Potomac Edison in Maryland: rates, bills and outages
Potomac Edison's 252,583 default-service customers in Maryland paid an average of 15.44¢ per kWh in 2025, for an average bill of $172.04 a month on 1,114 kWh.1 Over the last 12 months (Sep 2025–Aug 2026) the average was 16.63¢, and 17.65¢ in August 2026.2 Another 5,940 homes on its wires (2.3%) buy their supply elsewhere and pay Potomac Edison delivery charges averaging 4.08¢ per kWh, plus their supplier's price.
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.
7 of 24 Maryland counties served (EIA-861 2025)
Potomac Edison's Standard Offer Service homes in western and central Maryland paid an average of 15.44¢ per kWh in 2025, the lowest of the state's large investor-owned utilities, yet their monthly bill ($172.04) was close to BGE's because they used 1,114 kWh1 a month. The average is now rising faster than at the state's other large utilities: +12.5%2 in August 20263 against the same month a year earlier.
What Potomac Edison customers pay per kWh in Maryland
The Potomac Edison Company, part of FirstEnergy, delivers electricity to 258,523 homes in Maryland, 10.5% of the state's residential customers. 252,5831 of them also bought their power from it in 2025 through Standard Offer Service, the default supply for homes without a licensed supplier. Every residential price on this page refers to that group.
| Period | Average paid by Standard Offer Service homes | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Year 2025 | 15.44¢ per kWh1 | final annual data (EIA-861) |
| Last 12 months, September 2025 to August 2026 | 16.63¢ per kWh | monthly survey, 2026 months preliminary (EIA-861M) |
| August 20263 only | 17.65¢ per kWh2 | one month, preliminary (EIA-861M) |
These are averages of revenue per kWh: what the homes were billed for supply, distribution, the monthly customer charge and riders, divided by the kWh they used, with most taxes left out. None of them is a tariff rate, and a home that uses little electricity pays more per kWh than the average because the fixed charge weighs more on a small bill.
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). Bundled (default-service) customers only.
Show the numbers
| Month | Potomac Edison (¢/kWh) | kWh per customer | Bill per customer |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 2025 | 14.80¢ | 1,717 | $254.21 |
| February 2025 | 14.84¢ | 1,403 | $208.28 |
| March 2025 | 15.14¢ | 1,057 | $160.05 |
| April 2025 | 15.13¢ | 887 | $134.15 |
| May 2025 | 15.22¢ | 772 | $117.50 |
| June 2025 | 15.71¢ | 1,063 | $167.04 |
| July 2025 | 15.57¢ | 1,317 | $205.05 |
| August 2025 | 15.69¢ | 1,007 | $157.99 |
| September 2025 | 15.83¢ | 806 | $127.63 |
| October 2025 | 16.14¢ | 794 | $128.20 |
| November 2025 | 15.92¢ | 1,039 | $165.38 |
| December 2025 | 15.76¢ | 1,529 | $240.85 |
| January 2026 | 16.54¢ | 1,684 | $278.55 |
| February 2026 | 16.49¢ | 1,534 | $252.94 |
| March 2026 | 16.56¢ | 999 | $165.51 |
| April 2026 | 16.60¢ | 881 | $146.20 |
| May 2026 | 16.60¢ | 847 | $140.56 |
| June 2026 | 17.93¢ | 885 | $158.70 |
| July 2026 | 17.59¢ | 1,314 | $231.05 |
| August 2026 | 17.65¢ | 1,112 | $196.29 |
Among the 7 Maryland utilities with 10,000 or more such homes, Potomac Edison's 2025 average was the 2nd lowest, 20.9% below the Maryland average and 13.2% below the national average for investor-owned utilities. Only Hagerstown Light Department, a municipal utility, was lower, at 11.23¢ per kWh. The three Exelon utilities were far higher: BGE 20.19¢ per kWh, Pepco 21.74¢ per kWh and Delmarva Power 21.81¢ per kWh, with the SMECO cooperative at 16.43¢ per kWh. Nationally, Potomac Edison ranked 82nd highest of 177 large utilities, close to the median of 15.07¢ per kWh1.
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) |
|---|---|
| Potomac Edison (WV) | 13.10¢ |
| Potomac Edison (MD) | 15.44¢ |
| SMECO (MD) | 16.43¢ |
| BGE (MD) | 20.19¢ |
| Pepco (MD) | 21.74¢ |
| Delmarva Power (MD) | 21.81¢ |
A low price, but a bill near BGE's
Potomac Edison's homes use more electricity than those of any other large Maryland utility except SMECO: 1,114 kWh a month in 2025, against a state average of 945 kWh, 878 kWh at BGE and 835 kWh at Pepco. The extra kWh close most of the price gap. The average bill was $172.04, while BGE's was $177.19 and Pepco's $181.581; the Maryland average bill was $184.424.
