Electricity Rates by State

The average home in the U.S. consumes 899 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity per month. Bills vary by state and region, as cost per kWh differs, evidenced by the monthly Choose Energy electricity rates by state report. To estimate average monthly energy bills, multiply the average home’s electricity usage (899 kWh) by the cost per kWh in your state for that month.

For example, the average electricity rate in Rhode Island is 31.22 cents per kWh in this month’s report. The state’s average residential energy usage is 535 kWh per month. This amounts to an average bill of approximately $183.89 (31.22 cents x 589 kWh) that month. Find your state in the following table to check the latest average rate (shown in cents per kWh), its rank among other states, and the percentage change from the previous year.

Once again, Hawaii residents paid the highest average electricity rates in the country, with a rate of 44.28 cents/kWh. Hawaii’s average electricity rates decreased by 1.5% since last January. Nebraska paid the lowest residential electricity rates in the nation at 9.85 cents/kWh, 5.3% higher than last year.

Commercial electricity rates through the year

In many deregulated states, the open energy market is not only for residential customers. Businesses also can take advantage of pricing and plans available through an energy supplier. The average business consumes 6,019  kWh of electricity per month and received a monthly electric bill of about $747 in 2022.

Business electricity rates vary greatly by industry and function. Although homes come in all shapes and sizes, businesses have larger variations with diverse needs – from industrial buildings to small businesses. In January, for example, the average business in Idaho paid 8.64 cents per kWh. With this number, we can deduce that, on average, companies in the state paid about $520.04 that month for electricity.

Explore the Choose Energy Business Energy Index for a more in-depth look at commercial and industrial electricity rates.

Energy comes from many sources, including coal, natural gas, nuclear power, and renewables. As nonrenewable sources such as coal diminish, the need for renewable energy sources grows. Some states satisfy the country’s growing renewable energy needs with their production of wind, solar, and hydropower.

• Wind: Texas has the capacity to generate 18,500 megawatts hours of electricity through wind energy – and expects to add another 5,000 megawatts of wind generation capacity from facilities under construction.
• Solar: California’s solar farms and small-scale solar power systems generated 3,883 thousand megawatt-hours in December 2023 – the most of any state in the country.
• Hydroelectric: Washington hydroelectric power produces two-thirds of its net electricity. The largest hydro plant is located at the Grand Coulee Dam in the northern part of the state.

Find out which is the greenest state or learn more about green energy across the country.

The following states and the District of Columbia have deregulated electricity markets, meaning customers can choose the company that provides their electricity from competitive suppliers. Click on the state below to check current electricity rates in your state.

• California
• Connecticut
• Georgia
• Illinois
• Maine
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey
• New York
• Ohio
• Pennsylvania
• Texas
• Washington, D.C.

Are you a journalist or researcher writing about this topic who needs to know more about historical rates? Send us details about what you need and we’ll get back to you with an answer and a relevant quote from one of our rate experts. You should also check out the Choose Energy Data Center for more statistics and analysis centering on energy in the U.S.

Topics in the Data Center include the following:

• The cost of fueling your car with gasoline vs. electricity in your state.
• The cost of natural gas in your state.
• Your state’s carbon footprint.
• The sources of electricity in your state.
• Solar, wind, and nuclear energy generation by state.
• The cost of solar panels.