Guide
Where is electricity cheapest in the U.S.?
In 2025, homes in North Dakota paid the least for electricity, 11.8 cents per kilowatt-hour on average, followed by Idaho (11.8) and Nebraska (12.3). Homes in Hawaii paid the most, 40.6 cents, 3.4 times as much, and the U.S. average was 17.3 cents. Nationwide, the average was 16.5 cents in 2024 and 17.3 cents in 2025.
Figures update themselves from 6 charts; newest data as of September 30, 2026.
Cheapest state, 2025
11.8 cents
Per kilowatt-hour, for homes in North Dakota
Most expensive state, 2025
40.6 cents
Per kilowatt-hour, for homes in Hawaii
U.S. average, 2025
17.3 cents
Up 102% from 8.6 cents in 2001
The cheapest and most expensive states
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Of the 50 states and D.C., electricity for homes cost least in North Dakota (11.8 cents per kilowatt-hour), Idaho (11.8), Nebraska (12.3), Louisiana (12.6) and Arkansas (12.8). It cost most in Hawaii (40.6), California (32.5), Massachusetts (30.5), Rhode Island (29.5) and Connecticut (29.4).
These are prices, not bills. A household's bill also depends on how much power it uses, so a state with cheap power but long hot summers or electric heating can still have high bills.
Prices over time
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Homes across the U.S. paid an average of 8.6 cents per kilowatt-hour in 2001, when EIA's survey starts, and 17.3 cents in 2025, in cents of the day, not adjusted for inflation. In the 12 months to September 2026, the Consumer Price Index for electricity changed 4.4%, against 3.7% for all prices.
Where the power comes from
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In 2025, natural gas made 40.8% of U.S. electricity, followed by nuclear (17.7%) and coal (16.6%). Each state's mix is different: natural gas made 87.5% of Rhode Island's electricity, and wind and solar 60.7% of Iowa's. What a state's plants run on, how far power has to travel, and how its utilities are run and regulated all shape what homes pay.
The numbers
Each year, newest first. A dash means no figure.
| Year | Cents per kilowatt-hour, residential |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 17.3 |
| 2024 | 16.48 |
| 2023 | 16.0 |
| 2022 | 15.04 |
| 2021 | 13.66 |
| 2020 | 13.15 |
| 2019 | 13.01 |
| 2018 | 12.87 |
| 2017 | 12.89 |
| 2016 | 12.55 |
| 2015 | 12.65 |
| 2014 | 12.52 |
| 2013 | 12.13 |
| 2012 | 11.88 |
| 2011 | 11.72 |
| 2010 | 11.54 |
| 2009 | 11.51 |
| 2008 | 11.26 |
| 2007 | 10.65 |
| 2006 | 10.4 |
| 2005 | 9.45 |
| 2004 | 8.95 |
| 2003 | 8.72 |
| 2002 | 8.44 |
| 2001 | 8.58 |
What these numbers can and can't tell you
Prices are EIA's average residential price per kilowatt-hour in each state, across all its utilities, for a whole year. Businesses and factories usually pay less per kilowatt-hour than homes.
The newest year's figures are preliminary, and EIA revises them. When it publishes new figures, the charts update themselves, and so does every number on this page.
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Sources
U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electricity Data Browser (retail sales) (Public domain (U.S. government work)), data as of December 31, 2025, in these charts:
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Consumer Price Index (CPI-U) (Public domain (U.S. government work)), data as of September 30, 2026, in these charts:
U.S. Energy Information Administration, Monthly Energy Review (Table 7.2a) (Public domain (U.S. government work)), data as of December 31, 2025, in these charts:
U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electricity Data Browser (net generation by state) (Public domain (U.S. government work)), data as of December 31, 2025, in these charts: