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Why is my electric bill so high?

A bill is kilowatt-hours times the price per kWh, plus fixed charges. In 2025 the average US home used 874 kWh a month and paid $150.681; over the last 12 months prices ran 6.5%4 above the year before. A high bill almost always comes from more use, a higher price, or both.

Published November 14, 2026.

Start with the two numbers on your bill

Every residential bill comes down to kilowatt-hours used and what each one cost, plus a monthly fixed charge. Find the kWh for the billing period (most bills also show the last 12 months) and divide the total bill by it. The result is your own average price per kWh, the same measure EIA uses for states and utilities. Then compare each number with last year and with your area.

If your kWh rose, the cause is use: weather, a new appliance, more people at home, an older heat pump. If your price per kWh rose on similar use, the cause is the rate: a rate increase, a fuel adjustment or a supplier price. Usually it is some of each.

Reason 1: more kilowatt-hours

Use differs enormously between homes and between states. The average home in Louisiana used 1,225 kWh a month in 2025; in California, 494 kWh1. Air conditioning, electric heating and electric water heating explain most of the difference. Nationally, air conditioning took 19% of household electricity in EIA's 2020 survey, space heating 12% and water heating 12%2; in the Census Bureau's 2025 survey, 41.8%3 of US homes heated mainly with electricity.

What US homes use electricity for (2020 survey)
United States

Source: EIA, Residential Energy Consumption Survey 2020, state data. Share of household electricity by end use in 2020, the latest Residential Energy Consumption Survey with state estimates (a pandemic year; RECS 2024 consumption data are due in spring 2027). "Everything else" covers lighting, cooking, laundry, electronics and other appliances.

Show the numbers
Air conditioningSpace heatingWater heatingRefrigeratorsEverything else
United States19%12%12%8%48%

The same home can use twice as much in one month as in another. Over the last 12 months, US use per home ranged from 678 kWh in April 2026 to 1,160 kWh in July 2026. In August 2026, the average residential bill was $209.23 on 1,152 kWh4, well above the annual average.

Electricity use per home each month, United States (Sep 2025 to Aug 2026)

Source: EIA, Electric Power Monthly / EIA-861M sales and revenue by state. Residential kWh sold per customer in each month. The table adds that month's average residential price. Monthly EIA data through August 2026 (released October 23, 2026); months since January 2026 are preliminary.

Show the numbers
MonthkWh per customerResidential ¢/kWh
September 202587118.05¢
October 202573517.95¢
November 202570117.77¢
December 202589317.11¢
January 20261,00317.45¢
February 202688817.65¢
March 202674918.60¢
April 202667818.86¢
May 202673618.44¢
June 202693018.34¢
July 20261,16018.31¢
August 20261,15218.16¢

Reason 2: a higher price per kWh

Prices have risen almost everywhere. The US residential average went from 13.15¢ per kWh in 2020 to 17.23¢ per kWh5 in 2025, and over the last 12 months it was 18.04¢ per kWh4. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's 2026 review estimates that the average residential bill rose by about $4806 a year between 2019 and 2025 and lists the drivers that differ by region: fuel and wholesale power costs, distribution and transmission spending, capacity costs, storm and wildfire recovery.

US residential price by month since 2021
US residential price by month since 202110¢12¢14¢16¢18¢202120222023202420252026

Source: EIA, Electric Power Monthly / EIA-861M sales and revenue by state. Average revenue per kWh (all charges, nominal dollars), each month; summer and winter months differ by season. Monthly EIA data through August 2026 (released October 23, 2026); months since January 2026 are preliminary.

Show the numbers
PeriodUnited States (¢/kWh)
Jan 202112.62¢
Feb 202113.01¢
Mar 202113.24¢
Apr 202113.73¢
May 202113.86¢
Jun 202113.83¢
Jul 202113.83¢
Aug 202113.92¢
Sep 202114.14¢
Oct 202114.06¢
Nov 202114.07¢
Dec 202113.72¢
Jan 202213.64¢
Feb 202213.76¢
Mar 202214.41¢
Apr 202214.57¢
May 202214.89¢
Jun 202215.30¢
Jul 202215.31¢
Aug 202215.82¢
Sep 202216.19¢
Oct 202215.99¢
Nov 202215.55¢
Dec 202214.94¢
Jan 202315.47¢
Feb 202315.98¢
Mar 202316.04¢
Apr 202316.10¢
May 202316.14¢
Jun 202316.09¢
Jul 202315.86¢
Aug 202315.91¢
Sep 202316.27¢
Oct 202316.48¢
Nov 202316.19¢
Dec 202315.69¢
Jan 202415.41¢
Feb 202416.10¢
Mar 202416.67¢
Apr 202416.86¢
May 202416.40¢
Jun 202416.38¢
Jul 202416.62¢
Aug 202416.60¢
Sep 202416.82¢
Oct 202417.09¢
Nov 202416.85¢
Dec 202416.27¢
Jan 202515.92¢
Feb 202516.40¢
Mar 202517.03¢
Apr 202517.20¢
May 202517.33¢
Jun 202517.44¢
Jul 202517.39¢
Aug 202517.57¢
Sep 202518.05¢
Oct 202517.95¢
Nov 202517.77¢
Dec 202517.11¢
Jan 202617.45¢
Feb 202617.65¢
Mar 202618.60¢
Apr 202618.86¢
May 202618.44¢
Jun 202618.34¢
Jul 202618.31¢
Aug 202618.16¢

