ACM: Over 300,000 households and businesses can save money by switching to small grid connections

Over 300,000 Dutch households and small businesses have higher-capacity connections than they probably need based on their electricity consumptions. This has been one of the conclusions of a study conducted by the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM). Since a higher-capacity connection is more expensive than a standard connection of up to 3x25 Ampère, these households and businesses may be able to save a significant amount of money. Households and businesses can see on their energy suppliers’ annual bills what kind of connection they have.

In 2026, a standard 3x25 Ampère connection costs, on average, 360 euros per year. Such a connection is usually more than enough for households and small businesses that do not consume more than 15,000 kWh per year. An average household of four people in a townhouse (terraced house or row house) consumes approximately 3,500 kWh per year. Those needing higher-capacity connections pay considerably more: a connection of 3x35 Ampère costs, on average, 1,800 euros per year, and up to 4,500 euros per year for a connection of 3x80 Ampère.

An ACM study reveals that 266,000 households and businesses in the Netherlands have connections of more than 3x25 Ampère but which consume less than 15,000 kWh per year. This figure includes approximately 28,000 households that consume even less than 5,000 kWh per year. These households and businesses can save at least 1,400 euros per year if they have their connections downgraded to 3x25 Ampère. In addition, approximately 48,000 households and businesses consume between 15,000 and 25,000 kWh per year, while having a connection than is higher than 3x35 Ampère. These households and businesses are able to save almost 1,000 euros per year by having their connections downgraded to 3x35 Ampère. For this study, ACM used an anonymized overview of the connection capacity and standard annual consumption of almost all 10 million connections of up to 3x80 Ampère (referred to as small connections).

High-capacity connection is not always necessary

A high-capacity grid connection is only necessary if you use different heavy appliances at the same time, for example a sauna, a swimming pool, or a heated pond. In most cases, households and businesses are able to prevent the costs for having their connections upgraded by using their connections more efficiently, and by preventing consumption peaks, for example by not turning on at the same time many appliances that consume a lot of electricity, or by charging electric vehicles at a slower rate. Also, more and more smart software is developed that is able to help households and businesses in these efforts.

A study commissioned by the ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate (EZK) (external website) reveals that most households do not even need a connection of 3x25 Ampère. With a single-phase connection, households are already able to switch to an electric heat pump, electric car, and induction cooktop. Charging an electric car will then usually take place at a slower rate, but that is sufficient for daily usage. Having a smaller connection saves consumers time and money, and is a lower burden on the grid. In that way, households can still continue to become more sustainable, despite the congested grid.

Check your connection

Households and businesses are able to see on their energy company’s annual bills what their connection is, and how much electricity they consume per year. On the website mijnaansluiting.nl (external website) , it is explained how you can determine what connection you need. You can always consult an electrician, too. If your connection for electricity is 3x25A or lower, you will not be able to save more costs. A smaller connection will cost the same.

A connection downgrade costs approximately 300 euros. ACM does recommend households and businesses to really think about this before having their connections downgraded. Since the grid is congested in many regions, households and businesses will often be put on a waiting list if they wish to go back to a higher-capacity connection in the future. ACM does not expect much grid capacity to be freed up if households decide to have their connections downgraded. System operators calculate grid capacity on the basis of historical data from users (profiles), and not on the basis of connection capacity.