How to Read a Gas Meter: Dial, Digital and Imperial Meters

Your supplier needs regular readings from your gas meter to work out your bills, and if you do not send them, your usage will be estimated¹. That single fact is why reading your own meter still matters, even in a country where millions of homes now have smart meters. An estimate is a guess based on your past use, and it can sit well above or below what you actually burned this winter.

The good news is that reading a gas meter is a two-minute job once you know which numbers count. Most gas meters installed in the UK are metric, showing readings in cubic metres (m³) with five numbers to read². Older imperial meters show readings in cubic feet (ft³) with four numbers². Dial meters, with their clock-like faces, take a little more care, especially when a pointer sits between two numbers.

This page covers all three types, plus smart meters, and the safety checks worth making while you are at the meter box.

The case for checking your meter yourself

A smart meter automatically sends your electricity and gas meter readings to your supplier, which means bills are based on actual usage rather than estimates and manual reading submissions are no longer needed⁶. But automatic readings are not guaranteed in every situation. Some older smart meters cannot send automatic readings after a supplier switch, and the meter then goes back to behaving like a traditional one until it is exchanged or updated⁷. Smart Energy GB also notes there may be times when a manual reading is needed: when switching supplier, when checking your usage, or when resolving an account issue⁸.

There are households for whom supplier help exists. In Northern Ireland, the regulator's code of practice for consumers in vulnerable circumstances means your supplier can arrange to read your meter on your behalf, free of charge, at least once every three months, if you cannot read it yourself due to age, disability or terminal or chronic illness⁹. Elsewhere, suppliers offer similar services through their priority services registers.

Two situations make a manual reading genuinely valuable. If you are disputing your meter's accuracy and an independent test is arranged, it is best to note your meter reading and serial number on the day of the visit¹⁰. And if your energy supplier goes out of business, Ofgem's advice is to take a meter reading as soon as you can and keep a record of it, so that you are billed correctly by the supplier appointed to take over your account¹¹.

The serial number matters more than most people realise. It is the number that ties the readings you submit to your account rather than someone else's, and it is what you check when a bill looks wrong. If you are moving home or a supplier fails, the reading plus the serial number is the evidence that protects you.

Digital metric meters: noting the five figures you need

Most gas meters are metric, showing readings in cubic metres (m³) and having five numbers to read². A digital metric meter has an electronic or digital display showing 5 numbers, then a decimal point, followed by some more numbers¹.

The rule is simple: record the five numbers from left to right, including any zeros, but do not include the numbers in red or any numbers after the decimal point¹². The digits after the decimal point, sometimes shown in red, are fractions of a cubic metre and are ignored for billing¹. For both gas and electricity digital meters, you usually use the first 5 digits from the left for your reading¹³.

• Write down: the first five digits from the left, including leading zeros.
• Ignore: any digits shown in red, and everything after the decimal point.
• Check the unit: metric meters are measured in cubic metres (m3)¹³.

The distinction between gas and electricity is worth a line, because households often confuse the two. Electric has five digits to read, and gas has four on older imperial meters, though metric gas meters also use five¹⁴. If your gas meter shows four digits before the decimal point rather than five, it is likely imperial, covered below.

Digital imperial gas meters are read the same way, except there are four numbers and the unit of measurement is cubic feet (ft³)¹². A digital imperial meter has an electronic or digital display showing 4 black or white numbers, followed by 2 numbers shown in red: write down the first 4 numbers from left to right and ignore the rest¹. Imperial meters are older and increasingly rare, but plenty are still in service, and the conversion from cubic feet to kWh differs from the metric calculation, so it is worth telling your supplier which type you have. For how the units become pounds, see converting gas units to kWh.

Dial meters: how to read the four principal dials

A gas dial meter has 4 or more dials, each turning to point at a number between 0 and 9¹. They look like small clock faces side by side, and the dials alternate in direction: one turns clockwise, the next anticlockwise, and so on. That alternation is why the reading method feels counterintuitive at first.

Read the first 4 dials from left to right, and ignore the large dials or red dials¹. Dials without numbers or hands should be disregarded altogether¹³. Start with the dial on the left and write down the number that the pointer has just gone past, not the number it is nearest to⁷. The Centre for Sustainable Energy gives a worked example whose full reading is 7120, built up one dial at a time from the left⁷.

The tricky case is a pointer sitting between two numbers. Read dials from left to right, and if the pointer is between two numbers, give the lower number³. So a pointer between 4 and 5 is a 4, and a pointer between 9 and 0 is a 9, because the dial has not yet completed its revolution back to 0.

When a pointer rests directly on a number, look at the next dial to the right before committing. If that next dial has passed 9, the pointer on the earlier dial has not truly reached the number it appears to touch, so reduce the number you wrote by 1¹³. This is the single most common source of wrong readings, and it is covered in more detail in what to do when a gas meter dial is between 9 and 0.

Gas dial meters have four or more dials, whereas electricity dial meters have five or more⁶. As with digital meters, gas has four digits and electric has five¹⁴. Imperial gas meters, whether dial or some analogue types, show readings in cubic feet (ft³) and have four numbers².

A worked example, using the method above:

1. Dial 1 (leftmost): pointer just past 7, and the next dial is not on 9, so write 7.
2. Dial 2: pointer just past 1, so write 1.
3. Dial 3: pointer just past 2, so write 2.
4. Dial 4: pointer directly over 0, and the dial to its right has passed 9, so write 0 rather than 1.

