This GloBird Energy review covers the Melbourne retailer’s plans for solar and battery homes in Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia and south-east Queensland as at November 2026. GloBird’s battery plan, ZEROHERO, charges fixed time-of-use rates with three free hours a day (12pm to 3pm), pays a $1 daily credit for staying off the grid from 6pm to 9pm, and pays 10c per kWh (including the feed-in tariff) on the first 15 kWh exported in that window. Midday solar exports earn 0c.
It suits households with a battery that lasts from evening to the next midday, and solar-only homes far less. GloBird Energy holds 4.8 stars from roughly 7,700 Google reviews, 4.6 from 3,015 on ProductReview.com.au and 2.1 from 55 on Trustpilot, all checked November 2026. This is independent desk research; GloBird Energy was not contacted and did not pay.
Key facts
- GloBird Energy Pty Ltd (ABN 68 600 285 827) is an Australian private company based in Ringwood, Victoria, with an ABN active since 1 July 2014, according to ABN Lookup checked in November 2026.
- GloBird Energy’s ZEROHERO plan charges 0c per kWh for the first 50 kWh of grid electricity used between 12pm and 3pm each day for customers who signed up from 1 July 2026.
- GloBird Energy’s ZEROHERO plan pays a $1 per day credit, up to $365 a year, when grid imports stay at or below 0.03 kWh per hour between 6pm and 9pm, according to GloBird fact sheets effective 1 July 2026.
- GloBird Energy’s ZEROHERO Super Export Credit is 10c per kWh on the first 15 kWh exported between 6pm and 9pm each day, inclusive of any other feed-in tariff, which caps that credit at $1.50 a day, according to the United Energy and Ausgrid fact sheets read on 12 November 2026.
- GloBird Energy’s ZEROHERO feed-in tariff outside the Super Export Credit is 2c per kWh from 4pm to 11pm and 0c per kWh at all other times, according to the same fact sheets.
- GloBird Energy’s optional virtual power plant add-on pays $1 per kWh exported during critical peak events and works with 11 battery brands as at November 2026, including Sungrow, Sigenergy, AlphaESS, Anker and FoxESS, but not Tesla.
How GloBird Energy works
GloBird Energy is a conventional retailer with published rates, not a wholesale pass-through retailer. You pay a daily supply charge plus set usage rates, and none of the plans we checked had a contract term or exit fee.
The Australian Energy Regulator’s register shows GloBird Energy Pty Ltd was authorised as an electricity retailer on 22 March 2018. GloBird’s residential tariffs page, checked November 2026, lists several plans, including these for solar and battery homes:
| GloBird Energy plan | What it is | Who it targets |
|---|---|---|
| FOUR4FREE | 0c usage from 11am to 3pm (fair use cap applies) | Solar-only homes and daytime users |
| ZEROHERO | Free 12pm to 3pm window plus evening credits | Solar and battery homes |
| WHOLESAVE | Wholesale-linked pricing with a $22 a month membership fee | Engaged, higher-income customers who accept price risk |
Every fact sheet we read says GloBird may change rates and feed-in tariffs with written notice.
GloBird ZEROHERO rates by state
ZEROHERO uses the same time bands in every state, but the cents per kWh differ sharply by network. The table shows the rates on GloBird’s own fact sheets for the plan without controlled load, read on 12 November 2026. All figures include GST.
| Network (state) | Supply charge | Peak, 4pm to 11pm | 12pm to 3pm, first 50 kWh | All other times | Fact sheet date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Energy (VIC) | 140.80c a day | 39.60c per kWh | 0c per kWh | 31.90c per kWh | 1 July 2026 |
| Ausgrid (NSW) | 181.50c a day | 59.40c per kWh | 0c per kWh | 51.70c per kWh | 1 July 2026 |
| SA Power Networks (SA) | 203.50c a day | 57.20c per kWh | 0c per kWh | 49.50c per kWh | 1 July 2026 |
| Energex (QLD) | 198.00c a day | 49.50c per kWh | 0c per kWh | 36.85c per kWh | 17 September 2026 |
The column to study is “all other times”, which covers 11pm to midday and sits near 50c per kWh in New South Wales and South Australia. If your battery runs flat at 2am, every kWh until noon costs that rate. Our guide to peak and off-peak electricity times explains how this differs from most time-of-use tariffs.
GloBird Energy for solar owners
GloBird’s solar feed-in tariff is weighted to the evening, so a solar-only home earns little from exports. On ZEROHERO it is 2c per kWh between 4pm and 11pm and 0c at all other times, and a typical rooftop system exports mostly between 10am and 3pm, so most exports earn nothing.
