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Move-home guide

Where are the meters in my new home?

Short answer

A gas meter is usually outside the front, side or back of the house in a meter box, or indoors under the stairs, in the kitchen or in a garage. In a flat, meters may be in a communal cupboard or a ground-floor meter room. Read each meter the day you move in and give the readings to the supplier.

Updated

  • 0800 111 999

    National Gas Emergency Service, 24 hours a day, if you smell gas or suspect carbon monoxide

  • A quarter turn

    Turns the gas off at the red-handled valve by the gas meter, Cadent says

  • Clockwise

    Turns the water off at the inside stop valve, Thames Water says

See who supplies your new home

Pick your new address to see which supplier its meters are with, the price-cap rate for the home, and tariffs that can start on the day you move in.

You pick your exact address on the next screen. Nothing is priced before that.

England, Scotland and Wales. Switching is your choice: you can also stay with the current supplier.

A home can have a gas meter, an electricity meter and a water meter, and gas and water each have a shut-off worth finding on the first day. This guide shows where each one usually is in a house, a flat and a new build, how to read the common displays, and what to check on the day you move in.

Where to look for each meter and shut-off

Meter or valveWhere it usually is
Gas meterOutside the front, side or back of the house in a meter box, or under the stairs, in the kitchen or in a garage. In a block of flats it is usually inside, in the flat or a communal area.
Gas shut-offA red handle on the pipe beside the gas meter, called the emergency control valve. A quarter turn turns the gas off.
Electricity meterNear the boiler, in a store or kitchen cupboard, in a garage or basement, or in a box on an outside wall. A block of flats may keep every meter in a meter room, usually on the ground floor.
Water meterUnder the kitchen sink where the supply comes in, or under a small lid in the garden or the pavement outside. A newer home may have it in a box on an outside wall.
Inside stop valve (stopcock)Just after the water pipe enters the home, often under the kitchen sink. A flat can also have a communal valve where the supply enters the building.

Is the gas meter inside or outside the house?

It can be either. The gas network company Cadent lists five places to look, and on a smart meter the units on the display tell gas from electricity.

  • Outside the front, side or back of the house, in a meter box. Cadent says the box door opens with a key, so ask the seller, landlord or agent for it before moving day.
  • Inside, under the stairs, in the kitchen or in a garage. In a building with several homes, Cadent says the meter can be around the home or in communal areas, but will usually be inside.
  • On a new-build estate, Barratt Homes, for example, fits the gas meter on the outside wall beside the electricity meter cabinet, or in a floor-mounted box near the front door. Both open with a meter box key.
  • Citizens Advice's check for a smart meter: a gas reading is followed by m3 or ft3, and an electricity reading by kWh.
  • Beside the gas meter is the emergency control valve, a red handle on the pipe. Cadent says that when the handle lines up with the pipe the gas is on, and a quarter turn either way turns it off. Use it only in an emergency or when told to, and leave it off until you are told it is safe.
  • If you smell gas or suspect carbon monoxide, call the National Gas Emergency Service on 0800 111 999, 24 hours a day. Cadent says the call handler talks you through turning the gas off at the meter.
Sources (4)

Where is the electricity meter, and which one is mine in a flat?

Electricity meters sit in cupboards, garages and shared meter rooms. In a block of flats the harder question is which meter is yours, because readings from the wrong one end up on your bill.

  • The energy charity Changeworks lists near the boiler, a store cupboard, a kitchen cupboard, a garage, a basement, or a utility box on an outside wall. You are looking for a box with a display.
  • In a block of flats the meters are sometimes together in a meter room, usually on the ground floor, and Changeworks says each one should be labelled with its flat.
  • Labels can be wrong. Octopus Energy calls a meter linked to the wrong home a crossed meter, and says it usually happens in blocks of flats where meters are clustered together, or on new-build developments.
  • Check the meter serial number: Octopus describes it as a 9 to 12-digit number stamped on the front of the meter, usually near a barcode. It should match the number on the bill or in the supplier's records.
  • To check an electricity meter, Octopus suggests turning off the home's main fuse or circuit breaker, if you are comfortable doing so: if the meter stops recording, it is yours. For gas, it suggests turning off every gas appliance and looking again after 10 to 15 minutes: if the numbers still move, the meter is probably another home's.
  • If a meter does not match, tell the supplier, with a photo showing the serial number and the reading.
Sources (2)

How do I take meter readings on moving day?

