My Nous review: is it legit, safe and worth using?
This post contains an affiliate link. The Penny Pincher may receive a small payment if you use the Nous link, at no extra cost to you. This has not affected my view of the service.
I started using Nous because I wanted to know whether it could actually find cheaper household bills, even though I already thought I was paying fairly competitive prices. The result surprised me. Nous identified around £300 a year in possible energy savings and, across the household bills I checked, potential savings worth more than £400 over the following 12 months.
There was a catch, though. Several of my contracts were still fixed, and moving immediately could have meant paying exit fees or giving up other benefits that reduced the value of switching. My Nous review therefore isn't a story about pressing a button and instantly saving £400. It is about whether the app is legitimate, how it works, whether it is safe to connect your information and whether the savings it finds actually make sense once your own circumstances are taken into account.
Nous is a genuine UK household bill management service with a free tier and a paid Premium option. It can monitor household contracts, alert you to potential savings, and, depending on the settings you choose, handle some of the administrative work involved in changing providers.
My experience has been positive, but I would treat Nous as another tool for checking your bills rather than assuming every proposal it produces must automatically be the best deal available.
What is Nous and how does the app work?
Nous is a household bill management service that currently covers energy, broadband, mobile and mortgages, with home and car insurance still listed as future additions. Once it has information about your household services, it can monitor contract dates, look for cheaper alternatives and remind you when there may be an opportunity to save. Unless you select Manual mode, Nous can also take a more active role in arranging eligible switches.
The service describes itself as AI-powered, although from a consumer point of view, what matters is what it does with the information rather than the label attached to the technology. Nous can help identify providers and contract information, monitor services and check terms when looking for alternatives. Its own description says it will research deals, check the small print, and handle forms when it is handling a change.
It is not the same as searching every provider and tariff available in the UK yourself. Nous says it works with a select number of energy suppliers and looks for like-for-like alternatives from providers that meet its requirements. That means a proposal may still be a good deal, but it isn't proof that nothing cheaper exists elsewhere.
What happened when I tried Nous?
I added several of my own household bills to Nous, including my energy account. I already spend quite a lot of time looking for better deals, so I wasn't expecting it to find a dramatic difference. Nous still identified a possible energy saving of around £300 a year, which did surprise, and dare I say, impress me!
Across the bills I checked, the potential savings came to more than £400 over the next 12 months. That sounds impressive, but there is an important difference between a possible saving shown on a screen and money you can actually keep. Several of my contracts had been renewed fairly recently, which meant I was either unable to move yet or would have needed to pay an early exit fee.
My mobile account was another good example. Several family members' numbers are in the same arrangement; there are discounts and allowances attached to the account; and one device is still being paid for. Nous found a cheaper mobile option, but separating one number from the wider package wasn't financially sensible for me at that point.
That didn't make the comparison useless. I now know there may be better deals available when those contracts reach their renewal points, and I can run the checks again instead of assuming my existing providers remain competitive. For me, that monitoring is one of the more useful parts of Nous.
How does Nous find cheaper household bills?
Nous uses information about your existing providers, bills, and contract dates to identify alternatives it believes could reduce your costs. When a contract approaches its end, the service can propose another option and, depending on your chosen savings mode, may handle the process of changing provider. Nous says some of the deals available through it can be exclusive.
Energy is worth looking at carefully because Nous says it works with a select group of providers rather than presenting itself as a whole-market comparison. It also says energy savings can come from a cheaper tariff, a reward for switching, or, in some cases, the reward alone. I would therefore open the full proposal and review the tariff rather than judging it solely by the headline annual savings.
For energy, I would compare unit rates, standing charges, tariff length and exit fees. For broadband, I would also check speed, contract length and any scheduled price increases, while mobile comparisons need to account for data allowances, roaming, network coverage and any device payments. A lower annual figure only helps if the replacement still meets your household's needs.
Does Nous switch your bills automatically?
