Electric bill calculator
Estimate your monthly electric bill from your usage and your state's current residential rate.
Enter your monthly kWh usage from your most recent bill. The default of 900 kWh is close to the US household average, but usage varies widely by home size, climate, and appliances.
The fixed monthly fee covers service charges and customer fees that appear on your bill regardless of usage. Check your bill for a line labeled "customer charge," "service charge," or "meter charge" and enter it here.
Select your state to use the EIA average residential rate for that area. Rates differ substantially by state: as of the EIA's 2026-03 data, Hawaii (42.23 c/kWh) and Maryland (35.85 c/kWh) are the most expensive states, while North Dakota (11.95 c/kWh) and Idaho (13.01 c/kWh) are the cheapest. If your bill shows a specific energy charge, use that instead for the closest estimate.
This calculator is most useful for comparing scenarios: what would your bill look like if you cut usage by 10%? What is the annual cost of your current usage? The yearly figure multiplies the monthly estimate by 12, so it assumes consistent usage across all months. Seasonal variation means your actual yearly total may differ.
Estimated bill = (kWh per month x rate in dollars per kWh) + fixed monthly fee. Rates are EIA average residential retail prices for period 2026-03, retrieved from the EIA Open Data API. This is a single-rate estimate; tiered tariffs, taxes, and delivery charges are not modeled.
Full formulas and data sources are on the methodology page.
Frequently asked questions
- What is a kWh and how do I find my monthly usage?
- A kilowatt-hour (kWh) is the standard unit utilities use to measure electricity consumption. Your bill will show total kWh used in the billing period, usually in a summary section near the top or in a usage history chart.
- Why does this estimate differ from my actual bill?
- This calculator applies a single per-kWh rate and a flat fixed fee. Most real bills also include tiered rates (where higher usage costs more per kWh), taxes, delivery charges, and fuel adjustments that vary by utility. The estimate is a useful guide, not a quote.
- Where does the rate come from, and can I use my own?
- State rates are EIA average residential retail prices for period 2026-03. For a more accurate estimate, find the energy charge on your bill and type it into the custom rate field.