Should I ask a broker how they are paid?

Yes. It is reasonable to ask how the broker is compensated, whether that compensation differs between the retailers presented, and whether every offer received is being shown.

Do brokers review distribution and transmission charges?

Most do not. Broker compensation comes from placing supply contracts, and delivery charges are outside that transaction.

How much does an energy broker cost an Alberta business?

Q: How much does an energy broker cost an Alberta business?

Typically nothing directly. Brokers are paid by the retailer they place the business with, through a margin built into the contracted rate, so the cost sits inside the price rather than on an invoice.

Short answer: Normally nothing directly — the broker is paid by the retailer they place you with, as a margin built into the rate you sign. So the service is free to you at the point of use, but the cost exists inside your price, and it is entirely fair to ask how it is structured and whether it differs between the offers you are shown.

Last updated September 12, 2026.

How the money moves

The broker takes your load to several retailers.
Each retailer quotes a price that includes a margin for the broker.
You sign. The retailer bills you and pays the broker from that margin.

This is the same structure as commercial insurance or a mortgage broker. It is not improper. It
does mean two things are true at once: the advice is genuinely free to you, and the person giving it
is paid only if you sign something.

The questions worth asking

How are you paid on this deal?
Does that payment differ between the retailers you are showing me?
Are you showing me every offer you received, or a shortlist?
What happens at renewal — do you get paid again, and does my rate change automatically?
Who looks at the delivery half of my bill?

A broker who answers all five straightforwardly is worth having. The last one is the interesting
question, because for most brokers the honest answer is “nobody”.

Where the structure gets awkward

A broker earns on placement. If the right answer for your business is “stay where you are and fix
your billing demand instead”, that answer pays them nothing. We are not immune to incentives either
— but because we can supply you, broker you, or simply review your delivery charges and leave
your supply alone, we are not forced into one answer before we have seen your bill.

Our Energy Cost Audit is free and carries no obligation. If your current
arrangement is already good, that is a legitimate outcome and we will say so in writing.

Book a free Energy Cost Audit

Send us one recent electricity bill and one natural gas bill. We review both halves — the
energy you buy and the delivery charges you are billed to receive it — and come back with a
written summary of what we found and what, if anything, is worth changing. No cost, no obligation,
and no requirement to switch anything.

Upload your bills — free Energy Cost Audit

Prefer email? Send your bills to
info@getenergy.ca, or call
(780) 665-4771, Monday to Friday 9 AM–5 PM.

More for Alberta businesses

Energy prices move every week. Our Alberta
Energy Market Report tracks wholesale power prices, the natural gas reference price and retail
rate movement every Monday.

Get Energy is an Alberta competitive retailer and energy broker serving
residential, small business, farm and commercial consumers. Get Energy is a tradename of Utility
Network & Partners Inc.