Historically, electricity bills were usually issued on a quarterly cycle, and gas bills on a bi-monthly cycle.

This relatively low frequency was because meter reading was a labour-intensive process, requiring a human meter reader to physically visit and manually read the meter for every household or business.

Today we have smart meters, which can be read remotely over a network, which opens the ability to collect data and issue bills far more frequently.

Today, it's becoming more common for electricity bills to be issued monthly. We find that, particularly for the most competitively priced retailers, monthly billing is increasingly becoming the norm.

It's not hard to imagine why: The most competitive retailers are operating on thinner margins, and will apply every mechanism they can to minimise cost and maximise profitability.

Adopting a monthly billing cycle improves their cashflow, which is one of the ingredients that allow them to offer the most competitive pricing.

We think that monthly billing is also advantageous for energy consumers – it gives you more granular and detailed insights into your energy spending and consumption, plus it gives you twelve opportunities to compare and switch per year rather than only four.