EDF Tarif Bleu in France: a guide to EDF tariffs in 2021

The EDF Blue Tariff (EDF Tarif Bleu) is the regulated rate option for electricity in France. Fixed by the French authorities, it is the most popular energy subscription in France, albeit not the cheapest electricity offer. Learn all about EDF tariffs and options, the EDF price per kwh, EDF off peak electricity times and more.

EDF Prices and options in 2021

One of the most subscribed to energy tariffs in France, the Tarif Bleu by EDF is a regulated tariff which is targeted at households and professionals alike, who have a meter with a power equal or inferior to 36 kVA. This is not a one-size-fits-all tariff, rather it offers different pricing options. All the details are below.

EDF Tarif Bleu with the Base option

With the Base option, a unique price is set for every kWh consumed, regardless of the hour of the day or day of the year, with these set prices as follows:

EDF Tarif Bleu with the Heures Pleines/Heures Creuses option

With the heures pleines / heures creuses option, the EDF price per kwh will depend on the time of day. There are two set rates: a cheaper one applied to 8 hours of the day (called heures creuses, as in off-peak hours) and another more expensive rate for the 16 remaining hours (called heures pleines, or peak hours).

The exact hours will be detailed in the EDF electricity bills. Typically, the EDF off peak electricity time is set from 10pm to 6am, so it will thus work out cheaper to do laundry or let the dishwasher run during the night, and can help you save a good amount of money overtime. Some appliances can even be programmed to function entirely during these off-peak hours.

The Tarif Bleu with the EJP option

The EJP option is no longer on the market and was removed from EDF's offers in 1998. However, it is still running for existing customers who subscribed to the offer before that year. The EJP option applies tariffs 4 times as expensive during 22 days of the year - all during the winter - and tariffs twice as cheap during the remaining 323 days.

The Tarif Bleu with the Tempo option

The Tempo option has more or less replaced the above EJP option. It is quite a complex system, as it uses 6 different tariffs - blue, white and red, each segmented into heures pleines (HP) and heures creuses (HC) - which are applied depending on the day of the year.

EDF Billing and payment methods

EDF Tarif Bleu billing options

With the EDF blue tariff, customers have the choice of either:

• Getting billed on a monthly basis: in this case, the amount to pay is set through an estimation of annual consumption, which is then divided by 12 and evenly spread over the course of the year. If there has been an overestimation then you will receive the due refund, just like you may need to pay an extra charge eventually if your consumption has been underestimated.
• Getting billed every other month: in this case, the client can either opt to pay based on an estimation, or pay based on actual consumption. In this second scenario, the customer has to read their meter every other month and communicate the meter readings to EDF.

The payment methods accepted for the EDF Tarif Bleu

For monthly billing, the only payment method is through direct debit. For bi-monthly billing, the payment methods are the following:

• By credit card, on the online EDF customer account or over the phone by calling 0800 123 333 (automated service)
• Direct debit, a hassle-free method but that is only available for payments over 10 or 11 months
• Energie Cheque
• Cash, in which case the customer will have to create a “mandat compte” at La Poste (the French postal service). Ask for a “Convention Cash Compte EDF” so as not to pay any fees.

Will the EDF price increase?

The Tarif Bleu is not set by EDF itself but by a French public institution, the Energy Regulation Commission (CRE). The prices are fixed so as to cover all of EDF’s functioning costs - network maintenance, production, commercial costs etc., which have been increasing over the past 15 years, with the exception of a slight decrease in 2016.

Prices are set to continue to increase in future years, as revenues haven’t been sufficient to cover all of EDF’s costs, in particular those relative to the company’s nuclear plants. The increases will also be due to higher taxes on energy consumption, which go towards investments in green energy.

With this in mind, it is not surprising that customers are taking advantage of the new and cheaper alternative energy suppliers appearing on the French market, in an effort to limit the impact of their increasing energy bills.

EDF Tarif Bleu and EDF Services

The Relevé Confiance

As mentioned above, the Relevé Confiance service enables EDF customers to pay for their exact consumption and not for an estimation of it. This system gets rid of any over or underestimation risks, and the issues these create - either having to wait months before getting a refund after being charged, or receiving an unpleasantly high bill to make up for an ongoing underestimation.

This option is free and isn’t too constraining. Every 2 months, EDF will send the customer a reminder to do the due meter reading. The only thing to do is to take note of the it just requires to take note of the digits on the meter, and transfer them to EDF via the online platform or over the phone. The customer will have 4 meter readings to do per year, and at least one reading is done by an Enedis technician who will come round to their home.

The EDF mobile app

EDF et Moi, the EDF mobile app, is a service that will help you monitor your Tarif Bleu subscription. For instance, from there you can:

• Pay your bills
• Get started with the Relevé Confiance system
• Change your payment method
• Download important supporting administrative documents
• For those subscribed to an EJP Tariff, get access to the EJP tariff applied to any given day
• Access important EDF phone numbers
• Track your energy consumption and see how it evolves month-on-month
• Understand your main sources of energy consumption and compare them to similar households
• Get personalised advice on how to reduce your energy consumption and reduce your electricity bills

The e.quilibre service

Another useful EDF service is e.quilibre, which can be accessed online via a customer account. This service helps you:

• Track your energy consumption and see how it evolves month after month
• Get an understanding of which are your main sources of energy consumption and compare it to similar households
• Get personalised advice on how to reduce your energy consumption and reduce your electricity bills

Alternatives to the Tarif Bleu

Being subscribed to by 7 out of 10 households in France, the Tariff Bleu is still the most popular in France - but not necessarily the cheapest. If you are open to comparing energy offers, it is free and relatively easy to change an energy contract, plus there are often savings to be made with more competitive options available.

Contrary to popular belief, all energy consumers (subscribers to EDF or to an alternative supplier) are supplied by the same electricity network and benefit from the same technical service (public service provided by Enedis, former ERDF, regardless of the supplier).

Many alternative suppliers align their prices with the regulated tariffs by offering a reduce rates by a certain percentage, thus providing customers an opportunity to save on their bills compared to EDF electricity tariff.

Alternative providers: Cheapest electricity offers

Since 2007 in France, the energy market is open to competition, meaning you are totally free to unsubscribe from the EDF Tarif Bleu and instead choose a cheaper, alternative electricity provider, such as Total Direct Energie, ekWateur, or Planete Oui.

How to terminate a Tarif Bleu contract

The process of changing energy suppliers is free, easy and straightforward: it only takes one phone call, that’s it.

In France, as a particular individual, you are not required to be tied to a provider or contract for any specific duration, so you can cancel your subscription at any time. No technical operation is needed, as the electricity remains the same. Only your bills and the price you pay will change.

With this in mind, it may be worth considering changing your energy provider - especially if you a subscribed to a regulated tariff offer.