Tucson Electric Power (TEP) rates, bills and the 2025 price drop
Tucson Electric Power's 416,268 residential customers in Arizona paid an average of 14.88¢ per kWh in 2025, for an average bill of $116.62 a month on 784 kWh.1 Over the last 12 months (Sep 2025–Aug 2026) the average was 14.92¢, and 14.82¢ in August 2026.2
EIA-861 2025 final (released October 7, 2026) and EIA's monthly utility survey through August 2026 (preliminary); next monthly update expected November 24, 2026. Averages are revenue divided by kWh, all charges included: not the rate printed in a tariff.
2 of 15 Arizona counties served (EIA-861 2025)
Unlike APS and Salt River Project, Tucson Electric Power saw its residential average price fall from 2024 to 2025, by 4.8%. Its homes also used less electricity than the average US home, so the average TEP bill of $116.621 a month was the lowest of the state's three big utilities and below the national average of $150.686.
TEP's average price per kWh, by period
Tucson Electric Power Company, an investor-owned utility, served 416,268 residential customers in 2025, 13.2%1 of Arizona's total and the third-largest number in the state after APS and Salt River Project. The price below is average revenue per kWh: everything billed to homes, including the monthly customer charge and fuel and other adjustors, divided by the kWh they used. It is a blend of all TEP plans, not the charge on any one of them.
| Period | Average residential price | Average monthly bill | Use per home a month |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 (annual) | 15.63¢ per kWh | $125.10 | 800 kWh3 |
| 2025 (annual) | 14.88¢ per kWh | $116.62 | 784 kWh1 |
| Last 12 months (September 2025 to August 2026) | 14.92¢ per kWh | $119.12 | 798 kWh2 |
The latest single month in EIA's monthly survey is August 20264: TEP homes paid an average of 14.82¢ per kWh, +1.4%2 against August 2025. Monthly figures for 2026 are preliminary, and a summer month is not a guide to the year.
Where TEP sits in Arizona and nationally
Among the 12 Arizona utilities with 10,000 or more residential customers, TEP's 2025 average was the 6th highest, 2.5% below the Arizona average. It sat between its two large neighbours: APS homes paid 17.03¢ per kWh and Salt River Project homes 13.98¢ per kWh. The full Arizona range ran from 11.27¢ per kWh at Mohave Electric Cooperative to 20.56¢ per kWh1 at the City of Mesa.
Source: EIA-861 annual electric power industry report, 2025 final. EIA-861 2025 final. Average revenue per kWh is all charges divided by kWh; it is not a tariff rate.
Show the numbers
| Utility | average residential price (bundled customers) |
|---|---|
| Salt River Project (AZ) | 13.98¢ |
| Tucson Electric Power (AZ) | 14.88¢ |
| APS (AZ) | 17.03¢ |
Against the 177 US utilities with 100,000 or more residential customers, TEP ranked 86th lowest of 177, close to their median of 15.07¢ per kWh. It was 16.3% below the national average for investor-owned utilities, which was 17.78¢ per kWh1 in 2025.
A price that fell in 2025 while its neighbours' rose
From 2024 to 2025, TEP's residential average went from 15.63¢ per kWh3 to 14.88¢ per kWh (−4.8%). Between the same two years the APS average rose 3.5% and Salt River Project's 3.9%1, and Arizona's statewide residential average rose 2.3%5. EIA's data record the change, not its cause.
The average bill fell further, −6.8%, from $125.10 to $116.62, because use per home also slipped, from 800 kWh3 to 784 kWh1 a month.
The monthly series below picks up after that annual drop, with TEP's average for each month set against Arizona's; months in 2026 are preliminary.
Source: EIA-861M monthly sales and revenue by utility; EIA, Electric Power Monthly / EIA-861M sales and revenue by state. Residential revenue divided by kWh in each month, as reported to EIA's monthly survey (EIA-861M; months since January 2026 preliminary).
