How much is your electricity?

[Sun]

I'm just curious about rates in different places. We pay just under 5 cents per kWh for the first 10 per day and just over 10 cents per kWh for all the rest. I'm told those rates are pretty low on a national basis, but I was recently shocked to find out that a couple of hours from here the electricity is under 3 cents per kWh.

 

I'm also curious how much electricity you use (and for how many people/size of home). I'd love to get our bill down, but I'm not sure how low is realistic.

[Mrs Mungo]

We haven't received an electric bill yet since moving. But, here is a quote from an article that discusses it a bit:

A 600-kilowatt-hour bill for Oahu residential customers climbed to $200.91 this month from $195.38 in December.

 

The effective rate for electricity on Oahu this month is 32 cents a kilowatt-hour, up from 31.1 cents a kilowatt-hour last month.

[Snickerdoodle]

.

[paceofnature]

Our bill is crazy to read, but last month it was for $94.77 and we used 519 kWh...so that averaged out to 0.18/kWh. This is for a one family, 4 bedroom with gas stove, hot water and dryer. We live in MA, so no AC, but we do have fans and several computers.

[DawnM]

Around $200/mo. Some months less and some more, but we average about $200/mo. I think it is .10 per Kwh from what I can see.

 

Our electric also covers our water bill as we are on a well and water is pumped up. If our power goes out, we have no water either.

 

Dawn

[QumaCote]

Our average charges per kWh are: First 300 kWh: $0.13. From 301-400 kWh: $0.16. From 401-600 kWh: $0.27. Anything over 600: $0.31. Our electric bill is always over $300 and then we have a gas bill on top of that. The COL is quite high where we are.

[Eagle]

9 cents per kWh (there is a daily charge plus a graduated usage scale from 7 to 10, but slightly over 9 is average for our household).

[ElizabethB]

List:

http://www.neo.ne.go...atshtml/204.htm

 

Our highest per hour cost was when we lived in CA, but we were right off the beach and used A/C half a dozen times and heat 3 - 4 times in the year we were there, so we came out ahead utility wise there even with the high per hour cost.

 

I was shocked at first when I lived on my own in another state because I grew up in Washington state, the hydroelectric made it very cheap per Kilowatthour there.

[Jane in NC]

We have a base charge and then a kilowatt charge. Sort of hard to compare apples to oranges for those of you who pay KWH charges alone.

 

ETA more info: $23 base charge monthly plus 9.7 cents per KWH. I live in an area where natural gas is not an option. Most of us use electric for heating and cooling although some choose propane for the former.

[Um_2_4]

hmm... I would have to look at the bill for breakdown by kwh, but average is $35-45 per month, except in July, august when we can hit $350 (A/c running 24/7 due to 100+F temps)

 

We have gas cooking/heating, but electric water heater. we have a 4bd/3bath 2300 sq ft. Oh and lots of electronics (3 computers, several tablets/phones charging, etc). But we don't use lights much during the day, we have plenty of windows.

[Joker]

This is copied from this month's bill. It's rare for us to ever go over $100/month.

 

Fuel: $31.42

(First 1000 kWh at $0.026330)

(Over 1000 kWh at $0.036330)

Non-fuel: $67.67

(First 1000 kWh at $0.058090)

(Over 1000 kWh at $0.068440)

[vonfirmath]

If we sign up for the next 24 months, we are being quoted a fee of 9.4cents per kWH plus a $4.95 BAse Charge

[RoughCollie]

9.9 cents per KWH, plus $20 base charge.

[Crimson Wife]

Our area has this completely jacked up system where the electric company sets a "baseline" amount based on some average usage of all of the accounts in the county, lumping together tiny studio apartments housing a sole person with homes housing 5 or more family members. Since we are the latter, we ALWAYS go way over our allotted "baseline". We use on average around 20-21 kwh per day, which isn't unreasonable IMHO. But that always puts us at more than 200% of "baseline".

 

Up to baseline is $0.13/kwh

101-130% of baseline is $0.15/kwh

131-200% of baseline is $0.30/kwh

201-300% of baseline is $0.34/kwh

 

The whole system is a complete ripoff because of the way they set the baseline. The way they should do it is by figuring out an average usage per sq. ft. and then adding a certain number of kwh to the baseline for every person living in the residence.

[Kathryn]

Basic charge $9.50 per month. Then 12.3 cents per kWh for first 800, and 13.6 cents after that.

[cjzimmer1]

Well the actually electricity cost 10.991 cents per Kwh but then we pay another 3 cents per Kwh for distribution plus another 10 cents per day for low-income asst fee and another 35 cents a day for a customer charge and then another 5.5% for state and country taxes.