Readings from the day you take over separate your usage from the last occupier's, whichever supplier bills first. Six steps cover every meter in the home.

  1. 1

    Find each meter

    Use the table above for the gas meter, the electricity meter and any water meter. A meter box outside opens with a key, so ask the seller, landlord or agent for it before the day.

  2. 2

    Check each meter is yours

    In a block of flats, match the serial number on the front of the meter with the one on the bill or the supplier's records. Octopus Energy says a meter linked to the wrong home usually turns up where meters are clustered together.

  3. 3

    Read the display

    Write down the numbers from left to right. Citizens Advice says to leave out red numbers and anything after a decimal point, to give both readings from a two-rate meter, and to read a dial meter one dial at a time.

  4. 4

    Photograph each reading

    Take a photo of each display with the date on it. If a first bill uses a different figure, the photo shows what the meter said on the day the home became yours.

  5. 5

    Give the readings to the supplier

    Citizens Advice says to read your meters on the day you move in and give the readings to the home's current supplier. You are automatically on its deemed contract until you choose a tariff or switch.

  6. 6

    Read the water meter and register

    Citizens Advice says to read a water meter as soon as you move in. Give the reading and the date you moved in to the water company when you register with it.

Sources (4)

How do I read a smart meter with A and B buttons?

A smart meter normally sends its readings itself, but Citizens Advice says you may need to read one, for example straight after a switch of supplier, when you normally send the first reading yourself. The buttons tell you which kind you have.

  • A smart gas meter with A and B buttons under the screen: press A, then keep pressing A until the screen shows METER INDEX and a number followed by M3. Leave out the zeroes at the start and anything after the decimal point, so 0000256.3 is a reading of 256.
  • A smart electricity meter with A and B buttons under the screen: press A until the screen shows TOTAL ACT IMPORT and a number followed by KWH, and read it the same way.
  • A meter with a keypad: for electricity, Citizens Advice says to press 9 for a single rate (IMP KWH), or 6 for the two rates of an Economy 7 meter (IMP R01, usually night, then IMP R02, usually day). On a smart gas meter with a keypad, press 9 and wait for a number followed by M3.
  • Other layouts, such as three red buttons or orange and blue arrows, work differently. Citizens Advice says to check the supplier's guide, or find the maker and model on the meter and look for that meter's guide.
  • Read the meter itself, not the in-home display. Smart Energy GB says the meter stores the official reading used for your account; the display is a separate portable screen showing usage and costs.
  • Citizens Advice asks people moving out to leave the in-home display for whoever lives there next. OVO, for example, says a display works only with the meter it came with, and sends its own customers a new one when it is missing.
  • Citizens Advice's smart meter checker shows what type of smart meter a home has and whether it should work in smart mode, though not whether it is sending readings now.
Sources (6)
My new home has a prepayment meter

Where is the water meter and the stop tap?

Find the inside stop valve first: it turns the water off if a pipe leaks. A water meter, if the home has one, is often close to it.

  • Thames Water says the inside stop valve, also called the stopcock or stop tap, is usually just after the water pipe enters the house: often under the kitchen sink, or in an airing cupboard, under the stairs, under the floorboards, near the front door, or in the garage, utility room, bathroom or cellar.
  • Turn it clockwise to turn the water off and anti-clockwise to turn it back on. It can take a few turns, and Thames Water suggests checking once a month that it works.
  • In a flat with a shared supply, there may be a communal stop valve where the supply enters the building, and sometimes another where it enters your flat.
  • United Utilities says a water meter is usually under the kitchen sink, where the supply comes in, or in an underground box in the garden or the footpath outside, under a small round lid. A home built in recent years may have it in a box on an outside wall.
  • Not sure there is one? WaterSafe says some water companies show a meter on the bill through the customer reference, and that homes built after 1990 are more likely to have one.
  • To read it, Wessex Water says to write down the black numbers, which are cubic metres; the red numbers are litres and are not needed. An outside chamber can be shared, which makes it hard to tell which meter is yours, and Thames Water warns that the covers can be heavy.
Sources (5)

What if I cannot find a meter?

Start with the people who know the home, then the companies behind each supply.

  • Ask the seller, landlord or letting agent where each meter is, and for any meter box key.
  • WaterSafe says the water company can confirm where a water meter is, show you how to read it and arrange a visit if needed.
  • If a gas or electricity meter is somewhere you cannot reach, Citizens Advice says the energy supplier might be able to give you extra help to read it or move it.
  • The energy bill names each supply by a number rather than by where the meter is: the MPAN for electricity and the MPRN for gas. The supplier guide shows where both are printed, and how to find the supplier without a bill.
  • If the home has no gas or electricity supply at all, Citizens Advice explains how to get it connected.
Sources (3)
Find the supplier, MPAN and MPRN for an address

What should I check on the day I move in?