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 |
|---|---|
| Pepco (MD) | 835 |
| BGE (MD) | 878 |
| Delmarva Power (MD) | 981 |
| Potomac Edison (MD) | 1,114 |
| SMECO (MD) | 1,171 |
The bill rose from $150.21 in 2024 to $172.04 in 2025 (+14.5%), faster than the price, because use per home also went up, from 1,086 kWh5 to 1,114 kWh1 a month. Over the last 12 months (September 2025 to August 2026) it averaged $186.11 for 1,119 kWh2.
The 2025 and 2026 increases
From 2024 to 2025 the residential average went from 13.83¢ per kWh5 to 15.44¢ per kWh, a rise of 11.6%. That was more than at Pepco (+8.3%) or Delmarva Power (+7.9%), though less than at BGE (+12.7%1), and more than Maryland's statewide residential average (+9.4%6). The monthly survey shows the climb continuing into 2026: 16.63¢ per kWh for September 2025 to August 2026, and 17.65¢ per kWh in August 20263, +12.5% on August 2025. For that month the change was +8.6% at BGE, +9.3% at Pepco, +6.2% at Delmarva Power and −2.7%2 at SMECO. All 2026 figures are preliminary.
EIA's figures point away from delivery charges as the source of the 2025 rise. What Potomac Edison billed homes that buy their supply elsewhere, which covers its distribution charges only, averaged 4.08¢ per kWh in 2025, −1.0%1 on 4.12¢ per kWh5. Standard Offer Service supply is bought from wholesale suppliers through competitive bids overseen by the Maryland Public Service Commission, so it follows the regional wholesale market. Maryland is one of the PJM states, and the 2026 retail price review by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory names higher PJM capacity costs as one cause of their 2025 increases: 0.9¢ per kWh more on average wholesale costs than in 2024. It puts Maryland's 2024-to-2025 retail increase at 1.5¢ per kWh7.
Distribution charges are set in rate cases. The previous base rate case ended with the Commission's order of October 18, 2023, which allowed a little more than half of the increase Potomac Edison had requested in March 2023. A new application, filed in September 2026, is under review: the Commission lists public comment hearings in Cumberland on December 1 and online on December 8, 2026, with written comments due by December 18, 2026. The guide to rate cases explains how such decisions reach bills.
One company, two states
Potomac Edison also serves 88 counties in eastern West Virginia, where the West Virginia operation is regulated separately and supplies as well as delivers the power. The two groups of homes have moved apart.
| EIA figure | Maryland (Standard Offer Service homes) | West Virginia (all residential customers) |
|---|---|---|
| Average price, 2025 | 15.44¢ per kWh | 13.10¢ per kWh |
| Change, 2024 to 2025 | +11.6% | +4.1% |
| Last 12 months, September 2025 to August 2026 | 16.63¢ per kWh | 12.92¢ per kWh |
| August 20263 against a year earlier | +12.5% | −0.9%2 |
| Use per home, 2025 | 1,114 kWh | 1,256 kWh |
| Average bill, 2025 | $172.04 | $164.571 |
West Virginia homes used more electricity and paid less per kWh, so the two bills ended up close. Across FirstEnergy's utilities with pages here, the 2025 residential averages ran from 13.10¢ per kWh (Potomac Edison (West Virginia)) to 18.77¢ per kWh1 (FirstEnergy Pennsylvania).
Winter brings the largest bills
Potomac Edison's Maryland homes are heaviest in winter. In the 12 months September 2025 to August 2026, the lightest month was October 2025, at 794 kWh per home and an average bill of $128.20; the heaviest was January 2026, at 1,684 kWh and $278.55. BGE's heaviest month, January 2026, averaged 1,242 kWh per home. A household that budgets on the 12-month average bill, $186.112, should plan for midwinter bills well above it.
Outage minutes and major events
Including major events, a Potomac Edison customer in Maryland was without power for 399 minutes on average in 2025, more than the Maryland average of 184 minutes. Excluding major event days the figure was 174 minutes, against 80 minutes statewide, so more than half of the year's outage time came on those days. Customers had 1.30 interruptions on average, measured under IEEE 1366. On the all-events measure, BGE recorded 175 minutes, Delmarva Power 114 minutes and Pepco 104 minutes9.
Source: EIA-861 2025, reliability. EIA-861 2025 final. Average revenue per kWh is all charges divided by kWh; it is not a tariff rate.
Show the numbers
| Utility | outage minutes per customer (all events) |
|---|---|
| Pepco (MD) | 104 |
| Delmarva Power (MD) | 114 |
| SMECO (MD) | 173 |
| BGE (MD) | 175 |
| Potomac Edison (MD) | 399 |
Few homes use a supplier
On EIA's count, only 5,940 Potomac Edison homes, 2.3% of its residential customers, bought supply from a licensed supplier in 2025, fewer in share than at BGE (6.3%) or Pepco (5.0%) and against 4.8% statewide. The Maryland Public Service Commission's monthly enrollment reports show how quickly that changed: residential supplier participation across Maryland's investor-owned utilities and SMECO went from 11.6% in December 2024 to 0.46% in December 202510. Potomac Edison still delivers their power and billed them 4.08¢ per kWh on average for delivery, about $52.02 a month for 1,277 kWh; BGE's delivery-only average was 7.40¢ per kWh1.