[Whereneverever]

Monthly charge of $13 and usage at $0.0999 per kilowatt hour.

 

[LucyStoner]

8.5 cents per kmh for the first 600 kwh. 10.3 cents per kwh for over that. The base charge is $7.25/month. Our bill here averages $60/month so that means that subtracting the base charge we use just a smidge over 600 kwh for the month (less if I bothered to take off the minimal taxes and collection for the energy assistance fund). This is about 1/3 of what the average family uses in my area per year. That said, we choose to live in small spaces and now live in well insulated just under 1000 sf one level 1st floor apartment. In our old, insufficiently insulated 1400sf and 3 level POS townhouse we needed heat from Nov-Mar or so and fans on the upper level in the winter so we used more but still much less than the average family. Here, we did not need the heat all winter using sweaters in the house and lining the windows with that winter film stuff. Aside from maybe the window film we don't do anything out of the ordinary for energy conservation. Just turn off the lights, power down the computer, be willing to add a layer before considering turning on the heat. Living in a moderate climate helps a lot, though I don't compare our usage to the nation as a whole where there are significantly more heating and cooling needs due to much hotter and much colder weather, I compare our usage to the rates of those around us. The average electric bill in our complex is about $125. They're not heating our unit as heat rises and we are thankfully on the end unit, LOL.

[Sparkle]

Our rates vary depending on the time of year. The base winter kWh is 0.091 for the first 620, then 0.17 after that. My bill for last month says my charges were $4.27/day and our kWh was 949 for the month. It'll be higher in the summer because of all the a/c use, but I can't do much to control it. It is so hot here for much of the year. In addition there is a "system infrastructure fixed charge" of $12/mo added to our bill.

[Jane in NC]

8.5 cents per kmh for the first 600 kwh. 10.3 cents per kwh for over that. The base charge is $7.25/month. Our bill here averages $60/month so that means that subtracting the base charge we use just a smidge over 600 kwh for the month (less if I bothered to take off the minimal taxes and collection for the energy assistance fund). This is about 1/3 of what the average family uses in my area per year. That said, we choose to live in small spaces and now live in well insulated just under 1000 sf one level 1st floor apartment. In our old, insufficiently insulated 1400sf and 3 level POS townhouse we needed heat from Nov-Mar or so and fans on the upper level in the winter so we used more but still much less than the average family. Here, we did not need the heat all winter using sweaters in the house and lining the windows with that winter film stuff. Aside from maybe the window film we don't do anything out of the ordinary for energy conservation. Just turn off the lights, power down the computer, be willing to add a layer before considering turning on the heat. Living in a moderate climate helps a lot, though I don't comparing our usage to the nation as a whole where there are significantly more heating and cooling needs due to much hotter and much colder weather, I compare are usage to the rates of those around us. The average electric bill in our complex is about $125. They're not heating our unit as heat rises and we are thankfully on the end unit, LOL.

 

Your post inspired me to pull out electric bills from my file. We live in a single story home in a fairly moderate climate although we are susceptible to furious summer heat and sometimes a cold month or two in winter. Certainly during spring and fall we live with open windows--at least during the day.

 

Our highest electric bill (we have a heat pump) goes back to a recent chilly January with a usage of 981 KWH. Our summer usage during the dog days can be close to 800 KWH but in the mild spring and fall we use as little as 400 KWH--particularly when I hang laundry. We too use ceiling fans, wear sweaters as well as wool slippers in winter, have electrical items on power strips that are turned off when not in use. I often bake more than one item at a time when the oven (electrical) is on or I use the slow cooker to make a batch of soup or stew.

 

I know my neighbors have higher electric bills but many of them have a second story and thus use a separate heat pump/air conditioning unit for the second floor.

 

I would like to invest in some LED fixtures to lower lighting costs even more.

[Um_2_4]

Just checked an electricity bill I could grab and we average 10kwh per day. But our usage peaks in July (avg 28kwh/day), Aug (avg 54 kwh/day) and Sept (35 kwh/day).

In those 3 months are when I see the big $$$ bills. I want to contact them about level pay soon. We have to wait till we have lived here 1 year.

[Arcadia]

We average $7~$10 per month for our 865sqft home. Stove and heater are on gas and runs at most $13 per month. I'll have to check my bill for the rate and our average usage. What I can remember is average usage is 4~5kwh/day.

ETA:

Rate is $0.08877 per kWh

[whitestavern]

If I'm reading my bill right (have to add up all sorts of charges) it looks like 31 cents per KWH. The bill is around $220 a month.