Nous can arrange eligible switches, but you choose how much authority you want to give it. There are three savings modes: Manual, Balanced, and Freedom. You can change the selected mode through your household dashboard if you want to change the level of assistance later.
Mode | What Nous does | What you do |
Manual | Monitors services and flags possible savings | Review the proposal and arrange any change yourself |
Balanced | Looks for savings and handles more of the switching process | Keep your account information current and monitor proposals |
Freedom | Gives Nous broader authority to find and arrange savings | Delegate more of the bill-management decisions |
Manual is the option I would look at if you mainly want Nous as a monitoring and comparison tool. Balanced provides more assistance with switching, while Freedom gives Nous wider authority to act on the household's behalf. Nous says that around 80% of new members start in Balanced mode, though that is the company's own figure and doesn't mean it's the right setting for every household.
This part is worth understanding before you sign up because there have been recent Trustpilot reviews from people who said they were unclear about how much authority they had given Nous to arrange a switch. Nous responded to at least one such review by saying the user had selected an option instructing it to move the tariff, while another reviewer said a change happened when they had expected more control. Reading the mode and proposal screens carefully matters more than assuming that every setting works in the same way.
Which household bills can Nous manage?
Nous currently lists energy, broadband, mobile and mortgages among the services it can manage. Home and car insurance are still described as coming later, so I wouldn't treat those as fully available until Nous confirms they are live. The amount of action Nous can take also differs because changing an energy tariff is very different from reviewing a mortgage.
Nous Free manages up to two services for one UK address. That could be enough if you mainly want it watching energy and broadband, for example, while Premium removes the two-service limit. Premium also allows additional household members to have their own logins.
If you already manage most of your bills yourself, I wouldn't pay simply because Premium can hold more of them. The better question is whether the additional management, household access, support and rewards would save enough money or time to justify the subscription. Starting with Free lets you answer that without paying first.
Is Nous free and how much does Nous Premium cost?
Yes, Nous has a permanent Free tier costing £0. It currently manages up to two household services, allows a single householder login, includes savings modes and reminders, and provides email support. Nous says no card details are required to start using Free.
Nous Premium currently costs £6.99 a month, which would be £83.88 over 12 months if the price stayed unchanged. Premium offers unlimited services, plus unlimited householder logins, WhatsApp support, and cash rewards. There is no minimum Premium contract or exit fee, and Nous says you can cancel the subscription at any time.
Feature | Nous Free | Nous Premium |
Monthly price | £0 | £6.99 |
Services managed | Up to 2 | Unlimited |
Householder logins | 1 | Unlimited |
Savings modes | Included | Included |
Smart reminders | Included | Included |
Support | ||
Cash rewards | No | Yes |
Nous-stated typical annual saving | £310 | £960 |
The final row needs some context. The £310 and £960 amounts are Nous's own typical savings figures, not a promise that every household will save those sums. My own experience shows why that distinction matters: Nous found hundreds of pounds in potential savings for me, but my existing contract terms meant I couldn't immediately turn all of them into real savings.
Are the savings shown by Nous guaranteed?
No. A saving shown by Nous should be treated as an estimate based on the information it has and the terms of the proposed alternative. Your real savings can change due to usage, prices, contract terms, exit fees, and any rewards that form part of the calculation.
My own £300 energy figure is a good example. On paper it was a meaningful difference, but paying an exit fee to leave the deal I already had could have reduced or removed the advantage. Waiting until the contract is closer to its end can yield a very different calculation.
This is why I wouldn't judge Nous solely by the largest number displayed on the account. Open the proposal, compare the total cost, and make sure you understand where the savings come from. A £300 estimated saving and £300 actually left in your bank account are not automatically the same thing.
How do Nous Premium cash rewards work?
Nous Premium members can earn cash rewards when an eligible switch generates commission from a provider. Nous says it returns provider commissions to Premium members as rewards rather than retaining them as switching income. Those rewards are separate from any direct savings from switching to a cheaper service.