The supplier's charges are billed on top and are not in Potomac Edison's EIA figures. Maryland homes with a supplier paid 13.27¢ per kWh1 on average for supply alone in 2025, a past average across all contracts, not an offer. The delivery-only, supply-only and Standard Offer Service averages each cover a different group of homes and a different part of the bill, so they are not added together or compared directly. Retail choice in Maryland explains how switching works.
Time-of-use and rooftop solar
2,201 Potomac Edison homes in Maryland, 0.9% of those on its wires, were enrolled in a time-varying rate in 2025, of the type EIA records as time-of-use11. That is a different arrangement from the peak-day rebates on which most BGE, Pepco and Delmarva Power homes are enrolled: a time-of-use rate charges more for power used in peak hours. The time-of-use guide explains how such rates change a bill; the hours and prices are in Potomac Edison's Maryland tariff.
The company counted 8,752 residential net-metered solar installations in Maryland in 2025, totalling 82.7 megawatts, or 33.9 per 1,000 customers. Pepco's Maryland territory had 71.111 per 1,000.
Where Potomac Edison delivers
EIA's service-territory records list Potomac Edison in 7 Maryland counties: Allegany County, Carroll County, Frederick County, Garrett County, Howard County, Montgomery County and Washington County. It is the only distribution utility reporting service in 2 of them; in the other 58, at least one other utility also reports customers. The company's own service map, not the county or ZIP code, decides which utility serves an address.
Source: EIA-861 2025, service territory; Census Bureau, Cartographic boundary file, counties. EIA-861 2025 service territory: 7 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 |
|---|---|
| Allegany County | none |
| Carroll County | BGE |
| Frederick County | Thurmont Municipal Light Co |
| Garrett County | none |
| Howard County | BGE |
| Montgomery County | BGE, Pepco |
| Washington County | Hagerstown Light Department, Town of Williamsport |
Business customers and help with bills
Potomac Edison's commercial customers in Maryland paid 15.94¢ per kWh on average in 2025, and its 1,089 industrial accounts 16.91¢ per kWh, both above the 15.44¢ per kWh of Standard Offer Service homes. Across all its Maryland customers the average was 15.54¢ per kWh1. Maryland received $84.8 million13 in federal LIHEAP funds for fiscal 2026; the guide to help paying electric bills lists the programs.
Potomac Edison Maryland: reader questions
What are Potomac Edison's electric rates per kWh in Maryland?
Residential customers on Standard Offer Service paid an average of 15.44¢ per kWh1 in 2025, 16.63¢ per kWh over the last 12 months (September 2025 to August 2026) and 17.65¢ per kWh2 in August 20263; 2026 months are preliminary. Each is total residential revenue divided by kWh, so the customer charge, supply, distribution and riders are all inside it. The per-kWh lines in Potomac Edison's tariff are separate pieces and look lower.
What is the average Potomac Edison bill in Maryland?
$172.04 a month in 2025 for 1,114 kWh1, up from $150.215 in 2024. Over the last 12 months (September 2025 to August 2026) the average was $186.11, ranging from $127.63 in September 2025 to $278.55 in January 20262.
Is Potomac Edison raising rates in 2026?
EIA's monthly data show the average still climbing: 17.65¢ per kWh in August 20263, +12.5%2 on August 2025 (preliminary). Separately, a request to raise distribution rates, filed in September 2026, is before the Maryland Public Service Commission, with public comment hearings in December 2026; the Commission had not ruled on it as of November 2026.
Why is Potomac Edison cheaper in West Virginia than in Maryland?
The same company operates under two state commissions, with separate tariffs and supply arrangements. In 2025 its West Virginia homes paid 13.10¢ per kWh on average and its Maryland Standard Offer Service homes 15.44¢ per kWh; in West Virginia the company also supplies the power, and EIA counted 0.0%1 of that state's homes buying from a competitive supplier in 2025.
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, 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-861 2025, average monthly bill by state; table Average_Bill_2025; 2025, final; released October 7, 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, Historical state data, annual sales, revenue and customers; table HS861 2010-.xlsx; 2010-2025, final; released October 7, 2026. www.eia.gov
- Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Retail Electricity Price Trends and Drivers; table July 2026 update; 2025 data. eta-publications.lbl.gov
- EIA-861 2025, service territory; table Service_Territory_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
- Maryland PSC, Electric Choice Enrollment monthly reports; September 2026. psc.maryland.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
- 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.