Without a battery you cannot join ZEROHERO. The closest fit is FOUR4FREE, which on the United Energy fact sheet published 1 November 2026 charges 0c for the first 30 kWh used between 11am and 3pm and pays 5c per kWh on the first 30 kWh exported between 4pm and 11pm (3c after that, 0c otherwise). That rewards daytime loads, not exporting; compare offers in our solar feed-in tariff tracker. We found no export charge or negative feed-in price on any GloBird fact sheet we read.
GloBird Energy for battery owners
ZEROHERO is GloBird’s battery plan, and it works with any battery brand because you schedule the battery yourself. GloBird only takes remote control if you opt in to its virtual power plant add-on.
A virtual power plant (VPP) is a group of home batteries one operator can control together; see our VPP guide.
The three core features on GloBird’s plan page are the free window, the $1 daily credit and the Super Export Credit (the plan page does not publish its rate; the fact sheets give 10c, inclusive of the 2c feed-in tariff). The optional VPP add-on pays $1 per kWh exported and 5c per kWh imported during critical peak events, which GloBird calls at its discretion.
GloBird’s VPP page lists add-on brands as AlphaESS, Anker, FoxESS, Neovolt, Redback, SAJ, Sigenergy, SolaX, Solis with Dyness, Sungrow and WHES. GloBird’s separate VPP FAQ omits FoxESS, so FoxESS owners should confirm. We have reviewed the Sungrow SBR battery, Sigenergy SigenStor, AlphaESS SMILE-G3 and Anker Solix X1. Tesla is not on the list, so a Tesla Powerwall 3 gets the three core features but not critical peak credits.
GloBird states a qualifying system needs an inverter of 3 kW to 30 kW and a battery of 3 kWh to 100 kWh; homes with life support equipment, customers with an ABN and embedded network premises are excluded.
The $1 credit threshold is tight: 0.03 kWh per hour is 30 watt-hours. GloBird’s own FAQ says an oven, air conditioner or EV charger that pushes demand above the inverter’s output can cost you that day’s credit, even with a full battery.
Does GloBird control your battery?
Not on the core plan; on the optional VPP add-on, yes. GloBird’s VPP terms (clause 4.1) allow it to take control of the system without prior notice, and clause 4.4 says its right to use the system prevails over yours. GloBird says you can opt out at any time.
GloBird and the NSW VPP incentive
GloBird says ZEROHERO is an approved way to claim the New South Wales and South Australian VPP incentives, and its rebate page says GloBird must be able to connect to your battery first. Read the control terms above before you apply. Our NSW solar rebate guide covers the incentive itself.
What it costs: a worked example
On a day when everything goes right, a Melbourne battery home on ZEROHERO pays about 55c. On a day when the battery falls short, the same home pays about $4.51. It uses the United Energy rates above.
Assumptions: a 10 kWh battery topped up from the grid in the free window, no controlled load, no VPP events, midday exports earning 0c. This is our calculation, not a GloBird quote.
| Item | Good day | Missed day |
|---|---|---|
| Supply charge | $1.41 | $1.41 |
| 12pm to 3pm imports (8 kWh at 0c) | $0.00 | $0.00 |
| Other-times imports at 31.90c | 2 kWh, $0.64 | 6 kWh, $1.91 |
| Peak imports at 39.60c | 0 kWh, $0.00 | 3 kWh, $1.19 |
| ZEROHERO credit | minus $1.00 | $0.00 |
| Super Export Credit at 10c | 5 kWh, minus $0.50 | $0.00 |
| Net cost for the day | $0.55 | $4.51 |
With 300 good days and 65 missed days the bill is about $457 a year on these rates (our arithmetic, supply charge and usage only). The two daily credits cap at $2.50 a day. Exporting is only worth 10c per kWh: if selling 5 kWh at 6pm leaves the battery empty before noon, you buy it back at 31.90c in Victoria or about 50c in New South Wales and South Australia.
What customers praise
Positive reviews on ProductReview.com.au (4.6 stars from 3,015 reviews) and Google (4.8 from roughly 7,700), both November 2026, repeat a few themes.
- Helpful staff, simple sign-up and lower bills than a previous retailer, with ZEROHERO and FOUR4FREE often named.
Common GloBird Energy complaints
Negative reviews on ProductReview.com.au and Trustpilot (2.1 from 55 reviews, November 2026) cluster around these patterns: long phone waits, rate increases some months after joining, billing disputes (estimated reads, a paper bill fee) and confusion over plan conditions.
GloBird replies to reviews on ProductReview.com.au; we saw no replies on its far smaller Trustpilot page.
Risks to understand before switching
The main risk with GloBird Energy is that the plan can change: the fact sheets say rates can change, and clause 3.8 of the VPP terms lets GloBird reduce any credit or change any time window or threshold whenever it can change prices.
