure they continue after you switch.

Steps to Take

Grab a recent bill. Note your annual or quarterly kWh usage, your daily supply charge, your tariff type (single rate, time-of-use or controlled load) and your NMI (meter number).
Compare on Energy Made Easy and a trusted comparison service. Enter your SA postcode and usage, then shortlist the cheapest plans, including at least one EnergyAustralia plan and one COVAU plan.
Calculate the true yearly cost. Multiply usage by the rate, add 365 days of supply charge, then apply only the discounts you are certain to receive. Include solar export credits if you have panels.
Read the Basic Plan Information Document. Check fees, the benefit period, discount conditions and how the price can change.
Switch, then keep an eye on it. The new retailer handles the switch, you should not lose supply, and energy contracts generally include a 10 business day cooling-off period. Set a calendar reminder to re-compare before your discount ends, and contact EWOSA if a dispute cannot be resolved with your retailer.

Ready to find out which one is actually cheaper for your home? Do not guess: get your free personalised bill check at /savings and see your savings estimate in about two minutes. When you want to browse plans yourself, you can see current offers on our electricity deals page and find more practical guides on the SaveNest blog. Check today, because every month on the wrong plan costs you money you could have kept.