Home › States › North Carolina
Electricity rates in North Carolina
Households in North Carolina paid an average of 15.16¢ per kilowatt-hour in July 2026. That is 17% below the national average of 18.31¢, and the 16th cheapest of the 51 U.S. jurisdictions. Year over year the rate is up 13.4%.
- Average rate
- 15.16¢
- A year ago
- 13.37¢
- U.S. average
- 18.31¢
- Rank
- 16th cheapest
What common appliances cost in North Carolina
Every figure below is this state's rate applied to a stated usage assumption. Follow any row for the full breakdown.
| Appliance | kWh/year | Per month | Per year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Electric car | 3,800 | $48.01 | $576 |
| Electric water heater | 3,500 | $44.22 | $531 |
| Hot tub | 2,500 | $31.58 | $379 |
| Central air conditioner | 2,352 | $29.71 | $357 |
| Heat pump | 2,160 | $27.29 | $327 |
| Pool pump | 1,728 | $21.83 | $262 |
| Electric baseboard heater | 1,350 | $17.06 | $205 |
| Garage refrigerator | 900 | $11.37 | $136 |
| Space heater | 864 | $10.92 | $131 |
| Portable air conditioner | 845 | $10.67 | $128 |
| Electric clothes dryer | 780 | $9.85 | $118 |
| Window air conditioner | 691 | $8.73 | $105 |
| Aquarium | 591 | $7.47 | $89.64 |
| Gaming pc | 584 | $7.38 | $88.53 |
| Well pump | 548 | $6.92 | $83.00 |
| Dehumidifier | 540 | $6.82 | $81.86 |
| Air purifier | 438 | $5.53 | $66.40 |
| Refrigerator | 400 | $5.05 | $60.64 |
| Desktop computer | 400 | $5.05 | $60.64 |
| Electric oven | 333 | $4.20 | $50.45 |
| Dishwasher | 312 | $3.94 | $47.30 |
| Chest freezer | 300 | $3.79 | $45.48 |
| Game console | 219 | $2.77 | $33.20 |
| Coffee maker | 164 | $2.08 | $24.90 |
| 55-inch led tv | 164 | $2.08 | $24.90 |
| Washing machine | 130 | $1.64 | $19.71 |
| Air fryer | 126 | $1.59 | $19.10 |
| Laptop | 120 | $1.52 | $18.19 |
| Box fan | 112 | $1.42 | $17.05 |
| Electric kettle | 110 | $1.38 | $16.60 |
| Microwave | 110 | $1.38 | $16.60 |
| Incandescent bulb | 110 | $1.38 | $16.60 |
| Treadmill | 105 | $1.33 | $15.92 |
| Slow cooker | 96 | $1.21 | $14.55 |
| Hair dryer | 94 | $1.19 | $14.33 |
| Wi-fi router | 88 | $1.11 | $13.28 |
| Ceiling fan | 86 | $1.09 | $13.10 |
| 3d printer | 65 | 81.9¢ | $9.82 |
| Computer monitor | 60 | 75.8¢ | $9.10 |
| Security camera | 44 | 55.3¢ | $6.64 |
| Electric pressure cooker | 42 | 53.1¢ | $6.37 |
| Rice cooker | 42 | 53.1¢ | $6.37 |
| Electric lawn mower | 42 | 52.6¢ | $6.31 |
| Electric blanket | 38 | 48.5¢ | $5.82 |
| Vacuum cleaner | 36 | 45.5¢ | $5.46 |
| Toaster | 35 | 44.3¢ | $5.31 |
| Smart speaker | 26 | 33.2¢ | $3.98 |
| Clothes iron | 16 | 20.8¢ | $2.50 |
| Led bulb | 16 | 20.8¢ | $2.49 |
| String of christmas lights | 7 | 8.5¢ | $1.02 |
The largest single line item on this list in North Carolina is an electric car at $576 a year. The whole list together comes to $4,278 a year, though few households run all of them.
The average North Carolina household's bill was $143.50 a month in 2024. Why it is that number.
The same figures come as a printable North Carolina Home Energy Cost Workbook, with worksheets for auditing and tracking your own usage. See what is in it — the California edition is free to download.
Questions
- What is the average electricity rate in North Carolina?
- 15.16¢ per kilowatt-hour for residential customers in July 2026, according to EIA's Electric Power Monthly.
- Is electricity expensive in North Carolina?
- It ranks 16th cheapest of 51 U.S. jurisdictions, 17% below the national average.
- Why is my bill higher than this rate suggests?
- This is a statewide average of what customers actually paid, so it already blends in fixed charges and taxes across all utilities and plans. Your own utility, rate plan, time-of-use period and tier can each move you well away from the average.