This has already happened: customers who joined before 1 July 2026 have an 11am to 2pm free window, and those who joined from that date have 12pm to 3pm, according to GloBird’s plan page.
Other risks are the high rate from 11pm to noon, the 0c midday feed-in, the strict credit threshold and, on the add-on, GloBird’s priority control of the battery.
We found no public enforcement action against GloBird Energy in our searches of the Essential Services Commission and Australian Energy Regulator websites as at November 2026. The one decision we found was a product exemption: on 17 December 2025 the Essential Services Commission exempted the WHOLESAVE plan from the once-a-year price change rule.
GloBird Energy vs alternatives
GloBird ZEROHERO is the self-managed option among plans for battery homes. GloBird and Amber figures are from their own sites in November 2026; Origin and ENGIE figures are from WATTever’s VPP comparison (updated 30 September 2026), and ENGIE says amounts vary by state.
| Retailer and plan | Pricing model | Published reward | Lock-in |
|---|---|---|---|
| GloBird ZEROHERO | Fixed time-of-use rates | Free 12pm to 3pm, $1 a day credit, 10c on first 15 kWh evening export | None |
| Amber Electric | Wholesale pass-through plus $25 a month | Live wholesale price on imports and exports, automated by SmartShift | None |
| Origin Loop | Origin plan plus VPP | $200 sign-up credit, $1 per kWh in events, 200 kWh a year cap | None |
| ENGIE VPP Advantage | ENGIE plan plus VPP | $100 to $300 sign-up by state, about $15 to $20 a month, 400 kWh rolling cap | No lock-in period |
Our Amber Electric review covers the wholesale model.
Who it suits, and who should avoid it
GloBird Energy’s ZEROHERO plan suits a household with a battery big enough to cover the evening and overnight, modest evening loads, and willingness to set a charge schedule once.
Look elsewhere if you have solar and no battery, a small battery, big overnight loads such as EV charging, or want a locked price.
Compare battery installers in the Solar Cobber directory.
FAQ
Is GloBird Energy good?
GloBird Energy suits battery owners who can avoid grid power from 6pm until midday, and solar-only homes less. It holds 4.8 stars from roughly 7,700 Google reviews and 4.6 from 3,015 ProductReview.com.au reviews as at November 2026.
What is GloBird ZEROHERO?
GloBird ZEROHERO is an electricity plan for homes with solar, a battery and a smart meter in Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia and the Energex area of Queensland. As at November 2026 it gives new customers free grid power from 12pm to 3pm, a $1 daily credit for importing almost nothing from 6pm to 9pm, and 10c per kWh on the first 15 kWh exported then.
What is the GloBird solar feed-in tariff?
On ZEROHERO the GloBird solar feed-in tariff is 2c per kWh from 4pm to 11pm and 0c at all other times, with a Super Export Credit lifting the first 15 kWh exported from 6pm to 9pm to 10c. Rates were read from GloBird fact sheets in November 2026.
Is GloBird ZEROHERO a VPP?
Only if you opt in to the add-on: GloBird describes ZEROHERO as a VPP product, but the core features do not involve GloBird controlling your battery.
Which batteries work with GloBird ZEROHERO?
Any brand works with the core features if the inverter is 3 kW to 30 kW and the battery 3 kWh to 100 kWh. The optional VPP add-on is limited to the brands listed above as at November 2026.
Does GloBird Energy have a lock-in contract or exit fees?
No. Every GloBird Energy fact sheet we read in November 2026 shows no contract term and no exit fee, with a 10 business day cooling-off period.
Sources
- GloBird Energy ZEROHERO price fact sheets by network (United Energy, Powercor, Ausgrid, SA Power Networks and Energex sheets read 12 November 2026)
- GloBird Energy ZEROHERO plan page
- GloBird Energy residential tariffs and fact sheets
- GloBird Energy VPP FAQ and eligibility
- GloBird Energy VPP terms and conditions
- GloBird Energy: join the virtual power plant
- GloBird Energy VPP rebate page
- Australian Energy Regulator: GloBird Energy Pty Ltd authorised electricity retailer
- ABN Lookup: GloBird Energy Pty Ltd, ABN 68 600 285 827
- Essential Services Commission decision on GloBird’s WHOLESAVE exemption
- ProductReview.com.au: GloBird Energy and Trustpilot: GloBird Energy
- Amber Electric and WATTever VPP comparison (updated 30 September 2026)
About this review
This review was written by the Solar Cobber editorial team from independent desk research checked in November 2026. We did not contact GloBird Energy, and no retailer paid for or reviewed this article. Solar Cobber is a free directory that may earn referral or advertising fees from installers, and commercial relationships never affect our content. Rates differ by network and change often, so check the fact sheet for your address before switching. This is general information, not financial advice. If you spot an error, tell us through our contact page.
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