Here Are the Average Electricity Costs in the US by Month — Some May Surprise You

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With winter just around the corner, many Americans are bracing for high heating bills. The National Energy Assistance Directors Association estimates that prices for home heating this winter will rise by about 10.5% year-over-year. The projected U.S. average for heating bills is $982 this winter, up from $889 last winter — an increase of nearly $100 that might be hard to fit into your budget.

For many U.S. households, overall utility costs spike during the winter because of high gas bills. But that’s not the case with electricity bills. You’re more likely to see these peak during warmer months, according to a study from Payless Power.

Surprisingly, the months with the highest average electricity bills in the United States don’t fall during the dead of summer or winter. Instead, they fall during the transitional months of May and September, when many parts of the country have moderate temperatures, and residents are more likely to open their windows than blast the air conditioning.

Electricity Costs by Month

For its study, Payless Power accessed data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration and analyzed the annual average residential electricity cost per kilowatt hour (kWh) by state from 2010 to 2023. It also looked at the monthly residential electricity cost per kWh by state over the same period, as well renewable energy trends.

Here are the average electricity costs in the U.S. by month, based on cost per kWh:

• January: 12.45 cents
• February: 12.75 cents
• March: 13.0 cents
• April: 13.2 cents
• May: 13.38 cents
• June: 13.23 cents
• July: 13.23 cents
• August: 13.31 cents
• September: 13.38 cents
• October: 13.18 cents
• November: 13.08 cents
• December: 12.66 cents

As Payless Power noted, seasonal electricity costs are influenced by factors such as weather patterns and regional energy demand. So why are costs higher during transitional months like May and September than they are during the hottest or coldest months? The reason is that transitional months “often bring unpredictable temperature swings, requiring more energy to heat or cool homes as temperatures shift quickly,” Payless Power wrote.

Not all states have the same patterns, however. For example, July is the most expensive month for electricity in Alaska. In Florida, the most expensive month is February, while April is the most expensive month in both Massachusetts and Texas.

Most and Least Expensive States

The states with the highest electricity bills throughout the year tend to be concentrated in the Northeast, with a few exceptions. Here are the 10 most expensive per kWh:

1. Hawaii: 33.89 cents
2. Connecticut: 21.1 cents
3. Alaska: 20.53 cents
4. Massachusetts: 20 cents
5. New Hampshire: 19.38 cents
6. Rhode Island: 19.36 cents
7. New York: 19.02 cents
8. California: 19 cents
9. Vermont: 17.92 cents
10. Maine: 17.23 cents

In contrast, the states with the lowest electricity bills are mainly in the South and Midwest:

1. Washington: 9.37 cents
2. Idaho: 9.65 cents
3. North Dakota: 9.85 cents
4. Louisiana: 9.88 cents
5. Arkansas: 10.13 cents
6. Oklahoma: 10.37 cents
7. Utah: 10.37 cents
8. Nebraska: 10.47 cents
9. Kentucky: 10.56 cents
10. Tennessee: 10.64 cents

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