Methodology

This page explains how Home & Bills calculates the numbers you see on our pages.

Electricity bills and rates

Company-level electricity figures come from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), Form EIA-861, annual data for 2024. For each electric company and state:

• Average monthly bill = residential revenue ÷ residential customers ÷ 12 months.
• Average rate = residential revenue ÷ residential kilowatt-hours sold, shown in cents per kWh.
• Average usage = residential kWh sold ÷ customers ÷ 12.

We list companies with 50,000 or more residential customers, which together serve about 88% of U.S. households.

What “bill covers” means

• Full bill: regulated utilities that supply and deliver electricity.
• Default service: in states where you can choose your supplier, the figure covers households that stayed on the utility’s own supply.
• Delivery only: Texas delivery companies (such as Oncor and CenterPoint) charge for delivery; your retail plan is billed on top.

Limits of averages

Your own bill depends on your home size, usage, plan, season and local taxes and fees. Averages are a guide for comparing places and companies, not a quote.

Other costs

Remodel, repair and home service costs use local labor wages from the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics where available. Appliance running costs use ENERGY STAR energy-use data multiplied by local electricity rates. Each article names its own sources and data year.

Updates and corrections

We refresh figures when new official data is released and show the “last verified” date on data pages. If you spot an error, please tell us and we’ll correct it.