Texas electric utilities

Texas Electric Utilities

In areas of Texas where electricity is deregulated, six utility companies are responsible for delivering power to homes and businesses. Your utility is determined by your location and maintains the power lines, manages the electrical infrastructure, and restores service during outages, regardless of which electricity provider you choose.

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Utility guides

Find Your Texas Utility

Pick the utility that serves your area for its delivery charges, service area, outage contacts and today's electricity rates.

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Utility vs. provider

What a Texas Electric Utility Does

In most of Texas, two companies share your electricity service. The utility, also called a TDU (transmission and distribution utility), delivers the power. It owns the poles, wires and meters that connect your home to the grid, reads your meter, restores service after outages and storms, and charges regulated delivery rates that appear on your electricity bill.

Your utility

  • Set by your address. You can't choose it
  • Owns and maintains the poles, wires and substations
  • Restores power after outages and storms
  • Installs and reads your smart meter
  • Charges regulated delivery rates that every provider passes through

Your electricity provider

  • Chosen by you, and you can switch
  • Sells you the plan and sets its energy rate
  • Sends your monthly bill, including the utility's charges
  • Sets the contract length, fees and renewal terms
  • Handles enrollment, payments and customer service

On your bill

Delivery Charges by Utility

Every utility charges a monthly fee plus a per-kWh delivery charge. Every home in a utility area pays the same delivery charges no matter which provider it uses, and they appear on the provider's bill, not a separate one. The Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) approves changes, usually several times a year. In Lubbock, the city council sets them.

UtilityPer kWhMonthlyAt 1,000 kWh
CenterPoint6.5333¢$4.90$70.23
Oncor6.8673¢$4.06$72.73
AEP Texas North5.5751¢$3.24$58.99
AEP Texas Central5.6898¢$3.24$60.14
TNMP7.7710¢$7.56$85.27
Lubbock Power & Light6.3120¢$0.00$63.12

Residential delivery charges as of October 2026, before taxes.

Why it matters

Delivery charges are already built into the price providers advertise. Every plan in your area includes the same delivery charges, so you can compare plans by their advertised price.
Compare today's rates by utility area

Your address

How To Find Your Utility

Your utility is determined by where you live, and you can't switch it. Here are the quickest ways to find out which one serves your home:

  • Check your electricity bill. It names your utility, usually near your ESI ID, the number that identifies your meter
  • Enter your address or ZIP code when you shop. Every plan offered at your address lists the utility
  • Check the address, not just the city. Some cities, such as League City, Friendswood and Lewisville, are split between two utilities

Not sure? Send us your address and we'll confirm your utility as part of your plan recommendation. Get a personalized recommendation.

When the power goes out

Who To Call for a Power Outage

Report outages to your utility, not your electricity provider. The utility owns the lines and sends the crews, so your provider can't restore power or tell you when it will be back. Stay away from downed lines and call 911 if you see one.

Most utilities also offer free outage alerts by text or email. Each utility guide explains how to sign up.

Retail choice

Where Texans Can't Choose a Provider

Not every Texan can choose an electricity provider. If one of these utilities serves your home, you buy electricity directly from it and won't find plans on Power to Choose:

  • City-owned utilities such as Austin Energy and CPS Energy in San Antonio
  • Most electric cooperatives, which serve many rural areas
  • Utilities outside the main Texas grid, including El Paso Electric and Entergy Texas around Beaumont

If plans offered at your address list one of the utilities on this page, you can choose your provider.

Your choices

Moving to a New Home in Texas

When you move, you don't set up service with the utility. You choose a provider for the new address, and the provider asks the utility to turn on service for your move-in date. Choose your plan a few days before you move so the power is on when you arrive.

Moving within the same utility area? Your utility stays the same, but your plan doesn't move with you automatically. Ask your provider whether it can transfer your plan, or use the move as a chance to compare.

Learn how to switch electricity providers

Questions

Texas Electric Utilities FAQ

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Personalized electricity guidance

Get a Personalized Electricity Recommendation

Your utility's charges are the same on every plan, so the difference comes down to the provider and the plan. Share your usage and we'll recommend the best option for your address.

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