The increase was far from even. In the last 12 months the residential price rose most in the District of Columbia (+19.8%), New Hampshire (+13.8%) and Maryland (+12.7%4). Your state page and your utility's page show your own trend.

A worked example: how price and use combine

From 2024 to 2025, the average US residential bill rose +5.9%, from $142.26 to $150.68. The price per kWh rose +4.6%5 and use per home went from 863 kWh7 to 874 kWh1 a month. Most of the bill increase came from the price; a little came from use. Doing the same split with your own last two years of bills tells you which one to work on.

Reason 3: fixed charges and riders

Most tariffs add a monthly customer charge that does not depend on use, and riders that add a fixed amount per kWh for fuel, storm recovery or programs. A fixed charge makes a low-use month look expensive per kWh, and a new or larger rider can raise every bill without any change in the base rate. The fixed charges guide and the delivery vs supply guide show where to find them on a bill.

Reason 4: your supplier or plan changed

In states with retail choice, a supplier contract that ends can roll you onto a different price, and some variable plans follow wholesale prices month to month. Compare the supply price on your bill with your utility's default service price; each retail choice guide shows where the official comparison is published. On a time-of-use plan, using more at peak hours raises the bill even if total use is unchanged; see time-of-use rates.

What to do next

  1. Divide your bill by its kWh and compare the result with your state's and utility's averages.
  2. Compare kWh with the same month last year; if it jumped without a change in weather, check heating and cooling equipment and water heating first.
  3. Read the riders and fixed charges on your bill; ask your utility what changed.
  4. Estimate a normal month with the bill calculator.
  5. If the bill is unaffordable, see help paying your electric bill: LIHEAP operates in every state, and many utilities run their own programs.

Questions and answers

Why is my electric bill so high this month?

Most often the season. Nationally, use per home in the last 12 months peaked at 1,160 kWh in July 2026 and was lowest at 678 kWh in April 20264. Compare your bill with the same month a year earlier, not with last month.

Are electricity prices going up?

Yes. The US residential average was 18.04¢ per kWh over the last 12 months (September 2025 to August 2026), +6.5%4 against the 12 months before. In some states the rise was far larger; see the price increase ranking.

What is a normal electric bill?

EIA's average for 2025 was $150.681 a month. Households reported a median of about $169 for the previous month in the Census Bureau's 2025 survey, and 26.6%8 of them paid $250 or more. Your state's average is on its state page.

Related guides

Sources

  1. EIA-861 2025, average monthly bill by state; table Average_Bill_2025; 2025, final; released October 7, 2026. www.eia.gov
  2. EIA, Residential Energy Consumption Survey 2020, state data; table CE4.1.EL.ST, CE5 state tables, state highlights; released June 28, 2023. www.eia.gov
  3. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2025 1-year estimates, house heating fuel, table B25040; 2025; released October 29, 2026. data.census.gov
  4. 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
  5. EIA, Historical state data, annual sales, revenue and customers; table HS861 2010-.xlsx; 2010-2025, final; released October 7, 2026. www.eia.gov
  6. Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Retail Electricity Price Trends and Drivers; table July 2026 update; 2025 data. eta-publications.lbl.gov
  7. EIA, Electric Sales, Revenue, and Average Price 2024, Table 5A; 2024 (last edition of this product); released October 7, 2025. www.eia.gov
  8. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2025 1-year estimates, table B25132; 2025; released October 29, 2026. data.census.gov

Margins of error (±) are at the 90% confidence level. A difference is called significant only when it passes the Census Bureau's test at that level. How every figure is built: methodology. Found an error? Write to [email protected]; corrections are listed on the updates page.