Investor-owned utilities charge 23% more for electricity than public providers
Data analysis reveals that investor-owned utilities charge significantly higher electricity rates compared to public and cooperative providers. Prices for investor-owned utilities have also risen at a faster rate than inflation since 2020.
Why it matters
This highlights the economic impact of utility ownership models on household energy costs and inflation.
In 2025 , homes paid 17.8¢ a kilowatt-hour at investor-owned utilities, 14.5¢ at public utilities and 14.1¢ at co-ops . Since 2020 , investor-owned prices rose 34% and public ones 19% , against 24% inflation.
Change since 2020 against inflation, or cents per kilowatt-hour since 2015.
Every year since 2015 : home revenue, kWh sold, homes, price and bill by utility owner, for the US and each state, as a gzipped CSV.
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