April 10, 2026
What Time Is Electricity Cheapest in Spain? A Simple Hour-by-Hour Guide
In Spain, the price of electricity changes every hour. If you’re on the hourly price plan, knowing when to use power can cut your bill by 30-40%. Even if you’re on a fixed price, understanding the cheap and expensive hours helps you make smarter choices.
The three price zones
Spain splits each weekday into three zones. You’ll see them called Valle, Llano, and Punta on your bill — here’s what they actually mean:
Cheap hours (Valle)
- Weekdays: Midnight to 8 AM
- Weekends and holidays: All day, all 24 hours
This is when electricity is at its cheapest — usually €0.05 to €0.10 per kWh. The big thing people miss: weekends are cheap all day long, not just at night. Saturday and Sunday are the best days to run anything that uses a lot of power.
Medium hours (Llano)
- Weekdays: 8-10 AM, 2-6 PM, and 10 PM to midnight
In-between prices, usually €0.10 to €0.16 per kWh. Not the cheapest, but not bad either.
Expensive hours (Punta)
- Weekdays: 10 AM to 2 PM, and 6-10 PM
The priciest hours — often €0.15 to €0.25 per kWh, sometimes spiking higher on cold winter evenings. This is when everyone’s cooking, heating water, and blasting the AC, so demand (and prices) are highest.
The schedule at a glance
| Time | Monday-Friday | Weekends & Holidays |
|---|---|---|
| Midnight - 8 AM | Cheap | Cheap |
| 8 AM - 10 AM | Medium | Cheap |
| 10 AM - 2 PM | Expensive | Cheap |
| 2 PM - 6 PM | Medium | Cheap |
| 6 PM - 10 PM | Expensive | Cheap |
| 10 PM - Midnight | Medium | Cheap |
What to run at night (and what doesn’t matter)
Not everything uses the same amount of electricity. Focus on the big stuff:
- Washing machine — set a timer for 2 AM
- Tumble dryer — this one’s a power hog, always run it at night
- Dishwasher — load it after dinner, set it to start after midnight
- Water heater — if you have an electric one (called a “termo” in Spain), put it on a timer to heat water at 6 AM
- Electric car charger — always charge overnight, it’s the single biggest saver
- Pool pump — schedule it for early morning
- Air conditioning — in summer, cool down the house before 10 AM when it’s still cheap
Small stuff like phone chargers, lights, and laptops? Don’t worry about those — they barely use any electricity.
How much can you actually save?
Let’s say your household uses about 200 kWh a month and you currently use electricity pretty evenly throughout the day. That costs roughly €30/month.
Now if you move 40% of your usage to cheap nighttime hours:
- 120 kWh during normal hours at €0.15 = €18.00
- 80 kWh at night at €0.07 = €5.60
- New monthly bill: €23.60 — that’s €6.40 less per month, or about €77 a year saved
Bigger households that use 400+ kWh a month can save €150-200/year.
The weekend trick
This is the tip most people miss: weekends and public holidays are cheap all day — all 24 hours. So Saturday and Sunday are the best days to:
- Do all your laundry
- Run the dishwasher a couple of times
- Use the oven for cooking big batches
- Charge your electric car
- Run the pool pump
How to check tomorrow’s prices
Tomorrow’s electricity prices are published every night around 8 PM. Check SPARKANDA to see exactly which hours will be cheapest and plan around them. On some days — especially sunny ones — midday prices drop close to zero because there’s so much solar power being generated. Those are perfect for running heavy appliances.
Just two habits can make a real difference
You don’t need to change your whole life. Just doing these two things saves real money:
- Set your washing machine and dishwasher on a timer for after midnight
- Avoid running heavy appliances between 6-10 PM on weekdays
That’s it. Those two changes alone can save you €50-100 a year without giving up any comfort.