Commercial electricity
Business electricity rates, by state
Average commercial rates run from 8.02¢ per kWh in North Dakota to 48.05¢ in Hawaii, against a national average near 15.1¢. No business pays the average, though. What lands on your bill depends on which rate schedule your utility put you on — set by your peak demand and service voltage, not by your state.
State figures: EIA Electric Power Monthly, June 2026 average commercial price. Utility figures are read from filed tariffs.
Every state, cheapest first
“Choice” marks the states where a business can buy supply from a competitive supplier instead of the utility. In the rest, the utility is the only seller and your rate schedule is the only lever you have.
| State | ¢/kWh | Retail choice |
|---|---|---|
| North Dakota | 8.02 | — |
| Texas | 8.66 | Yes |
| Nebraska | 8.82 | — |
| Nevada | 9.83 | Yes |
| Oklahoma | 9.90 | — |
| Idaho | 9.92 | — |
| Wyoming | 10.01 | — |
| North Carolina | 10.51 | — |
| Oregon | 10.59 | Yes |
| New Mexico | 10.82 | — |
| Utah | 10.99 | — |
| Virginia | 10.99 | Yes |
| West Virginia | 11.09 | — |
| South Dakota | 11.35 | — |
| Florida | 11.47 | — |
| Arkansas | 11.54 | — |
| South Carolina | 11.62 | — |
| Louisiana | 11.64 | — |
| Washington | 11.77 | — |
| Georgia | 11.91 | — |
| Kansas | 12.27 | — |
| Kentucky | 12.40 | — |
| Arizona | 12.47 | — |
| Missouri | 12.71 | — |
| Iowa | 12.79 | — |
| Pennsylvania | 13.33 | Yes |
| Montana | 13.48 | — |
| Minnesota | 13.68 | — |
| Ohio | 13.77 | Yes |
| Mississippi | 13.83 | — |
| Tennessee | 13.94 | — |
| Wisconsin | 14.05 | — |
| Indiana | 14.15 | — |
| Colorado | 14.19 | — |
| Delaware | 14.40 | Yes |
| Illinois | 14.53 | Yes |
| Alabama | 14.67 | — |
| Michigan | 16.63 | Yes |
| Maryland | 16.84 | Yes |
| New Jersey | 18.47 | Yes |
| Connecticut | 19.62 | Yes |
| New Hampshire | 21.22 | Yes |
| Vermont | 21.22 | — |
| Maine | 22.24 | Yes |
| Rhode Island | 22.70 | Yes |
| District of Columbia | 23.38 | Yes |
| Alaska | 23.42 | — |
| New York | 23.56 | Yes |
| Massachusetts | 24.52 | Yes |
| California | 27.33 | Yes |
| Hawaii | 48.05 | — |
Why the average is the wrong number to plan with
A state average blends every utility, every rate schedule and every size of account into one figure. It tells you roughly where your state sits nationally, and nothing about what you should be paying.
Take Ohio, where we have read the filed tariffs. Four utilities, four different default supply rates, and the spread between them is wider than the gap between many states:
| Utility | Supply ¢/kWh | Demand charge |
|---|---|---|
| AEP OhioColumbus, central Ohio | 13.33 | None under 10 kW on Schedule GS-1 |
| AES OhioDayton, southwest Ohio | 10.85 | $4.77/kW from the first kW — no exemption |
| Duke Energy OhioCincinnati, southwest Ohio | 10.70 | Applies above roughly 10 kW |
| Ohio EdisonAkron, northeast Ohio | 9.38 | $19.6895 up to 5 kW, $7.5886/kW above |
The rate is half the bill
Every comparison site quotes a supply rate, because supply is what they can sell you. The other half — delivery — is regulated, comes from your utility whoever supplies you, and on a commercial account it carries charges a residential bill never sees.
- Customer charge. A fixed monthly amount before a single kilowatt-hour. Ohio Edison's Rate GS charges $7.00; Duke's Rate DS charges $23.00 single phase and $46.00 three phase.
- Demand charge. Billed per kilowatt of your highest interval, not per kilowatt-hour. On many commercial accounts it is larger than the supply charge, and switching supplier does not touch it.
- Riders. Line items added by tariff for transmission, capacity and recovery. They move independently of the rate you signed.
This is why the honest answer to “what should I be paying?” is not a cents-per-kWh figure. It is your usage priced under every rate schedule your utility offers.
Send us a bill and we will price your usage against every schedule your utility files with the regulator, and tell you which one you should be on. If you are already on the cheapest, we will tell you that.
Send my billFree, and we don’t take commissions from suppliers.
Related: how demand charges work, why a bill rises without usage changing, or the same data on a map.
Common questions
What is the average business electricity rate?
About 15.1¢ per kWh across the 50 states, from EIA data — ranging from 8.02¢ in North Dakota to 48.05¢ in Hawaii. But no business pays the average: it blends every rate schedule, every utility and every size of account in the state.
Why is my rate different from my state's average?
Because the average is an average. Your utility sets its own tariff, and within that utility your rate schedule depends on your peak demand and service voltage. Two businesses on the same street with the same usage can pay different rates if they are on different schedules.
What's the difference between the supply rate and what I actually pay?
The supply rate is the electricity itself, and in a deregulated state you can shop it. Your bill also carries delivery — the customer charge, distribution, demand charges and riders — which is regulated and comes from your utility regardless of who supplies you. Divide your total bill by your kWh to see what you really pay.
Can businesses choose their electricity supplier?
In deregulated states, yes — 19 states plus DC have retail choice for commercial customers. In regulated states the utility is the only option, and the only lever is which rate schedule you're on.
Are business electricity rates lower than residential?
Usually per kWh, yes, because commercial service is delivered at higher voltage and in larger volumes. But commercial bills carry demand charges that residential bills don't, so a business with a spiky load can end up paying more per kWh all-in than a house.
How do I get a lower business electricity rate?
Two levers, and most advice only mentions one. Shop the supply half if your state is deregulated. Then check whether you're on the right rate schedule for your usage — that one is regulated, nobody sells it to you, and the utility will not move you unless you ask.