Behavioural economics helping Australians get better energy deals

A multi-year partnership between the Behavioural Economics Team of the Australian Government in Prime Minister and Cabinet and the Australian Energy Regulator has increased the confidence of consumers to find a better energy plan to reduce energy costs.

The regulator introduced the Better Bills Guideline, establishing how energy retailers must design bills for consumers. This includes a Better Offer message, letting consumers know if a cheaper plan is available and encouraging them to check the Energy Made Easy comparison website.

As the new bills drove consumers to the Energy Made Easy website, BETA and the AER continued to improve the website and evaluate the changes. This assisted users to complete actions that supported switching behaviour.

The Behavioural Economics Team of the Australian Government.
Image: Prime Minister and Cabinet

Working together

BETA brought strong research, behavioural insights and evidence translation skills to these projects. The AER contributed deep subject matter expertise. This enabled the agencies to identify and design a suite of different research activities. This included surveys, randomised control trials, interviews, eye tracking, and expert reviews.

Research supported evidence-based decision-making at multiple points in policy design and implementation. Findings pointed to the need to empower consumers to compare and switch plans and recommended that the Energy Made Easy website and energy bills needed to:

• focus attention on critical information, such as main costs and conditions
• build confidence by showing consumers how their plan compares to other options.

Research insights were used to make energy bills clearer, improve the process of comparing energy plans, and empower consumers to make informed choices.

Benefits for the community

Research by BETA shows that the Better Bills Guideline has been effective in simplifying and clarifying bills to support consumer comprehension. The guideline has led to increased consumer engagement in the energy market. Visitors to the Energy Made Easy website, prompted by energy bills, increased to 23%, compared with 7% before the guideline was implemented.

More than 60% of people visiting the Energy Made Easy website after seeing it on their bill had not previously switched retailers. This shows that the guideline effectively supports consumers who might not otherwise have compared plans. This represents significant savings for consumers, with a 2024 Australian Competition and Consumer Commission Inquiry finding that the ‘better offer’ message likely contributed to more consumers paying less than the default market offer.

Once the website was re-designed, consumers using Energy Made Energy were much more likely to look at one or more individual plans ꟷ typically the last step before making a switch. This increased from 9% to 28%, meaning more consumers were finding better energy plans.

See also in this report

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Find out more

Australian Energy Regulator (n.d.) Energy Made Easy, AER website, accessed 11 August 2025.

Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (2025) Energy made easier: Helping consumers switch energy plans, PM&C website, accessed 12 August 2025.

Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (2025) Better Bills impact report, PM&C website, accessed 12 August 2025.

Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet (2025) Empowered to switch: Energy made easier, PM&C website, accessed 12 August 2025.