How I Used Copilot to Find a Cheaper Electricity Deal (With Solar + a TOU Smart Meter)
Electricity bills are one of those things most of us quietly accept. They’re confusing, full of jargon, and hard to compare especially if you have solar panels and a time‑of‑use (TOU) smart meter.
I assumed the same… until I decided to put Microsoft Copilot to work.
Using nothing more than my actual bill data and a few well‑written prompts, I discovered we were on a plan that actively worked against how our household uses electricity and that switching could save us over $1,300 a year.
Here’s exactly how I did it and how you can too.
The problem: solar, a smart meter, and rising bills
Our household setup is pretty common in NSW:
- Solar panels
- A TOU smart meter (Ausgrid network)
- Most electricity use happens in the evenings (5pm–11pm)
- Low usage during the day when solar is strongest
Despite having solar, our bills kept climbing. Once I looked closely, I discovered why:
- Evening electricity was charged at very high peak rates
- Midday solar exports were earning us little or even negative value
- The tariff structure made it almost impossible to tell if we were on a good deal
Comparison sites gave generic answers. What I wanted was a proper comparison using our real data.
Enter Copilot: turning a power bill into clear maths
Instead of guessing, I copied the following from our electricity bill into Copilot:
- Peak and off‑peak rates
- Daily supply charge
- Kilowatt hours (kWh) used at each rate
- Solar export kWh and feed‑in tariff
Copilot rebuilt our bill line by line, explained what was driving the cost, and highlighted the exact problem:
We were buying most of our electricity at the most expensive time and being penalised for exporting solar.
That insight alone was worth the exercise.
The result: same usage, very different outcome
Using our actual usage, Copilot compared our current plan with a different TOU plan designed for solar households.
The outcome was clear:
- Lower peak rates during the months that matter
- Much cheaper off‑peak pricing
- A positive solar feed‑in tariff instead of a penalty
- Higher supply charge but outweighed by usage savings
No lifestyle changes. No meter changes. Just a better‑matched plan.
The exact prompts I used (copy & paste)
If you want Copilot to do this for you, these prompts are the key.
Prompt 1: Explain my electricity bill in plain English
Prompt 2: Compare my current plan to a new electricity offer
Prompt 3: Seasonal TOU plans (this is critical)
The checklist: what you need before you compare plans
This is the minimum data that makes the comparison accurate.
✅ Must‑have
- Your NMI (from the bill)
- Your network/distributor (Ausgrid, Endeavour, Essential)
- Confirmation you have a TOU smart meter
- Your plan’s rates:
- Peak / off‑peak / shoulder (if any)
- Daily supply charge
- Solar feed‑in tariff
- Your kWh usage for the same billing period:
- Peak kWh
- Off‑peak kWh
- Shoulder kWh (if applicable)
- Solar export kWh
✅ Nice‑to‑have (avoids nasty surprises)
- Seasonal peak months
- Demand charges (avoid unless you understand them)
- FiT caps or stepped FiTs
- Payment conditions (direct debit, card fees, paper bill fees)
Why this approach works (and most comparisons don’t)
Most comparison tools:
- Use averages
- Ignore solar exports
- Don’t handle TOU complexity well
Copilot worked because it:
- Used our real data
- Explained the why, not just the result
- Stress‑tested seasonal pricing
- Made the maths transparent
It turned a frustrating decision into a confident one.
A practical takeaway
You don’t need to be an energy expert to save money but you do need clarity.
For us, Copilot acted like a calm, methodical second brain:
- Translating a complex bill
- Challenging assumptions
- Proving when a switch actually made sense
In a cost‑of‑living environment, that kind of clarity is powerful.
Want to try this yourself?
Grab your latest electricity bill, copy the prompts above, and let Copilot walk through the numbers with you.
You may be surprised how much control you actually have.
I now use Copilot for all my comparisons, in fact I ask it everything!
Written by Anita Lund, Founder and Owner of Trainers Direct Sydney – Anita Lund is happy for this article to be shared or reused, as long as she’s credited as the author.
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