[theYoungerMrsWarde]

Dh says $0.07/kw.

[KarenNC]

np

[4kidlets4me]

We have a $38 base charge then it's .01 for the first 360kwh. 8.5 cents after that. Our average in the summer is $80 in the winter it gets as high as $300.

[TrixieB]

$25-40 per month, 1200sf house. Dh says 6-10 cents per kWh.

[Melissa in Australia]

I think it could be really hard to compare unless we know exactly what is included in the bill. here there is a kwh rate charge, and a connection charge. I know my SIL in Canada also has a distance from source of power charge (not sure what it is called) so her power per kwh LOOKS way cheaper, but here the distance from source of power is averaged across all the users and included in the kwh charge.

[MyThreeSons]

We get two bills each month -- one for the main house, and one for "the barn" -- a separate building which has its own meter (and transformer).

 

I had never really looked in detail before you asked. I don't see any indication of a different rate on a daily basis, but I just found out that the rate we pay for the barn is slightly higher than for the house -- 12.3 cents per kWh versus 11.9 cents. Not a big deal, and we use much less electricity at the barn. Dh has his office down there, so there are some lights, and either a window A/C unit or a small space heater about half of the year.

 

There is also a base fee for each bill, called a facilities charge: $12.50 per month for the barn, and $10.00 for the house. In addition, we pay $7 per month for each of two "safety lights". They are like street lights you would find in a regular neighborhood, but we're pretty rural. They are optional, but I like to have them. One is in our front yard, and one in the back.

 

Altogether, we average about $170 a month -- a little more in the summer when there is A/C running, a little less in the winter (but then our gas bill goes up).

[prairiewindmomma]

base charge + .13 kwh

[DawnM]

This was us too. In CA we didn't even have an A/C some of the time.

 

Here in NC we use A/C in the summer and heat in the winter. It is higher. Not to mention that EVERYTHING here in electric. We don't have gas and it is far more rare to have gas here than in CA.

 

List:

http://www.neo.ne.go...atshtml/204.htm

 

Our highest per hour cost was when we lived in CA, but we were right off the beach and used A/C half a dozen times and heat 3 - 4 times in the year we were there, so we came out ahead utility wise there even with the high per hour cost.

 

I was shocked at first when I lived on my own in another state because I grew up in Washington state, the hydroelectric made it very cheap per Kilowatthour there.

[Lizzie in Ma]

Don't know by kwh but ours is about $160/month running a dehumidifier, a hot tub, fans and regular stuff.

[Heather in Neverland]

My bill is entirely in Malay so I have no idea how to read it other than what we owe for last month which equates to $227 USD.

[dm379]

Ours is 27.6 cents/kwh. Plus we have to pay for the street lighting near our house which is on 24/7 and there's a flat rate additional charge of $28. Usually our bill runs about $250/month.

[Night Elf]

My house is 1800 sq.ft. My electric bill doesn't state the exact charge per kWh, but I calculated it based on a few months and we're averaging 12 cents per kWh. Our highest usage is in July and August, about 2100 kWh. Our lowest is February and March at 800 kWh. We're on a budget plan so we pay the same amount every month and it's adjusted once a year based on whether we underpaid or overpaid.

[MomtoCandJ]

Our bill is around 80 a month, it's pretty consistent. It maybe a little higher in winter when we have our well heat tape thingy plugged in. We rarely use a/c (well right now we don't have one). Now gas fluctuates a lot between winter and summer. Winter can be 100 or more but summer is less then 30

[Saraswati]

We live in El Paso - I just checked my bill, and it didn't note anything about specific charges. We don't have a flat rate fee, as I see that some people mentioned. We're a family of 5, and our house is two story, 2600 sqft with dual A/C units. We moved in this past November. Our winter bills ran about $40 per month. During the months of March, April, and most of May, the weather was nice enough to not have heating or A/C going, and our bills ran about $30 per month. We turned on the A/C units late last month, and our bill came yesterday for $90. I was expecting it to be much more, but I see that the double units are more efficient - so I was pretty pleased. I keep them at 83 degrees (the average summer temp here is about 105), and it keeps it perfectly comfortable in the house, but not chilly.

[Sun]

We average $7~$10 per month for our 865sqft home. Stove and heater are on gas and runs at most $13 per month. I'll have to check my bill for the rate and our average usage. What I can remember is average usage is 4~5kwh/day.

ETA:

Rate is $0.08877 per kWh

 

 

Wow! I can't even imagine a bill that low. Ours is typically $125-140 per month. I'd love to get it closer to $100.