Abstract As highlighted by European policymakers and academic research, the global economic crisis of 2008 emphasized the energy poverty phenomenon. A number of households have had to considerably reduce their energy expenditure but the traditional criteria adopted to calculate energy poverty are not able to measure their number. Placed in this framework, the paper aims to define a new measure of hidden energy poverty suitable to identify which Italian households restrain their energy consumption due to their inability to afford energy services. A review of the available energy poverty metrics supports the definition of a new indicator that is able to include hidden energy-poor consumers considering some key peculiarities such as the poor energy efficiency of buildings, the poverty situation, low energy consumption and sensitivity to the climate. Using data from the Household Budget Survey provided by the Italian National Institute of Statistics in 2018, the newly identified indicator supports the assessment of the percentage of Italian households in hidden energy poverty and supplies useful insight to policymakers in their effort to support vulnerable consumers.