Show the numbers
| Month | Tucson Electric Power (¢/kWh) | kWh per customer | Bill per customer |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 2025 | 15.21¢ | 675 | $102.64 |
| February 2025 | 15.78¢ | 462 | $72.86 |
| March 2025 | 15.28¢ | 515 | $78.72 |
| April 2025 | 15.12¢ | 543 | $82.09 |
| May 2025 | 14.93¢ | 739 | $110.35 |
| June 2025 | 14.58¢ | 1,072 | $156.29 |
| July 2025 | 14.76¢ | 1,324 | $195.35 |
| August 2025 | 14.61¢ | 1,363 | $199.00 |
| September 2025 | 14.79¢ | 1,025 | $151.63 |
| October 2025 | 14.90¢ | 665 | $99.16 |
| November 2025 | 14.47¢ | 513 | $74.23 |
| December 2025 | 15.12¢ | 551 | $83.25 |
| January 2026 | 15.05¢ | 582 | $87.57 |
| February 2026 | 15.49¢ | 460 | $71.18 |
| March 2026 | 15.07¢ | 604 | $90.99 |
| April 2026 | 15.19¢ | 588 | $89.27 |
| May 2026 | 14.98¢ | 768 | $114.96 |
| June 2026 | 14.82¢ | 1,155 | $171.28 |
| July 2026 | 14.85¢ | 1,328 | $197.24 |
| August 2026 | 14.82¢ | 1,336 | $197.92 |
The rate case now before the commission
As an investor-owned utility, TEP needs the approval of the Arizona Corporation Commission to change its base rates. A general rate case is under way: according to the commission's February 2026 timeline update, the case was about halfway through the commission's process as of February 2026, and its evidentiary hearing before an administrative law judge began on April 22, 2026. The commission votes on the judge's recommended order; the filings, the recommendation and the final order are posted in the docket on the commission's eDocket site.
Rates from this case are not in the averages on this page: EIA's latest utility data run to August 20264, and the next monthly release is due on November 24, 2026.
Lower use, lower bills
What sets TEP's bills apart is consumption rather than price. A TEP home used 784 kWh a month on average in 2025, against 966 kWh at APS, 1,143 kWh at Salt River Project and 874 kWh for the average US home. So although TEP's average price sat above Salt River Project's, its average bill ($116.62) was well below both Phoenix-area utilities' ($164.54 at APS, $159.711 at SRP) and below the US average of $150.686.
Source: EIA-861 annual electric power industry report, 2025 final. EIA-861 2025 final. Average revenue per kWh is all charges divided by kWh; it is not a tariff rate.
Show the numbers
| Utility | average monthly residential use |
|---|---|
| Tucson Electric Power (AZ) | 784 |
| APS (AZ) | 966 |
| Salt River Project (AZ) | 1,143 |
These figures count only what homes buy from the utility. Electricity from rooftop panels used on site is not in them, and TEP has many solar homes (below).
February to August
Tucson's summer still dominates the bill. Across the 12 months to August 2026, use per TEP home ranged from 460 kWh in February 2026 to 1,336 kWh in August 2026, and the average bill in those two months from $71.18 to $197.92. Use at the peak was lower than at the Phoenix-area utilities: in August 2026, the average SRP home used 2,041 kWh and the average APS home 1,727 kWh2. These monthly figures are preliminary.
Source: EIA-861M monthly sales and revenue by utility. kWh per residential customer in each month (EIA-861M; months since January 2026 preliminary). The table adds the average bill and price for the month.
Show the numbers
| Month | kWh per customer | Bill per customer | ¢/kWh |
|---|---|---|---|
| September 2025 | 1,025 | $151.63 | 14.79¢ |
| October 2025 | 665 | $99.16 | 14.90¢ |
| November 2025 | 513 | $74.23 | 14.47¢ |
| December 2025 | 551 | $83.25 | 15.12¢ |
| January 2026 | 582 | $87.57 | 15.05¢ |
| February 2026 | 460 | $71.18 | 15.49¢ |
| March 2026 | 604 | $90.99 | 15.07¢ |
| April 2026 | 588 | $89.27 | 15.19¢ |
| May 2026 | 768 | $114.96 | 14.98¢ |
| June 2026 | 1,155 | $171.28 | 14.82¢ |
| July 2026 | 1,328 | $197.24 | 14.85¢ |
| August 2026 | 1,336 | $197.92 | 14.82¢ |
A household that budgets on the annual average of $116.621 should expect summer bills well above it and winter bills below.
Rooftop solar and time-of-use plans
Rooftop solar is far more common on TEP's system than in the country as a whole. In 2025 the utility counted 54,718 homes with net-metered panels, 379.9 megawatts in all: 131.4 per 1,000 residential customers. The US figure was 38.1; APS reported 148.0 and Salt River Project 59.17.
Time-of-use pricing is less common at TEP than at APS or SRP. 68,270 TEP homes, 16.4%, were on a time-of-use plan in 2025, against 58.0% at APS, 33.6% at SRP and 11.3% of US residential customers. Advanced meters, which record when electricity is used, made up 100.0%7 of its residential meters. The on-peak hours and prices of each plan are in TEP's own tariffs, not in EIA data; how a time-of-day plan shifts a bill is covered in the time-of-use guide.
Short outages
Counting every event, the average TEP customer was without power for 42 minutes in 2025, fewer than the Arizona average of 74 minutes; APS reported 73 minutes and Salt River Project 66 minutes. Leaving out major event days gives the same TEP figure, 42 minutes, so major event days added nothing to the total. The number of interruptions per customer was 0.65. Both are IEEE 1366 measures; Arizona itself was 3rd lowest8 among the states on outage minutes.