A list to work through on the day you get the keys, with the home you left last.

  • Read every meter, photograph each display with the date, and give the readings to the supplier.
  • Note each meter's serial number, and in a block of flats check it matches the bill.
  • Find the gas emergency control valve and the inside stop valve, and save the gas emergency number, 0800 111 999, in your phone, as Cadent suggests.
  • Find the fuse box, also called the consumer unit, and its main switch.
  • Renting: HSE says the landlord must give you a copy of the gas safety record before you move in, and in England GOV.UK says the landlord must check that the smoke and carbon monoxide alarms work on the day a new tenancy begins.
  • Those rules require a smoke alarm on every storey with a room used as living accommodation, and a carbon monoxide alarm in any such room with a fixed combustion appliance other than a gas cooker. They do not apply to owner occupiers, so if you bought the home, test the alarms yourself.
  • The home you left: Citizens Advice says to give its energy supplier at least 48 hours' notice, read the meters on the day you go, and keep a note of the readings and the dates.
Sources (6)
Forgot the final reading at your old home?

Where does Taupia fit?

  • Pick your new address above and Taupia shows which supplier the home's meters are with, the price-cap rate for the home, and tariffs that can start on the day you move in, beside the council tax band, the water company and broadband. It is free, and nothing changes without your approval.
  • Taupia does not set up council tax or switch water: use the council's and the water company's registration routes for those. The meter readings are yours to give, on the day you move in.
  • The address picker covers Great Britain. Scotland returns the council but not the band, the water figure is the company's average rather than a quote, and broadband is checked at the exact address only for Virgin Media.

Questions about the meters in a new home

Are gas meters inside or outside the house?

Either. Cadent lists outside the front, side or back of the house, under the stairs, in the kitchen and in a garage. A meter outside sits in a meter box that opens with a key. In a building with several homes, Cadent says the meter will usually be inside, in the home or a communal area.

What are the A and B buttons on a gas meter?

They are on many smart gas meters. Citizens Advice says to press A, then keep pressing A until the screen shows METER INDEX and a number followed by M3. That number, without the zeroes at the start or anything after the decimal point, is your reading. Other smart meters use other buttons, so check the supplier's guide.

What does a gas meter look like?

A unit fixed to a wall or board, with dials or a display, on the gas pipe with a red-handled valve beside it. The quickest check is the units: Citizens Advice says a gas meter's reading is followed by m3 or ft3, while an electricity meter's is followed by kWh.

Do I need to take meter readings when I move in?

Yes. Citizens Advice says to read your meters on the day you move in and give the readings to the home's current supplier, which helps it send an accurate first bill. A smart meter may send readings itself, but a dated photo of each display is your record if the first bill disagrees.

Where is the stopcock usually?

Thames Water says the inside stop valve, also called the stopcock or stop tap, is usually just after the water pipe enters the home, often under the kitchen sink. Turn it clockwise to turn the water off. A flat can also have a communal valve where the supply enters the building.

What if the last occupier took the smart meter display?

Ask the supplier for a new one. A display works only with the smart meter it came with, so OVO, for example, asks people moving out to leave it behind and sends its customers a new one when it is missing. The meter itself keeps the reading your bill uses, so you can still read it.

How do I find the MPAN and MPRN?

Both are printed on the energy bill: the MPAN identifies the electricity supply and the MPRN the gas supply. Without a bill, Find My Supplier, run by Xoserve, gives the gas supplier and MPRN for an address, and the electricity network operator for the area can tell you the supplier.

After the readings

Opening the energy account, finding the supplier and the numbers on the bill, and what to do when an old reading or an old debt causes trouble.

Start here

Set up gas and electric in a new home

Recommended

Who supplies the home on day one, the deemed contract, and when you can choose a tariff or switch.

Official references

Know who supplies your new home

Pick your new address above to see which supplier the home's meters are with, the price-cap rate for the home and tariffs that can start on moving day, beside the council tax band, the water company and broadband.

Start with your postcodeBack to move-home hub

Cite this page

Taupia. "Where are the meters in my new home?". Last updated 31 October 2026. https://taupia.com/move-home/find-your-meters