The rewards don't necessarily become available in one lump sum. Nous says they usually accrue over roughly 12 months while you remain with the provider and continue as a Premium member, with available rewards shown through your account. They can be withdrawn or used towards the Premium subscription.
If you cancel Premium, Nous says you keep rewards already accrued, although you stop earning further Premium rewards. Closing the entire Nous account is different, so I would withdraw any available balance and check the account-closure terms before shutting everything down.
Could switching through Nous mean missing cashback?
Potentially, yes. If Nous handles a switch for you, the transaction hasn't started through a tracked link from a cashback site such as TopCashback or Quidco. That means I wouldn't assume you can also collect the separate cashback those sites might advertise for the same switch.
This matters to me because I regularly use cashback when changing providers or buying services online. My guide to the best UK cashback apps and websites explains why I always consider the full value of a deal rather than just its advertised cashback. A £100 cashback offer isn't necessarily better if the underlying contract costs more.
Manual mode gives you more room to compare a Nous proposal with deals you can find on your own. The same tariff may not be available through a cashback site, and Nous says it can access exclusive offers, so I wouldn't assume you can replicate the proposed deal elsewhere. Compare the contract cost, any Nous reward, external cashback and exit fees before choosing which route actually leaves you better off.
Is Nous legit and safe to use?
Nous is a genuine UK service operated under the trading name of Eighteen and a Half Limited. The Nous website gives the company number 13236360 and states that Nous is an Appointed Representative of Stubben Edge & Partners, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. That regulatory relationship relates to relevant regulated activities and shouldn't be read as the FCA guaranteeing that Nous will save you money.
If you choose to connect a bank account via Open Banking, Nous's current terms state that it does not collect or store your online banking credentials. Those terms currently name Yapily Connect Ltd as the Open Banking provider and state that the FCA regulates Yapily Connect. Nous also says consent to Open Banking access can be withdrawn through your bank, the provider or your Nous account settings.
Nous's FAQ says your money cannot be moved or transferred through its Open Banking access and that information is protected with 256-bit encryption. Its privacy statement says it doesn't make money by selling users' data and explains that household and account information is processed to provide and develop the service. As with any service that receives financial and household information, I would read the privacy statement and decide whether the requested access is something I am comfortable granting.
When I checked Trustpilot, Nous had a score of 4.7 out of 5 from more than 1,200 reviews. The vast majority were positive, with people frequently mentioning savings and an easy switching process, although there were also negative reviews about switching decisions and individual service issues. That mix is more useful to me than quoting the score alone because no financial service should be judged purely by an average star rating.
Has Martin Lewis recommended Nous?
I've been asked a few times whether Martin Lewis has recommended Nous through MoneySavingExpert. I haven't found an official Martin Lewis or MoneySavingExpert editorial recommendation for the service, so I wouldn't describe Nous as being recommended by Martin Lewis. There is a discussion about Nous on the MoneySavingExpert Forum, but that is a conversation between individual forum users rather than an endorsement from Martin Lewis or the MoneySavingExpert editorial team.
That distinction matters because a MoneySavingExpert Forum page can appear in Google results alongside the main MoneySavingExpert website. Seeing the Nous name on the forum doesn't mean the service has received an official MSE review or recommendation. If that changes later, I can update this review to reflect it.
What are the main advantages and drawbacks of Nous?
The biggest advantage for me is that Nous can keep household contract information together and give you another check on whether a better deal exists. The Free tier lets you try that with two services without paying a subscription, while the different savings modes give you some choice over how involved Nous becomes in changing providers. My own test also showed that it can identify worthwhile-looking savings even when I thought my existing deals were already reasonably competitive.
The drawbacks are more individual. A saving may not be usable immediately because of an existing fixed contract, family mobile arrangements can make a change more complicated, and Nous isn't promising to compare every tariff available across the entire market. Letting Nous arrange a switch can also mean missing a separate cashback opportunity that might have been available if you had arranged the move yourself.
Premium adds another calculation because £6.99 a month is still a household expense. Someone using several managed services, cash rewards and additional household logins may get more from it. At the same time, somebody who already checks every renewal and only wants one or two bills monitored may find Free enough. I would make that decision after seeing what the Free account actually finds for your household.
Is Nous worth it?
For me, yes, Nous is worth using as a free bill-monitoring and comparison tool. It identified more than £400 in potential savings across the services I checked, including roughly £300 on energy, which gave me useful information even though I couldn't act on all of it immediately. I haven't needed to pay for Premium to determine whether the service can find opportunities relevant to my household.
The part I would not do is hand over every decision without looking at the details. Check when your existing contract ends, calculate any exit fee and make sure the replacement service still provides the features you need. If Nous finds a supplier you haven't used before, I would also look at its customer reviews and service record before authorising the change.
I also think Manual mode deserves consideration for anyone who enjoys doing their own comparisons. It gives you the monitoring and prompts without committing you to having Nous arrange the switch, leaving you free to compare cashback and other routes before deciding. Someone who values having more of the administration handled may prefer Balanced or Freedom.
Premium is harder for me to recommend without knowing how much value a particular household will get from it. At £6.99 a month, I would want the additional services, rewards and time saved to justify £83.88 over a full year. Starting with Free is the easiest way to find out whether Nous is useful enough for you before making a regular payment.
Want to try Nous?
You can try Nous through my link and start with the Free tier, which currently supports up to 2 household services without a monthly payment. I may receive a small payment if you use my Nous link, at no extra cost to you, and that commercial arrangement hasn't changed the findings in this review.
I would begin with the bills you are most interested in checking and see what Nous identifies, then decide whether Premium has any value for you. If it suggests a saving, compare the proposed contract with what you already have, including any exit fees, cashback or linked household services. That should give you a much clearer picture of what the headline saving would really be worth.
Frequently asked questions
What is Nous?
Nous is a UK household bill management service that monitors bills for energy, broadband, mobile, and mortgages. It can flag cheaper alternatives and, depending on the savings mode you choose, can also handle eligible switches for you.
Is Nous legit?
Nous is a genuine UK service operated by Eighteen and a Half Limited. Nous states that it is an Appointed Representative of Stubben Edge & Partners, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
Is Nous safe to use?
Nous says it does not collect or store your online banking credentials when you connect an account through Open Banking. Its current terms name FCA-regulated Yapily Connect Ltd as its Open Banking provider, while Nous says it protects data with 256-bit encryption.
Is Nous free?
Yes. Nous Free costs £0 and currently supports up to two household services at one UK address, with a single householder login and email support. You can remain on the Free tier without upgrading to Premium.
How much does Nous Premium cost?
Nous Premium currently costs £6.99 a month. It adds unlimited managed services, unlimited householder logins, WhatsApp support and cash rewards when eligible switches generate rewards.
Does Nous switch bills automatically?
It can, depending on the savings mode you select. Manual mode flags possible savings but leaves you to make the switch, while Balanced and Freedom modes give Nous more involvement in arranging eligible changes.
Are Nous savings guaranteed?
No. Savings shown by Nous are estimates, and the amount you actually save can depend on your existing contract, exit fees, future usage, tariff terms and any rewards included in the proposal.
Is Nous worth it?
I think Nous Free is worth trying because it costs nothing and can show whether there may be cheaper options for bills you already pay. In my case it identified more than £400 in possible savings, although existing contracts meant I couldn't take advantage of all of them immediately.
Has Martin Lewis recommended Nous?
I haven't found an official editorial recommendation from Martin Lewis or MoneySavingExpert for Nous. There has been discussion about Nous on the MoneySavingExpert Forum, but individual forum users write those posts and shouldn't be treated as a Martin Lewis recommendation.
