How to set up a Bright account and get your half-hourly smart meter data

To compare heat pump tariffs properly you need your half-hourly smart meter data — the record of exactly how much electricity you used in each 30-minute slot. The easiest free way to get it is the Bright app, made by Glowmarkt. This guide walks through setting up Bright from scratch, then connecting it to Heat Pump Tariffs so your data flows in automatically.

It's genuinely straightforward, but there's one thing to know up front: after you set Bright up, your half-hourly history can take a day or two to appear. That's normal and not a fault — we'll explain why below.

Once you've got Bright working, you can register for a free Heat Pump Tariffs account and compare every UK tariff against your real usage. For the bigger picture of how that comparison works, see our how it works guide.

What is Bright, and do I qualify?

Bright is a free app from Hildebrand/Glowmarkt that reads your smart meter's data directly through the national smart meter network (the DCC), without needing your energy supplier's involvement. If you have a SMETS2 meter — or a first-generation SMETS1 meter that's been enrolled into the DCC — you can access your half-hourly data through Bright for free, after a quick identity verification step.

You don't need any extra hardware for half-hourly data. (Glowmarkt do sell an in-home display device for real-time, second-by-second readings, but that's optional and not needed for tariff comparison.)

Step 1: Download the app and register

Download Bright from the App Store (iPhone/iPad) or Google Play (Android). Search for "Bright" by Hildebrand/Glowmarkt.

Open the app and register an account with your email and a password. Make a note of your username and password — you'll need them later to connect Bright to Heat Pump Tariffs, so don't let your phone auto-fill and forget them.

Step 2: Add and verify your smart meter

Inside the app, follow the prompts to add your smart meter. Because Bright accesses your data through the DCC, you'll be asked to complete an identity verification step — this is a legal requirement for accessing smart meter data, and Bright manages it within the app.

Work through the verification when prompted (selecting "yes" to proceed and confirming the details it asks for). Once that's done, your meter is registered with Bright and it will begin pulling your data. If a prompt doesn't apply to your setup, the app guides you back to the right path — just follow its on-screen instructions.

Step 3: Wait for your data to populate

This is the step that confuses people, so it's worth being clear. After setup, Bright doesn't show your full history instantly. Typically you'll see the most recent day or two within a few hours, and the rest of your history fills in over the following days as it's retrieved through the DCC. Some users see a full year appear within a few days; for others it takes a little longer.

If your data looks sparse immediately after setup, that's expected — give it 24–48 hours before worrying. There's nothing more you need to do; it populates on its own.

Step 4: Connect Bright to Heat Pump Tariffs

Once Bright is set up and showing data, you can link it to your Heat Pump Tariffs account so your readings sync in automatically — no manual exports.

1. Register or log in to your Heat Pump Tariffs account.
2. Go to the Bright connection setup.
3. Enter the Bright username and password you created in Step 1.
4. If your account has more than one property, select the right one; if your property has more than one electricity meter, select the correct meter.
5. Save the connection.

That's it. From then on, your half-hourly readings are pulled in and kept up to date in the background, and any tariff comparison you run uses your real, current usage. The connection uses an authentication token that renews automatically, so you won't need to keep re-entering your details.

A note on data security

Bright is operated by Hildebrand, which is ISO 27001 certified and an approved DCC user — the verification data you provide is held in their secure system. On the Heat Pump Tariffs side, your readings are used only to run your comparisons; we don't sell or share your data, and we use no third-party tracking. You can revoke the Bright connection from your account at any time.

Frequently asked questions

Is Bright free? Yes. Accessing your half-hourly smart meter data through Bright is free for SMETS2 (and DCC-enrolled SMETS1) meters. You don't need to buy any hardware for tariff comparison.

Why can't I see my data straight after setup? Half-hourly history is retrieved through the DCC and populates over time — usually the latest day or two within hours, and the rest over the following day or two. This is normal; just wait.

Do I need a smart meter? Yes — Bright reads data from a working smart meter. If you don't have one, or yours isn't sending half-hourly readings, contact your energy supplier about getting one installed or enabled.

What if I have solar panels? Bright can show both import and export data. If your export isn't appearing, Glowmarkt's support team can usually fix it — email them at support@glowmarkt.com.

Can I disconnect it later? Yes. You can revoke the Bright connection from your Heat Pump Tariffs account whenever you like, and your data stops syncing.

Do I have to use Bright? No. If you'd rather not connect an account, you can download your half-hourly data as a CSV from your supplier or Bright and upload it directly instead — the comparison works exactly the same way.

Get started

Setting up Bright takes a few minutes, plus a day or two for your data to populate. Once it's flowing, create a free Heat Pump Tariffs account and connect it — and you'll see exactly what every UK heat pump and EV tariff would cost you on your real usage, rather than a guess.