The reading is 7120⁷. Write the digits down in order, with the meter's serial number beside them if you are keeping records.

Smart meters: finding your reading on the display

A smart meter automatically sends your electricity and gas meter readings to your supplier¹⁵, and the Welsh Government's guidance describes the same function: smart meters measure your gas and electricity usage and send the data directly to your energy supplier¹⁶. But the meter still displays a reading, and knowing how to call it up is useful when you switch supplier, check a bill, or lose the automatic connection.

On your gas smart meter, the screen will flash or show the word VOLUME or METER INDEX, and a number followed by M3⁷. Most gas smart meters in Great Britain show your reading as numbers followed by m3⁴, and your reading will be a number followed by m3, so make sure you note the unit when you check¹². To avoid incorrect submissions, record only the numbers before the decimal point, ignoring leading zeros⁴.

The button sequences differ by meter design, so match yours to the list below⁴:

For electricity smart meters with A and B buttons, the sequences are similar but the screen shows KWH rather than M3, and those are covered on how to read a smart meter.

One practical problem is worth knowing about. An Energy Ombudsman case study records a consumer who, due to the location of the meter screen on the new gas meter, was unable to check the reading on the meter¹⁷. If a smart meter is installed somewhere you cannot safely see the screen, raise it with your supplier at installation rather than afterwards; the in-home display shows usage but the meter itself remains the record your supplier relies on.

Staying safe with gas at the meter

Reading a meter puts you in front of your gas installation a few times a year, which is a natural moment to look for warning signs. This is not a substitute for professional checks, but it is free vigilance.

The core rule is annual. The Health and Safety Executive strongly advises that all gas appliances, flues and pipework are installed, regularly maintained and serviced at least annually by a Gas Safe registered engineer⁵. For landlords the duty is a legal one: a gas safety check must be done every year on each gas appliance and flue provided to tenants¹⁸, and HSE advises that gas appliances and flues are regularly checked for safety at least once every 12 months¹⁹. Tenants' own appliances and flues should also have a safety check at least once every 12 months by a Gas Safe registered installer²⁰. You can set a free annual reminder at staygassafe.co.uk²¹.

While you are at the meter, look for these signs of an unsafe appliance:

• Lazy yellow or orange flames instead of crisp blue ones²¹. Fuel-effect gas fires are the exception, as they are designed to display a yellow flame²².
• Soot, black marks or stains on or around the appliance²¹.
• Pilot lights that frequently blow out²².
• Too much condensation in the room²¹.

The stakes are real. Every year about 14 people die from carbon monoxide poisoning caused by gas appliances and flues which have not been properly installed or maintained²². Poorly maintained, badly installed or faulty gas appliances can cause gas leaks, fire, explosions and carbon monoxide poisoning²³.

Always use a Gas Safe registered engineer to fit, fix and check your appliances²⁴. Gas Safe Register is the official list of businesses and engineers qualified to work on gas appliances in Great Britain and Northern Ireland²⁵. You can check an engineer's registration before they start work, and how to check an engineer is Gas Safe registered explains how.

Timing your meter reading and using it properly

As a rule of thumb, submit a meter reading at least once a month, ideally on the same day of the month, such as the first²⁶. Monthly readings keep your bills close to your actual use and give you a running record if a dispute arises. Sending a gas reading is the same process as sending an electricity one, so once you have done one, you have done both²⁶.

There are also moments when a reading is more than routine:

• Before and after switching supplier, so each bills you for the right period. See switching energy supplier step by step.
• When moving home, on the day you leave and the day you arrive. See meter readings when moving home.
• When your supplier fails, as soon as you can, keeping a record so the replacement supplier bills you correctly¹¹.
• When a bill or estimate looks wrong, so you can challenge it with evidence. See how to report a faulty or inaccurate meter.

If you have a prepayment meter, the rules differ slightly. Under the regulations governing prepayment supply, when recovering ongoing gas consumption the supplier will make reasonable endeavours to obtain gas meter readings at least every six months²⁷. That is a floor, not a target: your own monthly readings still give a clearer picture.

Once you have the reading, the submission process is the same regardless of fuel: send it through your supplier's app or website, or by phone. How to submit meter readings covers the routes in detail, and how to take a meter reading covers the general method if you want the short version.

What meter readings can and cannot achieve for self reliance

Reading your own meter is a small act of control, but it is a real one. It replaces your supplier's estimate with your own measurement, which means your bills reflect what you actually used rather than what a model predicted. It gives you the evidence to challenge a bill, to check a meter's accuracy, and to protect yourself when a supplier fails and your account is passed to a stranger¹¹. A household that reads its meter monthly knows its own consumption in a way no estimated bill can provide.

It is worth being clear about the limits. Reading the meter does not reduce what you use; it only measures it. The meter itself belongs to the industry, the gas flowing through it comes through a national network, and the price you pay per unit is set by your supplier and the wholesale market. A gas-heated home remains dependent on the gas network in a way that no amount of meter-reading changes. What the habit does is remove one layer of dependence: the supplier's guesswork about your usage, and with it the estimated bills that can drift badly out of line.

Smart meters shift that balance further, sending readings automatically¹⁵, but they introduce their own dependence: on the communications link, on the supplier's systems, and, for older meters, on compatibility after a switch⁷. The household that can still read the meter at the meter, and knows its serial number, is covered either way. For the wider picture of reducing reliance on the grid and the gas network, see how to take more control of your home's energy.