Electricity rates — California
A household in California using 1,000 kWh a month pays about $2,032.08 a year on the cheapest of 59 generally available plans — Residential Service from City of Redding, California (Utility Company). Rates checked September 2, 2026. A further 56 schedules are published but restricted — means-tested, closed to new customers, or needing particular equipment — and they are priced further down.
Cheapest 25 of 115 priced plans, 1,000 kWh/mo
| Plan | Per year | vs cheapest | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|
| Residential Smart Pricing Pilot Weekday Value Plan - Single Phase (Closed)time-of-use · closed to new customers | $1,523.19 | −$508.89 | 12.7¢ |
| Residential Lifeline Rate Discounttiered · lifeline rate | $1,620.36 | −$411.72 | 13.5¢ |
| Residential TOD (Option B - Currently Closed)time-of-use · closed to new customers | $1,636.05 | −$396.03 | 13.6¢ |
| Residential Service✓ cheapestflat rate | $2,032.08 | — | 16.9¢ |
| Residential Smart Pricing Pilot Weekday Value Plan - Three Phase (Closed)time-of-use · closed to new customers | $2,038.59 | +$6.51 | 17.0¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region P; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $2,128.23 | +$96.15 | 17.7¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region R; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $2,152.38 | +$120.30 | 17.9¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region W; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $2,168.93 | +$136.85 | 18.1¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region S; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $2,177.41 | +$145.33 | 18.1¢ |
| E-6 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region Y; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $2,188.30 | +$156.22 | 18.2¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region X; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $2,204.77 | +$172.69 | 18.4¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region Y; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $2,247.66 | +$215.58 | 18.7¢ |
| R-2 Low-Income Residential Servicetime-of-use · tiered · low-income rate | $2,297.04 | +$264.96 | 19.1¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region V; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $2,418.08 | +$386.00 | 20.2¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region Q; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $2,419.28 | +$387.20 | 20.2¢ |
| Residential Service (R1A): Zone 1 - Tier 1 (Less than 350 kWh)time-of-use · a single tier of a larger tariff | $2,460.99 | +$428.91 | 20.5¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region T; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $2,584.02 | +$551.94 | 21.5¢ |
| E-7 -Residential Time of Use Baseline Region Z; Closed Ratetime-of-use · tiered · closed to new customers | $2,597.62 | +$565.54 | 21.6¢ |
| REV-1 Experimental Electric Vehicle Programtime-of-use · tiered · experimental | $2,616.48 | +$584.40 | 21.8¢ |
| Residential Multi-Family (R-3)time-of-use · demand charge | $2,638.48 | +$606.40 | 22.0¢ |
| Residential Time of Use (R1B)time-of-use | $2,859.14 | +$827.06 | 23.8¢ |
| E-TOU Option A - Residential Time of Use Service Baseline Region Wtime-of-use · tiered | $2,921.61 | +$889.53 | 24.3¢ |
| E-TOU Option B - Residential Time of Use Service (All Baseline Regions)time-of-use | $2,924.44 | +$892.36 | 24.4¢ |
| E-TOU Option A - Residential Time of Use Service Baseline Region Rtime-of-use · tiered | $2,925.59 | +$893.51 | 24.4¢ |
| Residential Service (R1A): Zone 2time-of-use · tiered | $2,930.88 | +$898.80 | 24.4¢ |
90 further schedules are published and priced but not listed here — mostly regional and seasonal variants of the plans above. The dearest of them costs $6,045.96 a year at this usage.
Cost across usage levels
The cheapest plan at each consumption level, showing whether the ranking holds as usage changes.
- 500 kWh/mo — cheapest $1,106.04 (Residential Service), dearest $2,937.17, a $1,831.13 spread
- 1,000 kWh/mo — cheapest $2,032.08 (Residential Service), dearest $6,045.96, a $4,013.88 spread
- 2,000 kWh/mo — cheapest $3,884.16 (Residential Service), dearest $12,263.52, a $8,379.36 spread
What a typical bill costs
At 1,000 kWh a month the 115 priceable plans here run from $2,032.08 on Residential Service to $6,045.96 on DR - Coastal Baseline Region, with a median of $4,792.30.
The spread is $4,013.88 a year — about $334.49 a month for identical electricity.
Effective rates, bill divided by kilowatt-hours, span 16.9¢ to 50.4¢ per kWh at that usage.
What each provider costs
5 utilities serve customers across California in this data. At 1,000 kWh a month the cheapest of them is City of Redding, California (Utility Company) at $2,032.08 a year on Residential Service; the dearest is San Diego Gas & Electric Co at $4,884.18.
That is $2,852.10 a year between the best each provider offers — and unlike a choice of plan, it is not a choice at all. Which utility serves an address is fixed by the service territory.
Cheapest available plan by provider: City of Redding, California (Utility Company) $2,032.08; Los Angeles Department of Water & Power $2,638.48; Pacific Gas & Electric Co $2,921.61; City & County of San Francisco (Utility Company) $3,281.46; San Diego Gas & Electric Co $4,884.18.
How the answer changes with usage
Residential Service is cheapest at every level tested — $1,106.04 a year at 500 kWh a month, $3,884.16 at 2,000 kWh.
The penalty for a poor choice grows with usage: $1,831.13 a year at 500 kWh against $8,379.36 at 2,000 kWh.
How these plans are structured
Of 115 priceable plans: 98 tiered, 113 time-of-use, 1 with demand charges, 1 flat-rate.
Fixed monthly charges run from $0.79 to $62.95.
Who provides these plans
These plans come from 6 utilities: City & County of San Francisco (Utility Company), City of Redding, California (Utility Company), Los Angeles Department of Water & Power, Pacific Gas & Electric Co, Sacramento Municipal Utility District, San Diego Gas & Electric Co.
The largest saving available here
Moving from DR - Coastal Baseline Region to Residential Service saves $4,013.88 a year at 1,000 kWh a month, with no change in consumption.
What this does not cover
113 of these plans price by hour. WattClear does not know which hours a household uses, so those estimates carry lower confidence and say so on the figure.
New to these terms? The methodology page explains tiered bands, time-of-use periods and fixed charges, and sets out exactly what the rate engine assumes.
Estimate — your actual bill may differ.
Tariff structures from NREL/OpenEI Utility Rate Database (CC0 1.0), retrieved September 2, 2026.
Location resolved through the US Census Bureau Geocoder (Public domain) at 40.5865, -122.3917.