To read a smart meter with A and B buttons, you normally use the A button to scroll to the right screen, then copy the number shown and ignore leading zeros and anything after a decimal point.

Basic steps (most common type)

On many UK-style smart meters that have A and B buttons under the screen, the process is:

  1. Press the A button once to wake up the screen.
  1. Press the A button repeatedly until you see either:
    • TOTAL ACT IMPORT followed by numbers and kWh (electricity), or
 * `METER INDEX` followed by numbers and `M3` (gas).
  1. Write down the numbers from left to right.
  1. Ignore:
    • Any zeros at the beginning , and
    • Any numbers after the decimal point.

That whole number is the reading you give to your supplier.

Example

If your display shows:

0011256.3 kWh

You report 11256 as your meter reading (you drop the leading zeros and the “.3”).

If it shows:

00063.5 M3

You report 63 as your gas meter reading.

What the buttons do (typical)

  • A button
    • Wakes the screen.
* Scrolls through different screens like `TOTAL ACT IMPORT`, `METER INDEX`, R01/R02, time, etc.
  • B button
    • Often used to light the screen or confirm options in menus (for example “Boost” or “Registers” on some models).
* Sometimes lets you swap between readings (like R01 and R02 on multi‑rate tariffs) after you’ve brought them up with A.

On some meters with a green A and white or grey B button, you may need to:

  • Press and hold A to wake or enter the menu.
  • Then press A again to cycle through until you see your kWh reading; B can be used to select or step through special options like “Meter Boost”.

If your screen shows multiple readings (R01 / R02)

On Economy 7 or other multi‑rate tariffs, you might see:

  • Rate 01 Act Imp (off‑peak/night)
  • Rate 02 Act Imp (peak/day)

Use the A button to move between Rate 01 and Rate 02 and write down both whole numbers if your supplier asks for both.

Example:

  • Rate 01 Act Imp 000456.7 → report 456
  • Rate 02 Act Imp 001234.0 → report 1234

Quick troubleshooting tips

  • If pressing A once doesn’t do anything, press and hold A for 2–5 seconds to wake the meter.
  • If the screen goes dark quickly, you can usually press B to re‑light it on some models.
  • If you still can’t see kWh, TOTAL ACT IMPORT, METER INDEX, or M3, your meter might be a different variant and you may need the exact make/model from the front label to look up the specific instructions on your supplier’s site.

Meta description (SEO):
Learn how to read a smart meter with A and B buttons: press A to scroll to TOTAL ACT IMPORT or METER INDEX, then write down the whole number, ignoring leading zeros and decimals.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.