Pima and Cochise counties
EIA's 2025 service-territory records place TEP in 2 counties: Cochise County and Pima County9. In both, at least one other utility also reports customers; in Pima County one of them is Trico Electric Cooperative1. EIA publishes no city or ZIP averages, so a Tucson-area address can be served by TEP or by another utility; TEP's own service-area map decides.
Source: EIA-861 2025, service territory; Census Bureau, Cartographic boundary file, counties. EIA-861 2025 service territory: 2 counties. Counts whole counties even where the utility serves only part of one; check the utility's own service-area map for an address.
Show the numbers
| County | Other utilities reporting service |
|---|---|
| Cochise County | APS, Sulphur Springs Valley E C, Columbus Electric Cooperative, WAPA-- Western Area Power Administration |
| Pima County | APS, Trico Electric Cooperative, Sulphur Springs Valley E C, USBIA-San Carlos Project, Tohono O'Odham Utility Authority, Ajo Improvement Co, WAPA-- Western Area Power Administration |
Businesses and help with bills
TEP's 42,059 commercial customers paid an average of 14.77¢ per kWh in 2025 and its 570 industrial accounts 9.12¢ per kWh. Across all customer classes the average was 12.89¢ per kWh1.
Households struggling with summer bills can apply for federal energy assistance through Arizona's LIHEAP program. The state's fiscal 2026 allocation was $35.5 million, or $11.67 for each occupied home, the lowest11 amount per home among the states. Program rules and utility discounts are explained in the guide to help paying an electric bill. For the statewide picture, see electricity in Arizona, and for the Phoenix area, APS and Salt River Project.
TEP rates: what people ask
What is TEP's rate per kWh?
TEP has several residential plans, so no single number is its rate. EIA reports the average across all of them, revenue divided by kWh sold: 14.88¢ per kWh1 in 2025, 14.92¢ per kWh over the last 12 months (September 2025 to August 2026) and 14.82¢ per kWh2 in August 20264 (preliminary). The energy charges printed in a tariff leave out the monthly customer charge and adjustors, so they will not match these averages.
How much is the average TEP electric bill?
$116.62 a month in 2025, for 784 kWh1. In the 12 months to August 2026 the average was $119.12, ranging from $71.18 in February 2026 to $197.92 in August 20262.
Is TEP raising rates?
TEP has a general rate case before the Arizona Corporation Commission; the evidentiary hearing began on April 22, 2026. The commission's decision sets any new rates, and the docket holds the filings and the order. EIA's figures on this page cover what customers paid before any new rates.
Can I buy electricity from someone other than TEP?
No. Arizona homes have no retail choice: 0.0%1 of the state's residential customers bought from a supplier in 2025. Inside TEP's territory, TEP is the utility; its service-area map decides by address.
Related pages
Sources
- EIA-861 annual electric power industry report, 2025 final; table Sales_Ult_Cust_2025; 2025, final; released October 7, 2026. www.eia.gov
- EIA-861M monthly sales and revenue by utility; table sales_ult_cust_2025 and _2026; released October 23, 2026. www.eia.gov
- EIA-861 annual electric power industry report, 2024 final; table Sales_Ult_Cust_2024; 2024, final (file updated December 3, 2025); released December 3, 2025. www.eia.gov
- EIA, Electric Power Monthly / EIA-861M sales and revenue by state; table sales_revenue.xlsx (EPM Table 5.6.A); January 2001 to 2026-08; months since January 2026 preliminary; released October 23, 2026. www.eia.gov
- EIA, Historical state data, annual sales, revenue and customers; table HS861 2010-.xlsx; 2010-2025, final; released October 7, 2026. www.eia.gov
- EIA-861 2025, average monthly bill by state; table Average_Bill_2025; 2025, final; released October 7, 2026. www.eia.gov
- EIA-861 2025, advanced meters, dynamic pricing and net metering; table Advanced_Meters, Dynamic_Pricing, Net_Metering 2025; 2025, final; released October 7, 2026. www.eia.gov
- EIA-861 2025, reliability; table Reliability_2025; 2025, final; released October 7, 2026. www.eia.gov
- EIA-861 2025, service territory; table Service_Territory_2025; 2025, final; released October 7, 2026. www.eia.gov
- Census Bureau, Cartographic boundary file, counties; table cb_2025_us_county_5m; cb_2021_us_county_5m; 2025 (2021 for Connecticut). www.census.gov
- HHS, LIHEAP funding releases to states; table FY2027 first release; FY2026 final; FY2027 first release (October 9, 2026); FY2026 total; released October 9, 2026. acf.gov
How every figure is built: methodology. Found an error? Write to [email protected]; corrections are listed on the updates page.